Ocelot
Leopardus pardalis
Class:
Mammalia
Order:
Carnivora
Family:
Felidae
IUCN Red List status:
Least Concern
Description
Protected by the following WLT projects:
- Programme for Belize
- The Ecuador Rainforests
- The Atlantic Rainforest, Brazil
- Misiones Rainforest Corridor, Argentina
- Biodiversity of Sierra Gorda, Mexico
- Dry Forests of Margarita Island, Venezuela
- Beni Savanna, Bolivia
Ocelots are the size of a medium sized dog and can grow to nearly a meter long. They are greyish to cinnamon coloured with black elongated markings.
Behaviour
Ocelots are solitary cats living within forests where they hunt, usually at night, eating animals such as birds, snakes, mice and anteaters.
Ocelot photographed by camera-trap at the Río Canandé Reserve. © Fundación Jocotoco.
Habitat
Ocelots occur from the southern United States to northern Argentina and can be found in a wide variety of forest habitats.
Threats and Conservation
In the past they were hunted for their skins and have since disappeared from many areas. Much of their habitat has been destroyed, and ocelots are often killed in car accidents.
It is now illegal to trade in dead or alive ocelots, or ocelot parts. However, enforcement of this protected status is often inadequate.
Help protect Ocelot habitat: Make a donation to the WLT
Learn more
- See IUCN Red List of Threatened Species for more information on the classification of the Ocelot
- Video: Ocelots
