O is for Ocelot.
According to Wikipedia, the Ocelot :
This is where the ocelot lives:The ocelot (Leopardus pardalis), pronounced /ˈɒsəˌlɒt/, also known as the Dwarf Leopard, McKenney's Wildcat, Jaguatirica (in Brazil), Jaguarete (in Paraguay and Argentina), Tigrillo (in Ecuador, Colombia and Peru), Cunaguaro (in Venezuela), or Manigordo (in Costa Rica and Panama)
is a wild cat distributed over South and Central America and Mexico, but has been reported as far north as Texas and in Trinidad, in the Caribbean. North of Mexico, it is found regularly only in the extreme southern part of Texas[3], although there are rare sightings in Southern Arizona.[4]The ocelot is similar in appearance to a domestic cat. Its fur resembles that of a Clouded Leopard or Jaguar and was once regarded as particularly valuable. As a result, hundreds of thousands of ocelots were once killed for their fur. The feline was classified a "vulnerable" endangered species from 1972 until 1996, but is now rated "least concern" by the 2008 IUCN Red List.
The ocelot ranges from 68 to 100 centimetres (27 to 39 in) in length, plus 26 to 45 centimetres (10 to 18 in) tail length, and typically weighs 8 to 10 kilograms (18 to 22 lb), although much larger individuals have occasionally been recorded,[8][9] making it the largest of the generally dainty Leopardus wild cat genus. It has sleek fur, rounded ears and relatively large front paws. While similar in appearance to the Oncilla and Margay, which inhabit the same region, the ocelot is larger.
Like most felines, the ocelot is a night-animal, defends its territory fiercely and lives a solitary life. To read more about these beautiful, wild cats, ocelots go to this page. But after reading and writing about ocelots, I am happy that I have a nice warm bed and a kind Mommie who looks after me!
This post is one of my personal series 'Cats Around the World', and the ocelot is our O-cat for Alphabe-Thursday, Round 2, that is all about the letter O.
Sara Cat
First Commenter:
Judie of
Rogue Artists
Please leave a comment. 'Skicka en kommentar' means 'Post a comment'
To visit other posts about O-words please visit this site by clicking on the image below:
6 kommentarer:
We used to have Ocelots in southern Arizona, but that was a long time ago. Thanks for the interesting post!
I've only ever seen an ocelot in a wildlife park. It's very good that they are now less of an endangered species.
What a beautiful animal! I enjoyed learning more about the ocelot.
I've never heard of Ocelots before but they are indeed very beautiful animals! Thanks for the wonderful lesson!
Never see an ocelot, except from video or picture. Even the zoos in my country do not have ocelots. It's good to see that ocelots "endangerness level" move up a notch, from endangered to least concern.
Sara, I think you need to just observe ocelots from afar.
You are too sweet to take a chance on being a snack!
Thanks for an interesting stop on our little journey through Alpahbe-Thursday's letter 'O'.
Purrr, purrrrr, purrrrr.
A+
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