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Jaguarondi portrait.jpg
Conservation status
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Family: Felidae
Genus: Puma
Species: P. yagouaroundi
Binomial name
Puma yagouaroundi
(Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1803)[3]
Jaguarundi area.png
Jaguarundi range

The jaguarundi or eyra cat (Puma yagouaroundi), is a small, wild cat native to Central and South America. In 2002, the IUCN classified the jaguarundi as Least Concern, although they considered it likely that no conservation units beyond the megareserves of the Amazon Basin could sustain long-term viable populations. Its presence in Uruguay is uncertain.[2]



Red color phase

The jaguarundi has short legs, an elongated body, and a long tail. The ears are short and rounded. The coat is without spots, uniform in color, with, at most, a few faint markings on the face and underside. The coat can be either blackish to brownish-grey (grey phase) or foxy red to chestnut (red phase); individuals of both phases can be born in the same litter. It has a total length of 53 to 77 cm (21 to 30 in) with a 31- to 60-cm-long tail, and weighs 3.5 to 9.1 kg (7.7 to 20.1 lb).[5][6][7]

The two color phases were once thought to represent two distinct species: the grey one called jaguarundi /ˌʒæɡwəˈrʌndi/ ZHAG-wə-RUN-dee,[8] and the red one called eyra.

Distribution and habitat[edit]

The jaguarundi is found from southern Texas and coastal Mexico in the north, through Central and South America east of the Andes, and as far south as northern Argentina. Its habitat is lowland brush areas close to a source of running water, and may include any habitat from dry thorn forest to wet grassland. While commonly found in the lowlands, they have been reported at elevations as high as 3,200 m (10,500 ft).[5] Jaguarundis also occasionally inhabit dense tropical areas.

Jaguarundis have also been sighted in the US state of Florida since the early 20th century. Here, the species is thought to have been introduced, but it is not known when the introduction occurred. Their presence in Florida is said to have been the work of a writer who at some point imported the animals from their native habitat and released them near his hometown of Chiefland and in other locations across the state. No live or dead specimens have been found, but many sightings considered credible by biologists have been reported. The earliest of these occurred in 1907, and was followed by various additional sightings throughout the Florida Peninsula from the 1930s through the 1950s. The first official report was released in 1942. Significantly fewer reliable sightings were reported after that, and by 1977, W. T. Neill concluded the population had declined; however, sightings have continued. Sightings of jaguarundis in the coastal area of Alabama also have been made. This may be evidence of the Florida population migrating northward.[9]


Distribution of subspecies[edit]

Ecology and behavior[edit]

Gray color phase


Although they seem to be somewhat more gregarious than many other cats, willing to tolerate the close presence of other members of their species, in the wild, they are generally encountered alone, suggesting a solitary lifestyle. Their home range is widely variable, depending on the local environment; individuals have been reported as ranging over territories from 6.8 to 100 km2 (2.6 to 38.6 sq mi). Like other cats, they scent mark their territory by scratching the ground or nearby branches, head-rubbing, urination, and leaving their faeces uncovered.[5] They are shy and reclusive, and evidently very cautious of traps.[9]




The kittens are born with spots on their undersides, which disappear as they age. The young are capable of taking solid food at around six weeks, although they begin to play with their mother's food as early as three weeks. Jaguarundis become sexually mature at about two years of age, and have lived for up to 10 years in captivity.[5]


Jaguarundis are not particularly sought after for their fur, but are suffering decline due to loss of habitat. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department has expressed concern that the presence of the jaguarundi in South Texas may be imperiled due to loss of the cat's native habitat.[11]


Jaguarundi in the Děčín zoo, Czech Republic


Taxonomy and evolution[edit]

The jaguarundi is closely related to the much larger and heavier cougar, having a similar genetic structure and chromosome count. While both species are in the genus Puma it is sometimes classified under the genus Herpailurus, and until recently both cats were classified under the genus Felis.


Studies have indicated the cougar and jaguarundi are next most closely related to the modern cheetah of Africa and western Asia,[12][13] but the relationship is unresolved. Ancestors of the cheetah have been suggested to have diverged from the Puma lineage in the Americas and migrated back to Asia and Africa,[12][13] while other research suggests the cheetah diverged in the Old World itself.[14] The outline of small feline migration to the Americas is thus unclear (see also American cheetah).


  2. ^ a b c Caso, A., Lopez-Gonzalez, C., Payan, E., Eizirik, E., de Oliveira, T., Leite-Pitman, R., Kelly, M., Valderrama, C. (2008). "Puma yagouaroundi". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2012.2. International Union for Conservation of Nature. 
  3. ^ a b "Puma yagouaroundi". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved May 17, 2010. 
  6. ^ a b Brown, D. E., and Gonzalez, C. A. (1999). "Jaguarundi (Felis yagouaroundi tolteca)". Journal of the Arizona-Nevada Academy of Science (32). pp. 155–157. 
  8. ^ Merriam-Webster Dictionary jaguarundi
  9. ^ a b Simberloff, D.; D. C. Schmitz; T. C. Brown (1997). Strangers in Paradise: Impact and Management of Nonindigenous Species in Florida. Washington, D.C.: Island Press. pp. 172–173. ISBN 1-55963-430-8. Retrieved August 11, 2010. 
  13. ^ a b Culver, M.; Johnson, W. E.; Pecon-Slattery, J.; O'Brien, S. J. (2000). "Genomic Ancestry of the American Puma" (PDF). Journal of Heredity (Oxford University Press) 91 (3): 186–97. doi:10.1093/jhered/91.3.186. PMID 10833043. 
  14. ^ Barnett, R.; I. Barnes; M. J. Phillips; L. D. Martin; C. R. Harington; J. A. Leonard; A. Cooper (2005). "Evolution of the extinct Sabretooths and the American cheetah-like cat". Current Biology (Cell Press) 15 (15): R589–R590. doi:10.1016/j.cub.2005.07.052. PMID 16085477. 

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