Jagarundi ?

[rugerfan.64]

 Just found this part of GBO. Over the years I have seen some things that I thought were black panthers,only glimpses,but to big for a house cat,tail as long as their body. Recently I was discussing this with my wife when we happened to stop for gas at Lost Gap. When I was coming out of the store I happened to see the Meridian Star which had a picture of this cat on the front page. Apparently this is what I have been seeing over the years. Any one else know about the elusive Central/South American cats that are said to inhabit the southeast? They are supposedly in FL,AL,LA and now apparently in MS. I'd like to hear more about this. Thanks

[Micahn]

I have heard of them here on Florida but I do not remember ever seeing one. I have seen panthers but never a black one.
I need to get myself a game camera as I have some sort of large cat coming threw my back yard from time to time. I live inside of Ocala NF. so no telling what it could be from a panther to a jaguarundi to a large bobcat. I also have nightly deer (At least 3) and bear from time to time walking they my yard.

[GeneRector]

  Howdy! I have heard about reliable people seeing these Jaguarundi cats in places other than far South Texas and I believe them. However, if you ask parks and wildlife about it, they will only say that it is impossible because they are only found in one part of Texas. I wish someone far away from South Texas would get pictures or other proof of Jaguarundi in other places. That would put to rest the idea that they are ONLY found in South Texas.  Always, Gene

[Oldshooter]

I have not only seen one in Votaw, Tex(East) but my son who was beside me saw it as well. I would have shot it but it was 200 yards away and walking away and I had a 45 caliber muzzle loader. I thought it was a panther, but A local fella who has a radio talk show here told me it was prolly a Jagarundi. I wish I would have had a camera or a varmit special! At first I thought it was a lost black lab until i saw it walk and its tail swishing

[jlwilliams]

  Like most cats, they are elusive so it's hard to say with certainty where they are or are not.  Up here in CT, I'm fairly sure there not around these parts.  Cats can travel a long way which makes it hard to say if there is a population in an area, or a passer through.  There was a spotted South American cat (I think a Jaguar, maybe an oscelot; the story is old) found in Colorado.  That's not to say there a jaguars in Colorado, only that one was there.   Suposedly African leopard populations are bigger than people know, because they just don't fill out census forms.  No denying that the cats are there, just no knowing how many and where.  So, cats in an area could mean lots of cats or it could mean a solitary traveler.  It's just hard to say.

  Anyway, they can be black or redish brown.  I'm not sure if that's a seasonal change or two different varieties.  They also have short legs compared to their body size so they can kind of look like an otter from a distance.  That's about all I have and it's strictly second or third hand.  No real experience with them myself.

  Looking forward to hearing from more people on these.  I like big cats.  They just spark my imagination.  The fact that they aren't anywhere near my chicken coop probably plays a part in my liking them.  If they were in my coop I'd have a different view, no doubt.

[kynardsj]

I lived in southwest Alabama as a teenager back in the early 70's. I've seen them and heard them. Don't know exactly what they are but they definately exist.

[Graybeard]

People have a long history of keeping exotic animals for pets. Quite often in these modern times folks with more money than sense buy critters when babies that as the grown to adulthood turn out to be larger than they realized the critters would become. They become too much for the folks to handle but dang it they are still "their little pet" so they can't bare to put them down so as an alternative they take them to the woods and turn them loose.

There is no telling what is out there as a result of such activity. FL is a central entry point for huge numbers of animals imported both legally and illegally and many have escaped into the wild in FL and if they are able to live and breed like the pythons have then eventually they multiply and spread northward into GA, AL and eventually can move west thru MS and into LA and southern TX.

Wolves are another critter many folks want as a pet that proves to be too much for them and they are either turned loose or escape and as a result they are in a lot of places folks do not realize they are.

[Micahn]

The stories I have heard about how Jagarundi got into Florida was released pets.

Anyone see the Monster Quest show a few months ago about the Green Swamp here in Florida ? They was looking for Apes like released chimps. What was interesting was on one of their camera traps is they caught a picture of a red wolf. Officially none are in Florida.

[jlwilliams]

  You don't need a license to buy an exotic cat as long as it's under six months old.  After that age you need a license to keep it.  Or at least that's what I've been told.  Doesn't make a lick of sense.  Nothing stays young forever.  Do they think that people dumbe enough to buy a dangerous animal are going to register it a few months later?

  Cougars are among the most popular at exotic animal auctions.  Lots of them out there.  Smaller exotic cats are even cheaper, so there are probably plenty of jaguarundi around too.

  You have to figure that a good number of people who buy an animal like that have no clue what they are getting into.  Maybe they have owned dogs or farm animals.  Maybe some exotic reptiles.  Buying an animal that can eat a man just doesn't make much sense to me.  That would have to sink in at some point, and that's when they let it go 'in the wild'.   Average city dweller's idea of 'the wild' being what it is, that means your back yard

[mmt7714]

I have a friend that shot one with his bow in delta national here in MS. It was  year before last I think, and he called me all freaked out because he didn't know what it was. I saw pictures of it and at the time he had it in his freezer. He wasn't real sure what to do with it. I don't know if he still has it or not.

[Skeezix]

Just found this part of GBO. Over the years I have seen some things that I thought were black panthers,only glimpses,but to big for a house cat,tail as long as their body. Recently I was discussing this with my wife when we happened to stop for gas at Lost Gap. When I was coming out of the store I happened to see the Meridian Star which had a picture of this cat on the front page. Apparently this is what I have been seeing over the years. Any one else know about the elusive Central/South American cats that are said to inhabit the southeast? They are supposedly in FL,AL,LA and now apparently in MS. I'd like to hear more about this. Thanks

Son of a gun!  That explains what I saw in 2001 crossing a field on the side of the Natchez Trace, just outside of Tupelo.  I was going north on the Trace one afternoon and happened to look out into a field that I was passing on my right.  Crossing the field was this sorta short legged, long tailed animal that I first thought was some kind of extra-large otter, with but with longer legs than an otter normally has.  It was brownish colored.  I stomped on the brakes and pulled over and grabbed my binoculars that I always keep in my truck. 

When I looked at it with my binos, it was clear to see that it was some sort of cat, much larger than a house cat but not grown cougar sized.  About bobcat sized but much lower slung and longer tailed.  At the time I thought it was a young cougar, but with shorter legs than normal.  I watched it for a couple of minutes as it crossed the field.  It heard me stop and crouched down for a few seconds, then started moving across the field again.  Another vehicle pulled up behind me and the cat started moving a little faster, but still not running.  It crouched again when the folks rolled down the window and started making some noise.  Then it started again in a sorta otter-like lope or gallop.  I watched it until it went into a canebrake on the south side of the field. 

I've always thought that I saw some sort of deformed cougar, but now I KNOW that I saw a jaguarundi!  Right there in northeast Mississippi!  Who'da thunk it?

[Mikey]

Well, I dunno.  I don't wanna phart all over this but back in the early 70s when I served in latin and south America I shot a couple of large jungle cats the locals called Jaquar.  One had been killiong pets in a housing area and the other I took in a ammo dump.  I also spent some time observing a female jaquar that had littered and noted that all her cubs were born black but developed spots fairly quickly. 

I have also seen Cougar in South Carolina while on a hog hunt there in the early 70s; this Cougar was not as large as two I shot in Colorado in the mid-60s but it was a Cougar, none the less. 

I think what you folks are seeing are simply central American Jaquar that have managed to migrate north looking to establish territory or, just as likely, pets gone feral. 

Cats are nocturnal.  You rarely see them during the day but on occasion it happens.  I do not doubt that over the past 30-40 years some of these larger cat breeds may have migrated north over the years, but I doubt they are anything but jungle cats, not some newer breed or previously unheard of breed, and I believe that the 'Jaquarundi' is simply a 'Jaguar'.......

[mmt7714]

Jaguarundi is a different species than a jaguar. They are not a new breed of animal and there are several different sub-species located in different sections of south texas, arizona, panama, costa rica, mexico, and nicaragua. The scientific name is Herpailurus yagouaroundi and most are endangered in their respective ranges. Most large adults are only 30in or so long with a tail that reaches up to around 20in so obviously they are quite a bit smaller than a jaguar which is one of the largest cats in the world. This is not to say that jaguars don't wander into the U.S. They are moving back into their natural ranges in southern Arizona now. Another possible culprit could be the Ocelot. This cat is about the same size as a jaguarundi but its coloration more resembles a jaguar that that of the jaguarundi. Jaguarundis in adulthood are more of a drab gray to brown with very few spots. They are said to be moving northward because of so much habitat destruction in there home ranges.

[AtlLaw]

Poor Puddy! 

[Skeezix]

Yup AtlLaw:  That's it.  And it's the right color too.  Good pic.  Thanks!  What I saw was most definitely NOT a jaguar.

[J-Train]

Interesting thread.  Try Googling "Jaguarundi," and also look at Google images for some good pix.

 A couple of friends swear they saw a "panther" (black) near the NC/SC state line in the mountains recently.  They are not very nature-savvy, so there's no telling what they actually saw.  Another friend reported seeing one in the same area a year or so earlier. These are honest, sincere, reliable folks who know little of wildlife, so they have no prejudice for or against the existence of large, black cats. No tracks or trail-cam evidence, though, and the DNR folks say there's no such critter. Wouldn't it be great if there were an undiscovered species right here among us in the eastern US?

[rugerfan.64]

Glad I wasnt the only one to actually see one of these things. Think I'll go hit the jug a bit and see if I can conjure up a pink elephant for two. LOL. Thanks folks,I'd like to be able to actually get a pic of one.

[saltshaker]

Back in the 50's grew up where hunting was a way of life,near a  swamp In south Mississippi, in the sticks as they say in the cities, not far from La. border, began shooting a gun at an early age,about 4 with my older brother, loved the woods, hunted all kinds of game,  day and  night hunting with dogs,chasing wild hogs 'n deer, coons 'n bobcats to name a few,  came west later, didn't even know how to cross the street, 'till I saw a button that said "push" on the post, never seen a stoplight before 'till the trip out here, Ca.  About as bad as the beverly hillbillies. very woodswise though.  Ran into things I could'nt explain too. Used to see the Ivory billed woodpecker also along with an occasional bear and wolf, but never a coyote.
     The cat they call a Panther in Florida is just a cougar.  The true Panther is jet black, bigger than a cougar, measured one's tracks as he loped across plowed ground at 16 feet apart, the track was , best I remember 4 1/2 inches.  You ask  the old folk that live in the country in south Ms., I would think they know about them.  They let out a blood curdling, make your hair stand up scream that sounds just like a woman screaming. The women you hear in movies.  I kid you not......nothing like a cougar. My hunting dogs were scared so bad by them they would cower and just tremble. Anyone here have any experience with them, they may be all gone by now.