Jaguar
Panthera onca
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Jaguars have dark yellow, black-spotted fur on their upper back and a long spotted or banded tail. Jaguars are the only spotted large cats in the New World. They usually walk on man made trails at night often living in habitat close to water. In areas with little hunting, jaguars are often seen sunning themselves on logs in the mornings. These cats are rare of absent in a lot of their native range due to over hunting for the fur trade, habitat loss, and persecution from ranchers. When their habitat is destroyed they hunt cattle that they see replacing their natural prey. Despite their status, they can be locally common in parts of Amazonia. Of all the predators, the cats are the most specialised for meat eating. They possess retractable claws to keep them sharp. And when catching prey, they hook their claws into the animal so they can deliver a piercing bite to the neck, severing the spinal cord resulting in quick death.
