Margay

Last updated

Margay
Margay in Costa Rica.jpg
Margay in Costa Rica
CITES Appendix I (CITES) [1]
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Suborder: Feliformia
Family: Felidae
Subfamily: Felinae
Genus: Leopardus
Species:
L. wiedii [2]
Binomial name
Leopardus wiedii [2]
(Schinz, 1821)
Margay distribution.jpg
Distribution of the margay, 2015 [1]
Synonyms
  • Felis wiedii

The margay (Leopardus wiedii) is a small wild cat native to Central and South America. A solitary and nocturnal felid, [3] it lives mainly in primary evergreen and deciduous forest. [4]

Contents

Until the 1990s, margays were hunted for the wildlife trade, at which point the killing of the species was outlawed in most countries; however, years of persecution resulted in a notable population decrease. [5] Since 2008, the margay has been listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List, as the population is thought to be declining due to loss of habitat and deforestation. [1]

The scientific name Felis wiedii was used by Heinrich Rudolf Schinz in 1821 in his first scientific description of the margay, named in honour of Prince Maximilian of Wied-Neuwied, who collected specimens in Brazil. [6]

Characteristics

The margay is very similar to the larger ocelot (Leopardus pardalis) in appearance, although the head is a little shorter, the eyes larger, and the tail and legs longer. It weighs from 2.6 to 4 kg (5.7 to 8.8 lb), with a body length of 48 to 79 cm (19 to 31 in) and a tail length of 33 to 51 cm (13 to 20 in). Unlike most other cats, the female possesses only two teats. [7]

Its fur is brown and marked with numerous rows of dark brown or black rosettes and longitudinal streaks. The undersides are paler, ranging from buff to white, and the tail has numerous dark bands and a black tip. The backs of the ears are black with circular white markings in the centre. [7]

Distribution and habitat

The margay is distributed from the tropical lowlands in Mexico through Central America to Brazil and Paraguay. [1] In Mexico it has been recorded in 24 of the 32 states, ranging northward up the coastal lowlands and Sierra Madres as far north as of Coahuila, Nuevo Leon, and Tamaulipas on the US border in the east and southern Sonora in the west. [8] The southern edge of its range reaches Uruguay and northern Argentina. It inhabits almost exclusively dense forests, ranging from tropical evergreen forest to tropical dry forest and high cloud forest. The margay has sometimes been observed in coffee and cocoa plantations. [7]

The only record from the United States was collected sometime before 1852 near Eagle Pass, Maverick County, Texas, and it is currently considered locally extinct in Texas. [9] [10] [11] The margay's presence in the United States is considered "uncertain" by the IUCN Red List. [1]

Fossil record

Fossilized margay remains have been collected from Pleistocene deposits in Orange County, Texas along the Sabine River; like the ocelot and jaguar, it is thought to have ranged over considerable portions of southern Texas at the time. [9] Margay fossils dating to 45,475–46,157 BP are known from the Toca da Barriguda cave in Bahia, Brazil. [12] Pleistocene remains of the margay were also found in Florida. [13]

Pleistocene fossils of margay-like cats, dubbed Leopardus amnicola, have been found in Florida, Georgia and South Carolina, suggesting that they may have had an even wider distribution in prehistory. [14] [15]

Behavior and ecology

A margay photographed in Turvo State Park, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil Parque Estadual do Turvo Anderson Cristiano Hendgen (06).jpg
A margay photographed in Turvo State Park, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

The margay is a skillful climber, and colloquially it is sometimes called the tree ocelot because of this ability. It spends most of the time in trees, leaping after and chasing birds and monkeys through the treetops. It can turn its ankles up to 180 degrees, so it can grasp branches equally well with its fore and hind paws, and it is able to jump up to 12 ft (3.7 m) horizontally. [7] They also utilize their long tails to maintain balance while climbing. Morphological adaptation such as these is a strong indication that the margay is well equipped to thrive in ecosystems such as rainforests in which vegetation provides the wild with protection from possible threats. Additionally, scientists that have conducted behavioral studies on margays found that population density was higher in environments with substantial amount of trees and minimal human disturbance. [16]

Diet

Dietary studies (based on stomach-content and fecal analyses) have shown that the margay feeds on small primates (such as marmosets, tamarins, squirrel and titi monkeys), numerous birds and lizards (and their eggs and young), small snakes, tree frogs and arthropods. [17] It also hunts arboreal mammals, including Ingram's squirrel, eats grass, as well as fruits and other vegetation, most likely to help digestion. It can live and hunt its prey entirely arboreally. [18] However, margay will sometimes venture to the ground, and have been reported to hunt terrestrial prey, such agoutis, armadillos, cavies, and paca. [7]

Reproduction and lifecycle

Female margays are in estrus for four to ten days over a cycle of 32 to 36 days, during which they attract males with a long, moaning call. The male responds by yelping or making trilling sounds, and also by rapidly shaking his head from side to side, a behavior not seen in any other cat species. Copulation lasts up to sixty seconds and is similar to that of domestic cats; it takes place primarily in the trees and occurs several times while the female is in heat. [7] Unlike other felid species, margays are not induced ovulators. [19]

Gestation lasts about 80 days and generally results in the birth of a single kitten (very rarely, there are two), usually between March and June. Kittens weigh 85 to 170 g (3.0 to 6.0 oz) at birth. This is relatively large for a small cat and is probably related to the long gestation period. The kittens open their eyes at around two weeks of age and begin to eat solid food at seven to eight weeks. Margays reach sexual maturity at twelve to eighteen months of age and have been reported to live more than 20 years in captivity. [7]

Cubs suffer from a 50% mortality rate. Unless mortality rates were previously lower, this is not a factor in the population decline. Simplifying, provided a pair of cats can raise 2 kittens to adulthood in their lifetime, population would be in equilibrium. Assuming one year to reach breeding age, then as long as the cats that survive infancy reach 5 years of age on average, then the pair would produce 4 kittens, of which 2 would survive infancy, thus providing a replacement pair. Coupled with the problems they have breeding in captivity, this makes the prospect of increasing the population very difficult.[ citation needed ]

It is usually solitary and lives in home ranges of 11–16 km2 (4.2–6.2 sq mi). It uses scent marking to indicate its territory, including urine spraying and leaving scratch marks on the ground or on branches. Its vocalisations all appear to be short range; it does not call over long distances. [7]

A margay has been observed to mimic the vocalisation of a pied tamarin (Saguinus bicolor) infant while hunting. This represents the first observation of a Neotropical predator employing this type of mimicry. [20]

Taxonomy

Felis wiedii was the scientific name proposed by Heinrich Rudolf Schinz in 1821 for a zoological specimen from Brazil. [6] Felis macroura was proposed by Maximilian von Wied in 1825 who described margays that he obtained in the jungles along the Mucuri River in Brazil. [21] In the 20th century, several type specimens were described and proposed as new species or subspecies:

Results of a genetic study of margay mitochondrial DNA samples indicate that three phylogeographic groups exist. [28] Therefore, three subspecies are currently considered valid taxa: [29]

Local names

In the Spanish language, it is known as gato tigre, tigrillo, caucel, maracayá or margay. In Portuguese, it is called gato-maracajá or simply maracajá. In the Guaraní language, the term mbarakaya originally referred only to the margay but is now also used for domestic cats.[ citation needed ]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Felidae</span> Family of mammals

Felidae is the family of mammals in the order Carnivora colloquially referred to as cats. A member of this family is also called a felid. The term "cat" refers both to felids in general and specifically to the domestic cat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ocelot</span> Small wild cat

The ocelot is a medium-sized spotted wild cat that reaches 40–50 cm (15.7–19.7 in) at the shoulders and weighs between 7 and 15.5 kg on average. It is native to the southwestern United States, Mexico, Central and South America, and the Caribbean islands of Trinidad and Margarita. Carl Linnaeus scientifically described it in 1758. Two subspecies are recognized.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wildcat</span> Small wild cat

The wildcat is a species complex comprising two small wild cat species: the European wildcat and the African wildcat. The European wildcat inhabits forests in Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus, while the African wildcat inhabits semi-arid landscapes and steppes in Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, Central Asia, into western India and western China. The wildcat species differ in fur pattern, tail, and size: the European wildcat has long fur and a bushy tail with a rounded tip; the smaller African wildcat is more faintly striped, has short sandy-gray fur and a tapering tail; the Asiatic wildcat is spotted.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chinese mountain cat</span> Small wild cat

The Chinese mountain cat, also known as Chinese desert cat and Chinese steppe cat, is a small wild Felis species with sand-coloured fur, faint dark stripes on the face and legs and black tipped ears. It is endemic to the Tibetan Plateau of western China, where it lives in grassland above elevations of 2,500 m (8,200 ft). It has been listed as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List since 2002.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">African golden cat</span> Small wild cat

The African golden cat is a wild cat endemic to the rainforests of West and Central Africa. It is threatened due to deforestation and bushmeat hunting and listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List. It is a close relative of both the caracal and the serval. Previously, it was placed in the genus Profelis. Its body size ranges from 61 to 101 cm with a 16 to 46 cm long tail.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leopard cat</span> Small wild cat species

The leopard cat is a small wild cat native to continental South, Southeast, and East Asia. Since 2002 it has been listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List as it is widely distributed although threatened by habitat loss and hunting in parts of its range.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oncilla</span> Small wild cat

The oncilla, also known as the northern tiger cat, little spotted cat, and tigrillo, is a small spotted cat ranging from Central America to central Brazil. It is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, and the population is threatened by deforestation and conversion of habitat to agricultural land.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jaguarundi</span> Species of felid

The jaguarundi is a wild cat native to the Americas. Its range extends from central Argentina in the south to northern Mexico, through Central and South America east of the Andes. The jaguarundi is a medium-sized cat of slender build. Its coloration is uniform with two color morphs, gray and red. It has an elongated body, with relatively short legs, a small, narrow head, small, round ears, a short snout, and a long tail, resembling mustelids in these respects. It is about twice as large as a domestic cat, reaching nearly 360 mm (14 in) at the shoulder, and weighs 3.5–7 kg (7.7–15.4 lb).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kodkod</span> Small wild cat

The kodkod, also called güiña, is the smallest felid species native to the Americas. It lives primarily in central and southern Chile, as well as marginally in adjoining areas of Argentina. Since 2002, it has been listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List as the total population may be less than 10,000 mature individuals; it is threatened by persecution, and loss of habitat and prey base.

<i>Prionailurus</i> Genus of carnivores

Prionailurus is a genus of spotted, small wild cats native to Asia. Forests are their preferred habitat; they feed on small mammals, reptiles and birds, and occasionally aquatic wildlife.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geoffroy's cat</span> Small wild cat

Geoffroy's cat is a small wild cat native to the southern and central regions of South America. It is about the size of a domestic cat. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List because it is widespread and abundant over most of its range.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Felinae</span> Subfamily of Felidae

Felinae is a subfamily of the Felidae and comprises the small cats having a bony hyoid, because of which they are able to purr but not roar. Other authors have proposed an alternative definition for this subfamily, as comprising only the living conical-toothed cat genera with two tribes, the Felini and Pantherini, and excluding the extinct sabre-toothed Machairodontinae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Felid hybrids</span> Hybrid carnivore

A felid hybrid is any of a number of hybrids between various species of the cat family, Felidae. This article deals with hybrids between the species of the subfamily Felinae.

<i>Leopardus</i> Genus of felines native to the Americas

Leopardus is a genus comprising eight species of small cats native to the Americas. This genus is considered the oldest branch of a genetic lineage of small cats in the Americas whose common ancestor crossed the Bering land bridge from Asia to North America in the late Miocene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">African wildcat</span> Small wild cat

The African wildcat is a small wildcat species with sandy grey fur, pale vertical stripes on the sides and around the face. It is native to Africa, West and Central Asia, and is distributed to Rajasthan in India and Xinjiang in China. It inhabits a broad variety of landscapes ranging from deserts to savannas, shrublands and grasslands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pampas cat</span> Small wild cat

The Pampas cat is a small wild cat native to South America. It is listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List as habitat conversion and destruction may cause the population to decline in the future.

The Pantanal cat is a Pampas cat subspecies, a small wild cat native to South America. It is named after the Pantanal wetlands in central South America, where it inhabits mainly grassland, shrubland, savannas and deciduous forests.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cats in the United States</span> Overview of the role and status of cats in the United States of America

Many different species of mammal can be classified as cats (felids) in the United States. These include domestic cat, of the species Felis catus; medium-sized wild cats from the genus Lynx; and big cats from the genera Puma and Panthera. Domestic cats vastly outnumber wild cats in the United States.

<i>Leopardus guttulus</i> Small wild cat

Leopardus guttulus, the southern tigrina or southern tiger cat, is a small wild cat species native to Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 de Oliveira, T.; Paviolo, A.; Schipper, J.; Bianchi, R.; Payan, E. & Carvajal, S.V. (2015). "Leopardus wiedii". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2015: e.T11511A50654216. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-4.RLTS.T11511A50654216.en . Retrieved 16 January 2022.
  2. 1 2 Wozencraft, W. C. (2005). "Species Leopardus wiedii". In Wilson, D. E.; Reeder, D. M. (eds.). Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Johns Hopkins University Press. pp. 539–540. ISBN   978-0-8018-8221-0. OCLC   62265494.
  3. ↑ Petersen, M. K. (1977). "Behaviour of the margay". In R. L. Eaton (ed.). The world's cats, Vol. 3 (2). Seattle: Carnivore Research Institute, University of Washington. pp. 69–76.
  4. ↑ Bisbal, F. J. (1989). "Distribution and habitat association of the carnivores in Venezuela". In K. H. Redford and J. F. Eisenberg (ed.). Advances in neotropical mammalogy. Gainesville: Sandhill Crane Press. pp. 339–362. ISBN   187774302X. OL   2191814M.
  5. ↑ Aranda, J. M. (1991). "Wild mammal skin trade in Chiapas, Mexico". In Robinson, J. G.; Redford, K. H. (eds.). Neotropical wildlife use and conservation. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. pp. 174–177.
  6. 1 2 Schinz, H. R. (1821). "Wiedische Katze Felis wiedii". Das Thierreich eingetheilt nach dem Bau der Thiere: als Grundlage ihrer Naturgeschichte und der vergleichenden Anatomie von dem Herrn Ritter von Cuvier. Säugethiere und Vögel, Volume 1. Stuttgart, Tübingen: Cotta. pp. 235–236.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Sunquist, M.; Sunquist, F. (2002). Wild Cats of the World . Chicago: University of Chicago Press. pp. 135–141. ISBN   0-226-77999-8.
  8. ↑ Aranda, M. & Monroy, O. (2014). "Margay". In Ceballos, G. (ed.). Mammals of Mexico. Baltimore, Maryland: Johns Hopkins University Press. pp. 855–857. ISBN   978-1-4214-0843-9.
  9. 1 2 Schmidly, D. J. (2004). The Mammals of Texas (Sixth ed.). Austin, Texas: University of Texas Press. ISBN   0-292-70241-8.
  10. ↑ Kays, R.W.; Wilson, D. E. (2002). Mammals of North America . Illustrated by Sandra Doyle, Nancy Halliday, Ron Klingner, Elizabeth McClelland, Consie Powell, Wendy Smith, Todd Zalewski, Diane Gibbons, Susan C. Morse, Jesse Guertin. Princeton and Oxford: Princeton University Press. p.  162. ISBN   0-691-07012-1.
  11. ↑ "NatureServe Explorer 2.0". explorer.natureserve.org. Retrieved 10 August 2023.
  12. ↑ Alves-Silva, L.; Cherkinsky, A.; Dantas, M.A.T. (2023). "Late Pleistocene mammals from northeastern Brazil caves: Taxonomy, radiocarbon dating, isotopic paleoecology (δ13C), and paleoenvironment reconstruction (δ13C, δ18O)". Quaternary International . 668: 7–13. doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2023.05.019.
  13. ↑ Morgan, G.S.; Emslie, S.D. (2010). "Tropical and western influences in vertebrate faunas from the Pliocene and Pleistocene of Florida". Quaternary International. 217 (1–2): 143–158. doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2009.11.030.
  14. ↑ Hulbert, R. C.; Morgan, G. S.; Kerner, A. (2009). "Collared Paccary (Mammalia, Artiodactyla, Tayassuidae, Pecari) from the Late Pleistocene of Florida". Papers on Geology, Vertebrate Paleontology, and Biostratigraphy in Honor of Michael O. Woodburne. Flagstaff, AZ: Museum of Northern Arizona. pp. 551–556.
  15. ↑ Hulbert, R.C.; Pratt, A.E. (1998). "New pleistocene (Rancholabrean) vertebrate faunas from coastal Georgia". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 18 (2): 412–429. Bibcode:1998JVPal..18..412H. doi:10.1080/02724634.1998.10011069.
  16. ↑ Horn, Paula E.; Pereira, Maria J. R.; Trigo, Tatiane C.; Eizirik, Eduardo; Tirelli, Flávia P. (6 May 2020). "Margay (Leopardus wiedii) in the southernmost Atlantic Forest: Density and activity patterns under different levels of anthropogenic disturbance". PLOS ONE. 15 (5): e0232013. Bibcode:2020PLoSO..1532013H. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0232013 . PMC   7202647 . PMID   32374736.
  17. ↑ Wang, E. (2002). "Diets of Ocelots (Leopardus pardalis), Margays (L. wiedii), and Oncillas (L. tigrinus) in the Atlantic Rainforest in southeast Brazil". Studies on Neotropical Fauna and Environment. 37 (3): 207–212. doi:10.1076/snfe.37.3.207.8564. S2CID   83976479.
  18. ↑ Solórzano-filho, J. A. (2006). "Mobbing of Leopardus wiedii while hunting by a group of Sciurus ingrami in an Araucaria forest of Southeast Brazil". Mammalia. 70 (1/2): 156–157. doi:10.1515/MAMM.2006.031.
  19. ↑ de Morais, Rosana Nogueira. "Reproduction in small felid males." Biology, Medicine, and Surgery of South American Wild Animals (2008): 312.
  20. ↑ Calleia, F. d. O.; Rohe, F.; Gordo, M. (2009). "Hunting strategy of the Margay (Leopardus wiedii) to attract the Wild Pied Tamarin (Saguinus bicolor)". Neotropical Primates. 16 (1). Neotropical Section of the IUCN/SSC Primate Specialist Group: 32–34. doi: 10.1896/044.016.0107 . ISSN   1413-4705. S2CID   84438545.
  21. ↑ Wied zu, M. (1825). "Felis macroura". Beiträge zur Naturgeschichte von Brasilien. Vol. II. Weimar: Gr. H. S. priv. Landes-Industrie-Comptoirs. pp. 371–379.
  22. ↑ Thomas, O. (1903). "Notes on Neotropical mammals of the genera Felis, Hapale, Oryzomys, Akodon and Ctenomys, with descriptions of new species". Annals and Magazine of Natural History. 7. 12 (68): 234–243. doi:10.1080/00222930308678847.
  23. ↑ Thomas, O. (1904). "New Callithrix, Midas, Felis, Rhipidomys and Proechimys from Brazil and Ecuador". The Annals and Magazine of Natural History. 7. 14 (81): 188–196. doi:10.1080/03745480409442992.
  24. ↑ Goldman, E. A. (1914). "Descriptions of five new mammals from Panama". Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections. 63 (5): 1–7. hdl: 2027/uiug.30112106674572 .
  25. ↑ Allen, J. A. (1919). "Notes on the synonymy and nomenclature of the smaller spotted cats of tropical America" (PDF). Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History. 41: 341–419.
  26. ↑ Nelson, E. W. & Goldman, E. A. (1931). "New carnivores and rodents from Mexico". Journal of Mammalogy. 12 (3): 302–306. doi:10.2307/1373882. JSTOR   1373882.
  27. ↑ Nelson, E. W. (1943). "The races of the ocelot and margay in Middle America". Journal of Mammalogy. 24 (3): 372–385. doi:10.2307/1374838. JSTOR   1374838.
  28. ↑ Eizirik E.; Bonatto S. L.; Johnson W. E.; Crawshaw Jr. P. G.; Vié J. C.; Brousset D. M.; O'Brien S. J.; Salzano F. M. (1998). "Phylogeographic patterns and evolution of the mitochondrial DNA control region in two Neotropical cats (Mammalia, Felidae)". Journal of Molecular Evolution. 47 (5): 613–624. Bibcode:1998JMolE..47..613E. doi:10.1007/PL00006418. PMID   9797412. S2CID   19865180.
  29. ↑ Kitchener, A. C.; Breitenmoser-Würsten, C.; Eizirik, E.; Gentry, A.; Werdelin, L.; Wilting, A.; Yamaguchi, N.; Abramov, A. V.; Christiansen, P.; Driscoll, C.; Duckworth, J. W.; Johnson, W.; Luo, S.-J.; Meijaard, E.; O'Donoghue, P.; Sanderson, J.; Seymour, K.; Bruford, M.; Groves, C.; Hoffmann, M.; Nowell, K.; Timmons, Z.; Tobe, S. (2017). "A revised taxonomy of the Felidae: The final report of the Cat Classification Task Force of the IUCN Cat Specialist Group" (PDF). Cat News. Special Issue 11: 49−50.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.