Tiger cats are wild cats found in South America, Central America and Mexico, as well as in the southernmost part of the United States, in the Caribbean. Tiger cats are close to jaguars in fur, so they are hunted in large numbers and face a threat to survival.
Realm: Animal kingdom Animalia
Phylum: Phylum Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Eyes: Carnivora
Family: Felidae
Genus: Leopardus
Species: Tiger cat L. pardalis
Tiger cats can reach a maximum body length of 100 cm, a tail length of 45 cm, and a weight of 10-15 kg.
Due to differences in distribution and subspecies, their fur color and body size will vary.
The small spotted tiger cat and the long-tailed tiger cat of the same genus are similar in appearance to each other and are distributed in the same area.
Tiger cats come in a variety of brown, yellow, and grey colours, dotted with black spots and dark brown rectangular patches around the black rim. There are 4 or 5 longitudinal black stripes on the back and continuous ring-shaped black stripes on the body.
The abdomen is white with black spots on it, and there are also black stripes and spots on the tail.
Tiger cats have large, rounded heads and short snouts. There are small black spots on the head, two black bands on the cheeks, and white eye sockets. The back of the ears is black with distinct white spots on it.
Tiger cat teeth
Tiger cat's broad paws
Spots on the abdomen of tiger cats
Tiger cats inhabit dense tropical rainforests, alpine forests, dense bushes, semi-desert areas with sparse vegetation, coastal mangroves, etc., but their footprints are difficult to find in open areas.
Tiger cats are agile, good at swimming and climbing trees, active at night, and territorial. Like most cats, they are solitary and only gather during mating.
Tiger cats are visually sensitive and night vision-oriented, and their diet includes monkeys, snakes, rodents, fish, amphibians and birds, and sometimes domestic pigs and birds. These animals are basically much smaller than their own bodies.
Tiger cats breed every two years, can breed all year round, gestation period of 70-85 days, 3-4 litters per litter, lactation period can last 3-9 months, sexual maturity around 2 years old. Wild tiger cats live longer than 10 years, and captive-fed tiger cats have a maximum lifespan of 21 years.