Pantanal Cat
Encyclopedia
The Pantanal Cat is a small feline
of far south-eastern and central Brazil
, Paraguay
, northern Argentina
and Uruguay
. It is named after the Pantanal
wetlands in central South America
, but mainly occurs in grassland
, shrubland
, savanna
s and deciduous
forests. It has traditionally been treated as a subspecies
of the larger Colocolo
, but was split primarily based on differences in pelage colour/pattern and cranial
measurements. This split is not supported by genetic
work, leading some authorities to maintain that it is a subspecies of the Colocolo. Hybrids between the Pantanal Cat and Oncilla are known from Brazil.
, there are two subspecies
of the Pantanal Cat:
L. b. braccatus is almost entirely rusty
-brown with faint dark brown spots on the flanks, a whitish throat, two dark lines on each cheek, black stripes on the legs and chest, and black feet and tail-tip. L. b. munoai is quite similar, but paler, more yellowish, its flank spots are browner and more distinct, the feet are only black on the soles, and the distal part of the tail has several discontinuous rings but only a narrow black tip.
Felidae
Felidae is the biological family of the cats; a member of this family is called a felid. Felids are the strictest carnivores of the thirteen terrestrial families in the order Carnivora, although the three families of marine mammals comprising the superfamily pinnipedia are as carnivorous as the...
of far south-eastern and central Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, Paraguay
Paraguay
Paraguay , officially the Republic of Paraguay , is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to the east and northeast, and Bolivia to the northwest. Paraguay lies on both banks of the Paraguay River, which runs through the center of the...
, northern Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
and Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
. It is named after the Pantanal
Pantanal
The Pantanal is a tropical wetland and one of the world's largest wetland of any kind. Most of it lies within the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso do Sul, but it extends into Mato Grosso and portions of Bolivia and Paraguay, sprawling over an area estimated at between and...
wetlands in central South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
, but mainly occurs in grassland
Grassland
Grasslands are areas where the vegetation is dominated by grasses and other herbaceous plants . However, sedge and rush families can also be found. Grasslands occur naturally on all continents except Antarctica...
, shrubland
Shrubland
Shrubland, scrubland, scrub or brush is a plant community characterized by vegetation dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally or be the result of human activity...
, savanna
Savanna
A savanna, or savannah, is a grassland ecosystem characterized by the trees being sufficiently small or widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to support an unbroken herbaceous layer consisting primarily of C4 grasses.Some...
s and deciduous
Deciduous
Deciduous means "falling off at maturity" or "tending to fall off", and is typically used in reference to trees or shrubs that lose their leaves seasonally, and to the shedding of other plant structures such as petals after flowering or fruit when ripe...
forests. It has traditionally been treated as a subspecies
Subspecies
Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
of the larger Colocolo
Colocolo
Colocolo may refer to:*Colocolo , a Mapuche tribal chief.*Colo Colo creature of the Mapuche mythology.*Colocolo , a South American cat native to Chile.*Colo-Colo, a Chilean football team....
, but was split primarily based on differences in pelage colour/pattern and cranial
Cranial
Cranial may refer to:* an adjective related to the cranium* Anatomical terms of location* Cranial cavity* Cranial Osteopathy...
measurements. This split is not supported by genetic
Genetics
Genetics , a discipline of biology, is the science of genes, heredity, and variation in living organisms....
work, leading some authorities to maintain that it is a subspecies of the Colocolo. Hybrids between the Pantanal Cat and Oncilla are known from Brazil.
Subspecies
When recognized as a species separate from the ColocoloColocolo
Colocolo may refer to:*Colocolo , a Mapuche tribal chief.*Colo Colo creature of the Mapuche mythology.*Colocolo , a South American cat native to Chile.*Colo-Colo, a Chilean football team....
, there are two subspecies
Subspecies
Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
of the Pantanal Cat:
- Leopardus braccatus braccatus (Cope, 1889) – central Brazil, through Paraguay, to northern Argentina.
- Leopardus braccatus munoai (Ximenez, 1961) – extreme southern Brazil and Uruguay.
L. b. braccatus is almost entirely rusty
Rust (color)
Rust is a red-brown-orange color resembling iron oxide. It is a commonly used color in stage lighting, and appears roughly the same color as photographic safelights when used over a standard tungsten light source. The color is number 777 in the swatch book....
-brown with faint dark brown spots on the flanks, a whitish throat, two dark lines on each cheek, black stripes on the legs and chest, and black feet and tail-tip. L. b. munoai is quite similar, but paler, more yellowish, its flank spots are browner and more distinct, the feet are only black on the soles, and the distal part of the tail has several discontinuous rings but only a narrow black tip.
External links
- photo of a pantanal cat http://www.cbu.edu/~aross/biodept/MIRT/MIRT-2004/Emas-01-Cyntia-Sally.JPG
