This page is about the Margay generally
The distribution of the margay (Leopardus wiedii) is highlighted in the embedded range map below. However, this page deals with more than the range of this wild cat species. I had left the original map public in the expectation that people could and would refine it. There is a need, I think, to improve our knowledge of the wild cats. There is a shortage of sightings from which the range can be established. I had hoped (dreaming?) that reliable sightings could have beed recorded on this map and the range extended or adjusted accordingly.
There may be enough evidence to suggest that the range should be decreased in certain areas due to no sightings for a considerable time. However, people have not taken up the challenge, which is to be expected. The range of the margay is becoming fragmented through the gradual destruction of its forest habitat. The Amazon basin continues to be used by people for commercial purposes which usually means cutting down forest. This results in fragmented non-continuous habit for the margay. This threatens its survival in the wild. Roads intersect the forest as well. The prospects are poor long term. See more below.
Overview
The margay is a small, tree-dwelling wildcat that looks like the ocelot and which lives in the forests of South Mexico, Central and South America. It is perhaps the world’s best tree climbing cat. It can race down trees headfirst, a sign of complete comfort in trees. The margay hunts tree rats, opossums, tree frogs and birds. It weighs about 7 lbs. It has a long tail for balance while climbing. They were once popular as pets and were hunted for their impressive skin. They are under threat of extinction in the wild in the long term mainly due to habitat loss and are protected (2012).
View Margay Range in a larger map
Collage above: Margay wild cat margay range – photos by (from top left clockwise): mottazoo, BigCat Rescue, Smithsonian Institution, mottazoo, carinemily, Princes Milady
