Jaguar

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Jaguars of Costa Rica

The jaguar is Costa Rica’s largest cat and is active by day or night. Most would expect the jaguar to be a proficient climber, and it is, but unlike most cats, appears to possess an unusual liking for water. They are often found in and around such habitats as mangrove swamps and the forested banks of rivers, and they seem to enjoy swimming. The jaguar is a skillful predator and usually hunts from the ground. Its hunting techniques are simple yet effective, seizing its prey by stalking or ambushing at close range. In any given habitat, the jaguar will feed on whatever prey (over 2 lbs.) is available. Clearly the jaguar is an opportunistic feeder. Being highest on the food chain affords the jaguar a diverse range of prey in which to feed upon. Sloths and iguanas are staples, but other known prey includes tapirs, pacas, agoutis, anteaters, fish, ocelots, pumas, opossums, monkeys, large birds, various snakes, and small crocodilians. A particular favorite meal of the jaguar is the peccary (a type of wild pig), and turtles, crushing their shells with its powerful teeth.

Unfortunately, the jaguar also eats beef and will attack cattle, particularly in areas where forest has been cut down and replaced by pasture. Subsequently, the jaguar and the farmer are not on good terms, as the farmer sees the big cat as a menace, not a national asset that should be protected.

Many believe jaguars kill their prey by biting through the neck of their prey or asphyxiating them. This is not true. Jaguars pounce on the backs or sides of a potential victim and twist their necks such that they fall to the ground, frequently causing the neck to break in the fall. The jaguar has incredible jaw strength. Although the jaguar isn’t that much bigger than the puma, it’s bite force is about 1.6 times greater. This tremendous jaw strength allows the jaguar to pierce the armor of turtles and crocodilians, which most other predators leave alone. Feeding on a large sea turtle such as a leatherback or loggerhead, the jaguar merely bites the head and neck off and inserts its forepaws scooping out the meat from inside the shell. The jaguar will frequently drag its victims a considerable distance to a concealed feeding site so as to feast on the victim for subsequent days.

Jaguars are content resting on the ground, in trees, or in caves. Male and female jaguars don’t interact unless the female is in heat. This period lasts approximately a week and the jaguars will copulate some 100 times a DAY. The high frequency of copulation is needed for ovulation to take place.

The gestation period is about 3 ½ months, in which the female can give birth to up to four cubs. A juvenile is capable of walking within a few weeks and nurses for approximately five to six months. A jaguar cub reaches sexual maturity between 2-4 years of age, but may stay close to its mother for a couple of years or more.

At one time, the jaguar could be found almost anywhere in Costa Rica, but today its refuge is usually in the national parks, particularly Santa Rosa National Park, Tortuguero National Park, and Corcovado National Park. Although a visit to one of these parks does not guarantee a jaguar sighting, you do have a good chance of seeing its tracks.

Unfortunately, unless a major effort is made to link protected areas, the jaguar’s future in this region is bleak at best.