Welcome to our new post! In this article, I will present several curiosities about big cats and their differences. Get ready to learn surprising things about these fantastic animals and impress your friends with these interesting facts.
These animals belong to the genera Felis, Panthera, and Acinonyx. The genus Felis includes domestic cats. Animals belonging to the genus Panthera are the large felines. Felines lacking retractable claws are classified under the genus Acinonyx.
Did you know that the cheetah is the only representative animal of the genus Acinonyx?
The roar of the lion is a very imposing sound, but did you know it can be heard up to a distance of 8 kilometers? They are also the only large felines that live in prides. Animals in the Felinae subfamily do not have the ability to roar due to their completely ossified larynx. In contrast, animals in the Pantherinae subfamily have elastic tendons in their larynx that allow them to roar.
Do you know how many species of felines there are? In total, there are 38 species.
The striking beauty of the black panther attracts many people, but did you know it's not a separate species, but rather a melanistic variation more frequently associated with the leopard and the jaguar? In fact, there are black and white panthers. Melanism in jaguars is determined by a dominant gene, whereas in leopards, it is manifested by a recessive gene.
The lion (Panthera leo), tiger (Panthera tigris), and snow leopard (Panthera uncia) also belong to the genus Panthera, although the term 'panther' is not commonly used to refer to them.
These felines have very good night vision and hunt at night. Do you know which is the fastest land animal? The cheetah. This animal is capable of covering long and short distances at high speed.
The largest feline inhabiting the American continent is the jaguar. And what are the largest felines in the world? In descending order: the tiger, lion, jaguar, and puma.
The jaguar is endangered due to poaching and habitat loss.
Lynxes are medium-sized felines found in various regions of the world. Due to their great agility and elusive nature, they are very difficult to spot. There are also several other medium-sized felines, such as the caracal, serval, and black-footed cat, among others. If you'd like to learn more about wild cats, see our post on hybrid cats.
Did you know that the Amur leopard was on the brink of extinction? In the 1960s, there were only 30 individuals of the species left. Thanks to conservation and preservation projects, their numbers have increased to 90. The Amur leopard is larger than other subspecies of leopards. This species is mainly found on the border of Russia and China, as well as in Siberia. Preserving the Amur leopard is more challenging because, in addition to factors like illegal hunting and restricted habitat, there is also inbreeding due to its small population, leading to genetic limitations.
Cheetahs are at risk of extinction; there were around 100,000 individuals in the early 20th century, but now there are only 6,647 according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
If you like pumas, you'll probably enjoy the channel “I am puma”. On this channel, you can see the life of pet puma Messi. The owners also have another channel called “I am cheetah”, where they teach Gerda, their pet cheetah. It's very interesting to see how these wild animals behave as pets when trained.
A curious fact is that according to scientific classifications, lions, tigers, and leopards should not be on this list of big cats. Although we are accustomed to referring to these animals this way, they do not belong to the subfamily Felinae but rather to the genus Panthera. Examples of felids include the lynx, puma, ocelot, caracal, and serval.
How to differentiate big cats?
Lions are very easy to identify due to their mane. Lionesses can resemble pumas, but unlike them, lionesses are broader and more robust, while pumas have a slightly more delicate physical constitution and their characteristic white spot on the muzzle. The puma's nose is pink instead of black like that of lionesses. The head shape is also different: lionesses have a more square-shaped head, while the puma's head is more rounded.
Leopards are broader and more robust than cheetahs. If you look at the spots on a leopard's fur, you'll see that they are wider and fewer in number than those of cheetahs.
Perhaps the most difficult felines to differentiate are the jaguar and the leopard. The jaguar is an excellent swimmer with a wide body and voluminous square-shaped head. The leopard is slimmer and often sleeps in trees. The pattern of spots on their backs is also different: jaguars' spots are wider and often have dots inside them, while leopard’s spots do not have dots. Variations in black and albino fur are harder to differentiate due to the difficulty in identifying these patterns.
The lynx is very easy to identify due to its characteristic pointed ears with black details. There is also a hybrid variation of the caracal with domestic cats called caracat, which can be easily distinguished by its size difference and more wild appearance of the Caracal.
📚 Data source:
https://www.nationalgeographicla.com/animales/grandes-felinos
https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pantera_negra
https://www.ecologiaverde.com/tipos-de-felinos-sus-caracteristicas-y-ejemplos-2609.html
https://www.ecologiaverde.com/por-que-el-leopardo-del-amur-esta-en-peligro-de-extincion-2768.html
https://www.ecologiaverde.com/por-que-el-guepardo-esta-en-peligro-de-extincion-587.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Felidae
No comments:
Post a Comment