Wild Cats - Facts and Pictures

Learn about the relatives of the domestic cat including
Lions, Cougars, Mountain Lions, Tigers, Leopards.

Cats are among the most beautiful animals.  The wild cats, as well as the domesticated house cats, posses dignity, speed, agility, strength and stealth.

Approximately 36 species of wild cats exist.  Among them are the larger cats such as the lions, cougars, tigers and leopards, as well as the smaller species such as the lynx, ocelot, and the African wild cat.  The African wild cat is believed to be the ancestor of our loving pets.

Lions

Lions can be found in Southern Asia and Africa.  They range from 2,000 mm to 3,000 mm in length and weigh between 150 and 225 kg.  Lions normally give birth to three to four cubs.

The lion is a muscular cat with short fur ranging from grey to reddish brown in color with the exception of the undersides which are often white, especially in females.  The back of the ears and tip of the tail are dark brown or black.

Only males have a mane.  The color of the mane varies from light brown to almost black. The mane starts to grow when the lion is about 18 months old and continues to grow until he is about five years old and tends to darken during this period.  A male lion can grow up to 10 feet in body length making it the second largest wild cat (the larger species of tigers are the largest wild cats). 

Lions live in organized social groups called prides, and can have as many as forty lions. Females and lion cubs make up the majority of the pride, with only a small number of males.  It is common for the females to share in the caring of the young. The territory of the pride is fixed and varies in size.

Males do not do the hunting - only the females. The female lions hunt by ambush.  The majority of the hunting group will chase the prey towards lions lying in wait.  The lions prey consists mainly of medium to large herd animals such as antelope, gazelle and wildebeest.  The prey is taken to the males of the pride, where they must wait until the males are done before they are allowed to eat. Since lion cubs are the last to eat, they will often starve if food is scarce.

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Cougars, Mountain Lions, Pumas and Florida Panthers

A puma is an American feline also known as a mountain lion or cougar.  It can be found in both North and South America.

Its fur is tawny color without spots.  It has a small, broad head with small rounded ears, a powerful body and a black tip on the end of their tail.  The coat varies depending on the area they're from, ranging from slate grey, yellow buff to reddish brown.

Male cougars living in mountainous areas where the cat follows migrating prey, often patrol areas as large as 100 square miles.  The cougar hunts alone.  If the prey is large enough, the mountain lion will hide the leftover food in dense undergrowth and return to feed for several days.

Comparable in size to the Leopard, the cougar is large enough to hunt cattle and horses, but also hunt wild deer, sheep, rodents, rabbits, hare and beaver.  The cougar uses its powerful hind legs to lunge at its prey with single running jumps that can reach in excess of 40 feet.

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Tigers

Tigers range from 1400 to 3000 mm in length and weigh between 100 to 300 kg.  They give birth to two to four tiger cubs.

The male Siberian or Amur Tiger, with a total body length in excess of 10 ft and weighing up to 300 kg is by far the largest and most powerful member of the cat family.  However overall body size varies considerably throughout the five sub-species with the female Sumatran being almost 3 ft smaller.
Tigers and lions are probably the most easily recognized wild cats.

In general, the tiger is a forest dweller but is also found in grassland and swamp areas. They are never far from water and are strong swimmers. In hotter regions, they love bathing in pools and lakes.

Tigers are mainly nocturnal hunters. Although habitat dictates the type of prey, the tiger prefers larger prey such as wild boar, deer and buffalo. It will also hunt fish and various small mammals if necessary. The tiger is a cautious hunter, stalking as close as it can to the rear its prey before making the final charge. If the prey is large enough, the mountain lion will hide the leftover food in dense undergrowth and return to feed for several days.

White Bengal Tigers are extremely rare in the wild. The last sighting of a white tiger in its natural habitat was in 1951 in Central India. This male tiger was actually captured and named Mohan. Most of the white tigers in captivity are related to Mohan.

The white tiger is not a true albino. It just has less dark colored pigment in its coat. The white tiger is also not pure white but has brown stripes and blue eyes.

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Leopards

The leopard is easily recognized by its beautiful rosette patterned coat and extremely long, dark tail.

Even though this big cat is sometimes confused in appearance with the South American Jaguar, it's less stocky and its rosette markings are generally smaller and have no internal spots. 

The leopard preys on an assortment of animals depending on its location.  Prey ranges from medium sized animals such as gazelle, to small rodents such as rats, squirrels and porcupines.

The leopard commonly stores its prey high in the boughs of trees away from other carnivores such as hyenas and lions.  Its powerful leg and neck muscles enable it to carry full grown male antelopes, often weighing up to three times its own body weight, up into the tree tops.

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