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| Popular Big Cat 1 - The
Leopard |
| The leopard is most easily
recognised by its rosette
patterned coat and extremely long, darker tail. This large cat is
sometimes confused in appearance with the South American
Jaguar - the
leopard though is less stocky and unlike the jaguar, its rosette
markings are generally smaller and have no internal spots. The overall
size of the leopard depends very much on the subspecies and location,
with the largest animals growing to a length of nearly 5 feet with an
additional tail length of some 3 feet - generally the male is between
20-40% larger than the female. |
| Popular Big Cat 2 - The Lion |
| The
lion stands out from the other ‘big cats’, not only
in its distinctive appearance but also in being the only felid that
lives in organised social groups. In appearance the lion is a
powerfully built, muscular cat. The fur is short and generally uniform
in colour, ranging from grey/buff to reddish brown in coloration with
the exception of the undersides which are often white, especially in
females. The back of the ears and tip of the tail are dark brown or
black. |
| Popular Big Cat 3 - The
Tiger |
| The
male Siberian or Amur Tiger, with a total body length in excess of 10
ft and weighing up to 300 kg is by far the largest and most powerful
member of the cat family. - however overall body size varies
considerably throughout the five sub-species - the female Sumatran
being almost 3 ft smaller. With exception of the Lion the tiger is
probably the most easily recognised of all wild cats - its fur which
ranges from orange to brownish yellow with a white chest and belly is
covered with broken vertical black/dark brown stripes. The length of
the fur is longer in the Amur tiger which inhabits the colder forested
regions of eastern Russia and northern China. |
| Popular Big Cat 4 - The Jaguar |
| In
appearance the Jaguar is often confused with the Leopard - both cats, depending to a
degree on sub-species have a similar brownish/yellow base fur colour
which is distinctively marked with dark rosette markings. However, the jaguar
can be distinguished by the presence of small dots or irregular shapes
within the larger rosette markings, a more stocky and muscular body and
a shorter tail. |
| Popular Big Cat 5 - The Cheetah |
| The
Cheetah in many ways is peculiar amongst the many cat species. In both
looks and physical mobility it resembles a large muscular greyhound -
its long streamlined body is carried on long, thin but powerful legs,
which endow it with great speed in the chase. A fully grown cheetah can
reach speeds in excess of 60 mph and can easily outrun any animal over
short distances. |
Table
of overall head and body length (meters) of
the
cat family - in order of size |
| Tiger |
2.20
|
3.30
|
| Lion |
2.00
|
2.80
|
| Cougar |
1.00
|
2.00
|
| Leopard |
0.90
|
1.90
|
| Jaguar |
1.00
|
1.80
|
| Cheetah |
1.00
|
1.50
|
| Snow
Leopard |
1.00
|
1.30
|
| Lynx |
0.80
|
1.30
|
| Asian
Golden Cat |
0.73
|
1.10
|
| Serval |
0.67
|
1.00
|
| Bobcat |
0.65
|
1.00
|
| Clouded
Leopard |
0.60
|
1.00
|
| Ocelot |
0.55
|
1.00
|
| African
Golden Cat |
0.72
|
0.95
|
| Chinese
Desert Cat |
0.68
|
0.94
|
| Caracal |
0.60
|
0.90
|
| Fishing
Cat |
0.72
|
0.86
|
| Margay |
0.45
|
0.80
|
| Jaguarundi |
0.60
|
0.77
|
| Jungle
Cat |
0.60
|
0.75
|
| Wild
Cat |
0.50
|
0.75
|
| Pampas
Cat |
0.56
|
0.70
|
| Geoffrey's
Cat |
0.45
|
0.70
|
| Pallas
Cat |
0.50
|
0.65
|
| Bay
Cat |
0.50
|
0.60
|
| Iriomote
Cat |
0.50
|
0.60
|
| Andean
Mountain Cat |
0.48
|
0.60
|
| Leopard
Cat |
0.44
|
0.60
|
| Sand
Cat |
0.45
|
0.57
|
| Litle
Spotted Cat |
0.40
|
0.55
|
| Flat-headed
Cat |
0.40
|
0.55
|
| Marbled
Cat |
0.45
|
0.53
|
| Black-footed
Cat |
0.40
|
0.50
|
| Kodkod |
0.38
|
0.48
|
| Rusty-Spotted
Cat |
0.40
|
0.45
|
The
male Siberian or Amur
Tiger is the largest big cat in the world. -
individuals have been measured at 3.2 meters in body length, excluding
the tail. The power and strength of the animal is such that it is able
to prey on guar bulls which can weigh in as much as 1000kg. Below the
tiger the lion runs a close second in body size, with the other big
cats being considerable smaller than these two felid
‘giants’. At the
other end of the scale, the South American Kodkod and the Asian
Rusty-spotted Cat are both of similar size - with a head and body
length around 40cm and weighing a little over 1 kg.
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| Picture of the Week |
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| Super Fast
Fact |
The
Persian cat
is one of the most beautiful cats with a long, luxurious
coat. Owning a Persian gives one the same gratification as owning a
beautiful work of art.
Wild Cat
Here
are 36 species of wild
cats. |
| Useful Information |
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Domestic
Cat