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BohoBio Bio
Hello, my name is Marty, and this is my BohoBio Bio
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Name : Marty the Margay
Scientific Name : Leopardus wiedii Other Names : tree ocelot, long-tailed spotted cat, gato-peludo (furry cat) Home : Cusuco National Park, Honduras Favorite Food : meat eater (carnivore) love mice, rats, lizards and the occasional bird or eggs Personality : shy, keep to myself, creature of the night Best Feature : twisty ankles that help make me a top-level tree climber Biggest Concerns : avoiding jaguars, surviving human impact Shout out : International Society for Endangered Cats |
WHERE I’M FROM
I live a lush rainforest in Cusuco National Park in Honduras, but other margays live in forests that occur as far north as Mexico and as far south as the northern part of Argentina. Forests are our comfort zone and while we do most of our hunting on the ground, we spend more of our time up in trees.
TRAITS & ABILITIES
I am 100% part of the cat family and am the size of a medium to large house cat. There are 7 other spotted small cat species that resemble me and live in Central and South America. They range in size from about 2kg (4.5 lbs.) in the Guiña to about 12 kg (26 lbs.) in the ocelot. My body is covered with soft, light brown fur with lots of black stripes and spot that help to camouflage me in the forest. My spot pattern most closely resembles that of the ocelot, though my body is only about 1/3 the size (I weight 4 kg). My tail is really long (about as long as the rest of my body), and it helps me with balance as I move around in the trees. My eyes and ears are large and are really useful for hunting at night.
My paws are bigger than your typical cat species and they help me move around easily in the trees. Another useful feature are the ankles on my back legs that allow my feet to turn around a full 180 degrees! This allows me to climb down tree headfirst.
My paws are bigger than your typical cat species and they help me move around easily in the trees. Another useful feature are the ankles on my back legs that allow my feet to turn around a full 180 degrees! This allows me to climb down tree headfirst.
FAMILY LIFE
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We margays prefer to live alone and maintain territories of between 1 and 10 km2. You’re unlikely to see more than a couple of us in one place. We mark our territories with urine and scents glands on our feet and neck. Pregnancy lasts about 2 months, and the mother will usually have one or two kittens (she can only feed two kittens at a time). Our kittens take about one year to reach adult size and will be starting their own families at about two years old. |
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PRESENT & FUTURE
Right now, I am classified as “near threatened.” We need your help if we are to have a future in which our home is safe and where we are not being captured for our skin or to be sold as exotic pets. We are fortunate to have friends like the “International Society for Endangered Cats”. This groups is dedicated to protecting us, other threatened cat species and our homes. So long as the effort of people trying to protect us and our home are greater than the efforts of people trying to kill us or destroy our home, we will have a future presence on our planet.
