Other Names margay (French) Langschwanzkatze (German) ctigrillo, gato tigre (Spanish) gato pintado (Argentina, Peru, Venezuela) tigrillito (Belize) gato montés, gato de monté (Bolivia, Uruguay) gato maracaja mirim peludo (Brazil) pichigueta (Cent. Am.) caucel (Costa Rica, Honduras) burricón (Ecuador) mbaracaya (Guatemala) kuichua (Guyana) chat tig, chat margay (French Guiana) chulul (Mayan) huamburushu (Peru, Venezuela) cunaguaro (Venezuela) tigrikati, boomkat (Suriname)

Contents Description and Behavior Biology Habitat and Distribution Population Status

Protection Status Principal Threats References Action Planning

Description and Behavior The margay is easily confused with the ocelot and the oncilla. It is difficult to distinguish by its coat, which is patterned with black-ringed rosettes and elongate blotches on a tawny background. Its fur is thick and plush. The margay is between the two in size, weighing an average of 3.2 kg (n=4: Redford and Eisenberg 1992). In motion, however, the margay displays exceptional climbing abilities. It has the ability to rotate its hind foot through 180 (Leyhausen 1963). Thus equipped, it can run straight down trees head-first like a squirrel, and may hang from a branch by one hind foot. In the early 1800s, Maximilian Prince zu Wied observed the margay climbing about on dangling lianas in the forest (Weigel 1975). Petersen (1977a) describes the acrobatics of captive margays on a rope strung horizontally in their enclosure. The cats would jump from a distance of 2 m with front legs and claws extended, hit the rope at their belly region, somersault over to hang by the hind feet, and drop back to the ground. The margay’s tail is proportionately quite long (although not as long as the Andean mountain cat), averaging 70% of head-body length (TL=36.4 cm; n=6: Redford and Eisenberg 1992). It serves as a counterweight to aid balance (Eisenberg 1990). In Belize, a radio-collared margay was found to forage in trees, but travel on the ground (Konecny 1989). Based on analysis of 27 scats, the most common item in the diet was a small arboreal mammal, the big-eared climbing rat. Squirrels, opossums, arthropods, small birds and fruit were also taken (Konecny 1989). Other reported arboreal prey includes prehensile-tailed porcupines, marmosets, capuchin monkeys, and three-toed sloths (Goldman 1920, Beebe 1925). Terrestrial prey has also been reported, including spiny pocket rats, cane rats, and cavies (Carvalho 1958, Mondolfi 1986), but in the Belize study margays took more birds and fruit and fewer terrestrial mammals than ocelots or jaguarundis (Konecny 1989). Margays are strongly nocturnal, with highest levels of activity recorded between 0100-0500 both in the wild and captivity; during the daytime, they rest in trees (Petersen 1977a, Konecny 1989). Biology Estrus (C): 4-10 days Estrus cycle (C): 32-36 days (Petersen 1977b, Paintiff and Anderson 1980, Mellen 1989) Gestation (C): 76-84 days (Paintiff and Anderson 1980, Mellen 1989, P. Quillen in litt. 1993) Litter size (C): one (n=17: Mellen 1989), sometimes two (Mondolfi 1986) Age at sexual maturity (C): first estrus for females at 6-10 months (Petersen and Petersen 1978) Longevity (C): up to 20 years (Prator et al. 1988) Habitat and Distribution The margay is more strongly associated with forest habitat, both evergreen and deciduous (Bisbal 1989), than any other tropical American cat (Figure 5). Although it formerly occurred as far north as Texas, it was restricted to riverine forest (L. Emmons in litt. 1993). It hunts on the boundaries of such gallery forests and may thus be found some distance from forest cover in savanna habitats (Eisenberg 1990). It appears to be less tolerant of human settlement and altered habitat than its close relatives, the ocelot and oncilla, although it has been occasionally reported outside forested areas (Vaughan 1983, Tello 1986b), such as in shady cocoa or coffee plantations in Venezuela (Mondolfi 1986). In a successional forest mosaic in Belize, one sub-adult male margay spent significantly more time in late secondary growth forest than in other habitat patches, but would make 2-3 day forays into early secondary growth forest (Konecny 1989). Johns (1986) reports, however, that the margay is absent from logged areas. The margay is rarely found at elevations above 1,200 m (Eisenberg 1990). Population Status Global: Category 4 Regional: Category 3 IUCN: Insufficiently Known Very little is known of the margay’s status and abundance across its range. The Amazon Basin is its stronghold. It is reported to be rare in north-western Argentina (Mares et al. 1981, A. Canedi in litt. 1993) and Uruguay (A. Ximénez in litt. 1990). A sub-adult male in successional forest in Belize’s Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary -- where margays appear to be less common than in primary forest -- had a home range of 11 km2 (Konecny 1989). An adult radio-collared male in Brazil’s Iguaçu National Park monitored over 18 months by P. Crawshaw (pers. comm. 1993) maintained a home range of 16 km2. Protection Status Protection Status: Upgraded to CITES Appendix I in 1989 National Legislation: Fully protected over most of its range Hunting and trade prohibited: Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, French Guiana, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay, Venezuela No legal protection: Ecuador, Guyana, El Salvador (Fuller et al. 1987) Smaller than the ocelot, the margay is renowned for its flexible hind feet, which enable it to descend vertical tree trunks head-first. Principal Threats The margay has been one of the most heavily exploited Latin American cats, with an average annual net trade reported to CITES of 13,934 skins between 1976 and 1984 (Broad 1987). Trade statistics probably do not reflect the actual number of margays killed, as margays began to appear in international trade at a time of concern over the level of exploitation of the ocelot, and species of spotted cats in trade were rarely verified. Illegal hunting for domestic markets or for the underground skin trade has been reported to be a continuing a problem in some areas (Melquist 1984, Paz y Miño 1988, Walton 1991). Aranda (1991) reported that the margay’s pelt was the most common in the skin trade in the southern Mexican state of Chiapas, despite its protected status. A margay skin sold for US$ 5-10, while an ocelot pelt could fetch US$ 50-90. However, deforestation is now the primary threat to reduced populations now that international trade has virtually ceased.

© 1996 IUCN - The World Conservation Union