According to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department website, the state is home to 7 different wild cat species. They are the mountain lion, the bobcat, the ocelot, the feral domestic cat, the jaguarundi, the jaguar, and the margay. The first 4 are still existent within the state of Texas. Although the last three are still existent as close by as northern Mexico, the evidence says that they probably do not have breeding populations in the lone star state.
Texas Mountain lion (Puma concolor)
Mountain lions have several different names that are interchangeable. The name that humans give them depends on the geographic region. Some of the names that people in different parts of the United States give these animals include cougar puma and Florida panther.
These are large, predatory cats. In fact, they are the 4th largest wild cat in the world behind the tiger, the African lion, and the Jaguar. However, despite their large size, they are not taxonomically classified in the (Panthera) genus with big cats. This is because they lack the ability to roar. Instead, they are in the (Felis) genus.
Male and female mountain lions are phenotypically identical, except in size. Typically, males are 30 to 40% bigger than females. Though sizes vary considerably throughout the cat’s geographic range, an adult male typically weighs between 110 and 180 pounds (49.89 to 81.64 kgs).
Additionally, adult males or toms will reach a length of 6 to 8 feet (1.82 to 2.43 m) from snout to the tip of the tail, while females or queens will reach 5 to 7 feet (1.52 to 2.13 m). In weight, females average between 80 and 130 pounds (36.28 to 58.96 kg). A few adult toms surpass 200 pounds (90.71 kg).
The appearance of a mountain lion is that of a giant, tan slick haired house cat. These animals, in general, have lean, sinewy bodies, somewhat rounded heads, and upright, round tipped ears. The short, coarse hair that covers most of their body is light tan to brown. They have a long tail which is almost a third of their entire length. Black is the color of the tip of their tail, their ears, and the area around their nose. Conversely, their belly, the area above their upper lip, below their lower lip, and their chin are all white. They also have a sprinkling of black hair on their backs. Their hair color varies somewhat with geographic location.
Mountain lion kittens or cubs (either word is acceptable) have camouflaging patches and rings around their tails that gradually fade away as they mature. All of their camouflage markings will be gone by the time they’re six months old.
What do Texas Mountain Lions Eat?
Mountain lions are opportunistic predators that hunt alone from dark to morning, stalking their prey (mainly deer in the U.S and Canada) from behind. On average, a lion kills a deer approximately once a week. Additionally, they prey on most wild animals and domestic ones.
In Texas, besides deer, this includes elk, feral horses, coyotes, raccoons, rats, feral hogs, javelina, porcupines, skunks, rabbits, various other small mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, livestock, pets, and just about any local wildlife they can catch.
They may move the meal to a different location and cover it with dry leaves, grass, or pine needles to keep it safe from other animals. A mountain lion may return to the spot many days later to eat.
Where do Texas Mountain Lions Live?
Mountain lions are the most widely distributed species of wild cats in the Americas. Their range extends from the Yukon territory in Canada down through parts of North America, Central America, and South America. The southern boundary of their range is in Patagonia.
In Texas, they are more concentrated in the Trans-Pecos, which is far west Texas, west of the Pecos River. They’re also more concentrated in the brushlands of south Texas and in portions of the Texas Hill Country in the south-central portion of the state.
Texas Bobcat (Lynx rufus)
Bobcats are quite a bit smaller than mountain lions.
An adult bobcat is 2 to 4 feet (.61 to 1.22 m) long and weighs about 15 to 35 pounds (6.8 to 15.9 kg). Female bobcats are quite a bit smaller than males.
These animals have “bobbed” or short tails with black tips. A bobcat’s coat is usually gray to brown, with dark mottled brown to black spots on their bodies. They also have dark bars on their inner forelegs and tail.
From a side view, you will notice that a bobcat is slightly higher in the rump than at the shoulders. Bobcats and Canadian lynx have long hind legs in proportion to their forelegs.
Their ears have tufted points that are black at the tips. They also have a whiskered face that seems broader due to their long ruffled facial hair and whiskers. Their eyes are yellow with round black pupils.
Bobcats are fierce animals. If you get one cornered, it will hiss, growl and spit like one of the nastiest house cats you’ve ever run into x a million. They mean it too. They have to be tough and mean to survive.
Biologists sometimes revise taxonomic classifications. At one time, there were 12 recognized subspecies of bobcats. Sometimes though, perceived differences in subspecies are environmental rather than genetic.
At times biologists have divided the bobcats of Texas into 2 subspecies. Namely, these are the desert bobcat that lives in the western and northwestern part of the state and the Texas bobcat that lives in the rest of the state.
Since the revision of cat taxonomy in 2017, there are a total of 2 recognized subspecies of bobcat. They are (Lynx rufus rufus), which live east of the great plains, and (Lynx rufus fasciatus), which live west of the great plains.
What do Bobcats Eat?
Even though they’re small, bobcats are aggressive, tough predators. Sometimes, particularly in the winter, they prey on animals that are much larger than they are, such as deer. However, their regular diet consists mainly of small mammals, reptiles, birds, and carrion.
An interesting fact is that they prey on rattlesnakes even though they are not immune to rattlesnake venom. They get this done by using their quickness to pin the snake’s head to the ground with a paw, at which point they kill the snake with a bite to the spine behind the head.
Where do Bobcats Live?
Bobcats live only in North America. Their range begins in southern Canada, about where the range of their close relative, the Canada lynx, begins to dwindle out and extends south as far as southern Mexico.
According to Texas Parks and Wildlife, bobcats are thriving throughout the state, but they are especially abundant in the south Texas brush country.
Of the seven wild cat species that we’ll talk about, bobcats and feral cats are the two that are most likely to live around urban areas. Small domestic dogs and housecats are preyed on by urban bobcats sometimes.
Texas Ocelot (Leopardus pardalis)
Ocelots are medium-sized wild cats. Adult ocelots range in weight from 24 to 35 pounds (10.88 to15.87 kg). In height, they range from 28 to 35 inches (71.12 to 88.9 cm). Their body length varies between 28 and 35 inches (71.12 to 88.9 cm), and their tails are up to 18 inches (45.72 cm) long.
An ocelot’s coat is creamy yellow to grey, overlayed with extensive black markings. Several black lines run from the back of their necks to the tips of their tails. The neck and underside of an ocelot is white. Additionally, they have white spots on a black background on the back of each ear. Each ocelot has a unique color pattern that can be used to distinguish it from other ocelots.
It’s popular in some circles to keep ocelots as pets. However, they come with a set of problems that domestic cats don’t have. They are wildcats with an ingrained instinct to hunt and kill, so your neighbor’s pets will be at risk. They’re also very destructive to carpets and furniture. Another problem with domesticating an ocelot is that their feces and urine carry a very rank odor not found with domestic cats. Additionally, ocelots have an inborn instinct to scent mark their territory.
What do Ocelots Eat?
Ocelots mostly prey on small mammals. They also feed on birds, reptiles, amphibians, crustations, fish, and insects to a lesser extent. In Central and South America, their diet includes such animals as small monkeys and iguanas. In the desert southwest of the United States, they prey on such animals as rodents, armadillos, deer fawns, and rabbits.
Where do Ocelots Live?
Ocelots range from parts of Argentina north through south America, central America, and Mexico to the southwestern United States. In the U.S, Ocelots live in southern Texas and southern Arizona.
The Texas home of ocelots is in the Rio Grande Valley, which is on the southernmost tip of the state. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department estimates that there are 50 to 80 ocelots in the state.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service states that habitat loss is the biggest threat to the breeding population of Texas ocelots. Unfortunately, even as far back as 1986, a study determined that less than 1% of the lower Rio Grande valley was optimal Ocelot habitat due to agricultural and urban use.
Feral Domestic Cats in Texas (Felis catus)
I thought it was odd that the TPWD would count feral domestic cats as a resident wild cat. As I’ve thought about it, though, feral cats can populate very fast. So consequently, they can have a large impact on a wildlife community. To quote the TPWD, “In the course of a bobwhite quail experiment in East Texas, cats killed 8 quail and 10 cardinals in the experiment traps, on one occasion 6 quail at one time“.
Texas Jaguarundi (herpailurus yaguarondi)
Jaguarundis are small wild cats that are native to the three American continents. They are roughly twice the size of a domestic cat. These animals also look similar to large domestic cats with some minor distinctions. They have an elongated body with proportionately short legs. Additionally, they have a narrow head with small, wide-set ears. This gives them the slight appearance of a mustelid rather than a cat.
Adult jaguarundis stand around 14 inches (35.56 cm) at the shoulder and weigh 6.6 to 15 pounds (3 to 6.80 kg)
Jaguarundis have two color morphs. They are either grey or brown.
What do Jaguarundis Eat?
Jaguarundis prey on small mammals, reptiles, and birds.
Where do Jaguarundis Live?
Jaguarundis live from Argentina north through South and Central America and Mexico up to the desert southwest of the United States, in Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. The TPWD says that Jaguarundis are likely expatriated from the state but still lists them as endangered. There have only been 5 recorded jaguarundi sightings in the history of the state. The last one was a roadkill back in 1986. Jonah Evans, the leader of Texas Parks and Wildlife’s Nongame and Rare Species Program says it’s likely that jaguarundis were never very abundant in Texas.
Jaguars in Texas (Panthera onca)
Jaguars are the only member of the genus Panthera or, in other words, the “big cat “genus in the Americas. They’re also the largest cat in the three American continents. What’s more, they’re the third largest wild cat in the world. Only the tiger and the African lion are larger than the jaguar.
Jaguars are stout, muscular cats with short legs in proportion to their body size. Their legs are also short in comparison to other similarly sized big cats.
According to Wikipedia, they range from 68 to 75 cm ((26.8 to 29.5 in) in shoulder height. Their body length from the tip of the nose to the rump varies from 1.12 to 1.85 m (3 ft 8 in. to 6 ft 1 in). Additionally, their weight ranges from 56–96 kg (123–212 lb). Males are usually 10 to 20% larger than females.
In appearance, a jaguar resembles a leopard with thicker, stouter features. The color of their hair coat along their back and sides ranges from light tan to light orange, overlaid with black rosette spots. There are also extremely rare melanistic jaguars that are completely black. People sometimes call them black panthers. A black panther is either a melanistic jaguar or a melanistic leopard.
What Do Jaguars Eat?
Jaguars are apex predators and thus opportunistic feeders that feed on a variety of prey. Monkeys, capybara, tapir, and caimans are just a small sample of the animals on their menu in South and Central America. They even use their tails to lure in fish to catch. In Mexico, their diet overlaps with that of the mountain lion in that a large percentage of their diet consists of deer meat.
In Texas and Arizona, a jaguar’s diet is going to be similar to that of one in Sonora. They will eat deer, pronghorns, javelina, and smaller prey such as reptiles, rabbits, and packrats.
Where do Jaguars Live?
Jaguars live in all three American continents, from Patagonia in the south to the border country between the United States and Mexico in the north. They are in a total of 18 countries.
Before Europeans settled the land that now comprises the United States, the Jaguar’s range stretched across southern Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona and as far north as the South Platte River in Colorado.
Seven different jaguars have been sighted in the U.S since 1996. These were all either in southern Arizona or southwestern New Mexico. All 7 of the jaguars sighted were males. This leads biologists to believe that these males are looking to expand into new territory north of the main breeding population, which resides in Sonora, Mexico.
One of the more famous jaguars to be seen in the United States was nick-named El jefe. For a time, this big cat was the only wild jaguar known to be living in the U.S. El jefe was spotted in various spots around southern Arizona in person and on wildlife cameras from 2011 through 2015. After that, he disappeared from view. El jefe was recently spotted in Sonora, Mexico, around 120 miles south of where he was last spotted in Arizona. Source
Jaguars in Texas
Jaguars were once common in southern and east Texas. However, biologists believe that they have been expatriated from their former range in the state. The last Jaguar in Texas that was documented to be the real thing was killed in 1948.
Texas margay (Leopardus wiedii)
Margays are similar to ocelots in their coloration and markings. However, they are smaller and more slenderly built than the former.
Colonel S. Cooper shot a margay at Eagle Pass, Texas, over 100 years ago. This is the 1 and only margay ever recorded in the state other than fossil remains that exist along the Sabine River in Orange County. Source
Although there haven’t been any recent margay sightings in Texas, the animals live just across the Rio Grande in the Mexican state of Tamaulipas
