Cats of Ecuador   

The cat family Felidae with 35 species worldwide makes up the biggest group of Carnivora or carnivores, mammals feeding exclusively on flesh of other animals. Felines obtain their meat by hunting and are put on top of the food chain as top predators. They have excellent eye sight, complemented by acute hearing, smell and taste. An agile body, sharp claws and teeth help also in their predatory ways. In Ecuador seven species make their home with three of them featured here, the mighty jaguar, the similar but smaller ocelot and the versatile puma or mountain lion.

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   Jaguar is the biggest cat in Ecuador and one of the four so-called big cats of the world, which also include the tigers, lions and leopards. They are tropical animals living in the dense rainforests up to 1200 m above sea level. They prefer shady and cool places close to rivers, climb trees occasionally and like to enter into water and are excellent swimmers. Being a cat, their diet consists entirely of meat, which is acquired by fishing and hunting other animals, especially capybara, caimans and small deer. It is called the king of the jungle because it is the most powerful and largest cat living in the tropical regions of the American continent and it was worshipped by native people as a divine and mystical being and was often represented on many indigenous artworks as a symbol of power. They are solitary animals but mate anytime in the season. Females can have 1 to 4 cubs after a gestation period of around a 100 days. The cubs stay with their mother to the age of two, when they leave her and find their own territory, which often has an area of 25 square km. In captivity, jaguars live to an age of up to 22 years

Ocelots are one of the most beautiful cats because of its rich and colorful coat. Its coat has a beautiful creamy to yellowish color with dark spots in it. Ocelots live in the tropical and subtropical rainforests of the Americas but also can be found occasionally in temperate forested regions as well. They are shy animals and like to spend great part of their time on trees, hidden in their branches. It hunts mostly at night and their diet consists in great quantity of rodents, whose population they help to keep under control. Other animals devoured by ocelots are birds, frogs, snakes and other smaller animals. They are solitary animals but mate anytime in the season. Females have usually one cub but can have a litter up to four after a gestation period of around a 60 days. The cubs stay with their mother till they are ready to establish their own territory.

 
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The puma, which is also known as cougar or mountain lion is one of the most adapted member of the cat family, ranging from Canada to Patagonia and living in many different habitats, ranging from desert to tropical forests to high mountains. It hunts any animal available and in Ecuador their main diet consists of deer, llama and guanta. They are very agile and silent hunters and have a great capacity in jumping high and wide. They are solitary animals but mate anytime in the season. Females have usually a litter of 2 cubs but sometimes up to 4 cubs. The young are born blind and have dark spots on the back and a ringed tail. After 6 months they take the coloring of the adults and after another year leave their mother to establish their own territory to live and hunt.

The jaguar, which years ago roamed in the tropical regions on both sides of the Andes, is now difficult to find in the country and was put on the endangered animal list. On the coastal tropical region of the country, it disappeared almost entirely through habitat destruction by means of deforestation. Needing a large area to survive, only the northwest region of interior Esmeraldas still offers adequate habitats but its days there are also counted as the region becomes settled by colonists. The region, where it can be encountered most likely is the eastern Amazon jungle, in particular in remote areas like Tiputini and protected regions like Yasuni and Cuyabeno National Park. Apart from habitat destruction through deforestation and decimation of their prey by human hunting, they are also hunted and killed themselves by men for various human vanities, like his desire for its beautiful coat. People like to decorate themselves or their habitat with dead jaguar skin and tell stories of how they got hold of them. The same holds true for ocelots, which do not represent any danger to humans or their domestic animals but its beautiful fur is also desired by many people. Although the puma is so well adapted to many different regions, unfortunately this graceful cat is also endangered and seldom seen anymore in Ecuador. Pumas were and still are hunted as they pose a threat to domestic animals, which replaced their natural food source, like llamas, deer, etc...in the first place. Many big ranchers in the country pay a head price and therefore invite their poorer country neighbors to shoot them at sight.

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