Ocelot

Leopardus Pardalis

Description

• Ocelots can grow to 20 to 40 inches long, and their tails are ten to 15 inches long. They live 7 to 10 years in the wild.

• Ocelots weigh between 20 to 25 pounds.

Diet

Ocelots are carnivores; they

hunt and eat animals such as rodents, rabbits,

young deer, snakes, birds, and

fish.

RangeOcelots are currently found in Southern Texas and

Northeastern Mexico. Also, they are found in every country south of the US, besides Chile.

Ocelots live in a variety of habitats, ranging from mangrove forests, coastal marshes, savannah grass lands, pastures, thorn scrub, and tropical

forests.

Behavior

Ocelots are nocturnal. They are

very active and they travel from one to five miles per night. Males

travel further than females. Ocelots

capture an average of one prey item

for every 3.1 hours of travel.

Population

• It is estimated that 800,000 to 1.5 million ocelots can be found all around the world.

• Eighty to 120 Ocelots are found in two isolated populations in Texas.

Threats

Ocelots are threatened by

habitat destruction,

hunting for their fur, and the pet

trade.

How You Can Help Help protect their habitat

by doing something to care for the environment, every single day.

Support The San Antonio Zoo. They are part of a special programalong with several other Texas zoos. They are breeding ocelots that they will introduce back into the wild.

Also, take a stand against wearing real fur by wearing faux fur instead.