Species comparison
Jaguarundi vs Puma
A side-by-side look at Herpailurus yagouaroundi and Puma concolor across body measurements, habitat, diet, behaviour and conservation status.
At a glance
- The puma averages about 10.3 times the body mass of the jaguarundi.
- Both species use tropical rainforest and semi-arid scrub.
- Their ranges both include North America and South America.
- Both are currently listed as Least Concern on the Red List.
Identification
How each species is named and classified.
Jaguarundi
Herpailurus yagouaroundi
Puma
Puma concolor
Jaguarundi
Herpailurus
Puma
Puma
Jaguarundi
Puma lineage
Puma
Puma lineage
Jaguarundi
Small cats
Puma
Big cats
Jaguarundi
Eyra cat, Otter cat
Puma
Mountain lion, Cougar, Panther, Catamount
Body and movement
Published field measurements for adults. Ranges cover both sexes unless noted.
Jaguarundi
21 in – 2 ft 6 in (53–77 cm)
Puma
3 ft 3 in – 6 ft 7 in (100–200 cm) Longer
Jaguarundi
12 in – 24 in (31–60 cm)
Puma
24 in – 3 ft 1 in (60–95 cm) Longer
Jaguarundi
10 in – 14 in (25–35 cm)
Puma
24 in – 2 ft 11 in (60–90 cm) Taller
Jaguarundi
7.7–20 lb (3.5–9 kg)
Males average slightly larger than females.
Puma
64–220 lb (29–100 kg) Heavier
Males 53–100 kg, females 29–64 kg; animals near the equator are smaller than those at high latitudes.
Jaguarundi
Not reliably measured
No reliable measurement published.
Puma
50 mph (80 km/h)
Short accelerations from cover rather than sustained pursuit.
Life span
Typical adult longevity. Figures for managed care come from zoo and sanctuary records.
Jaguarundi
8–10 years
Puma
8–13 years Longer
Jaguarundi
10–15 years
Puma
18–21 years Longer
Habitat and range
Where each species lives and the conditions it tolerates.
Jaguarundi
dry forest, tropical rainforest, semi-arid scrub, wetland, savanna, agricultural mosaic
Prefers dense low cover — thorn scrub, secondary growth, forest edge and riverside thickets — more often than closed primary rainforest.
Puma
montane forest, temperate forest, tropical rainforest, desert, semi-arid scrub, grassland
Almost any terrain that offers stalking cover and ungulate prey, from coastal rainforest and Rocky Mountain conifer to Sonoran desert, Patagonian steppe and Andean páramo above 13,000 feet.
Jaguarundi
North America, South America
From northern Mexico through Central America to northern Argentina. Historical records exist for southern Texas, where the species is federally listed but has not been confirmed in decades.
Puma
North America, South America
From British Columbia and Alberta south through the western United States, Mexico and Central America to Chile and Argentina. A small, isolated population persists in southern Florida.
Diet and behaviour
Feeding ecology, social organisation and hunting technique.
Jaguarundi
small mammals, birds, reptiles, insects, fish
Rodents, ground birds, lizards, frogs, large invertebrates and occasional fruit; most prey weighs under a pound.
Puma
medium ungulates, small mammals, hares, birds
Deer dominate across most of the range, supplemented by elk calves, guanaco, vicuña, peccary, porcupines, hares and rodents.
Jaguarundi
Solitary
Usually seen alone, occasionally in pairs. It is more terrestrial than most Neotropical cats and moves through thick cover with a distinctly low, gliding gait.
Puma
Solitary
Adults hold large, scent-marked ranges; recent GPS work shows more tolerance and even occasional food sharing between neighbours than was long assumed.
Jaguarundi
Diurnal
One of the few strongly day-active cats, with peaks in the morning and mid-afternoon. This may reduce competition with the largely nocturnal ocelot.
Puma
Crepuscular and nocturnal
Movement peaks at dawn and dusk, matching deer activity, and shifts further into the night close to roads and settlement.
Jaguarundi
Active ground search
Rather than sitting in ambush, jaguarundis quarter dense cover on foot, flushing and pouncing on small prey; they will also climb after birds.
Puma
Stalk, pounce and cache
A puma approaches under cover, launches from short range and kills with a bite to the neck, then drags the carcass to a cache site and returns over several nights.
Jaguarundi
Capable
Climbs well but hunts mainly on the ground, unlike the closely sympatric margay.
Puma
Exceptional More developed
Climbs quickly and confidently, often treeing to escape wolves or dogs and to rest above the ground.
Jaguarundi
Capable
Enters water readily and has been observed swimming across small rivers.
Puma
Capable
Swims when necessary, including between coastal islands, but generally avoids water.
Conservation
Red List category, population direction and the pressures documented for each species.
Jaguarundi
LC — Least Concern
Assessed 2015
Puma
LC — Least Concern
Assessed 2015
Jaguarundi
Decreasing
Puma
Decreasing
Jaguarundi
Loss of dense low cover, Conversion of scrub to farmland, Road mortality, Persecution near poultry, Fragmentation of riparian corridors
Still widespread, but the northern edge of the range has contracted sharply and populations in Mexico and Central America are considered at risk.
Puma
Habitat fragmentation by roads and development, Vehicle collisions, Retaliatory killing after livestock loss, Prey depletion, Genetic isolation of small populations
Secure at the species level thanks to a huge range, but eastern North American populations were extirpated, and the Florida panther depends on active genetic and habitat management.
Notable traits
Details that do not fit neatly into a measurement table.
Jaguarundi
- Grey and reddish colour morphs were once described as two separate species.
- It produces an unusually varied vocal repertoire, including chirps, whistles and a bird-like call.
- Its build reflects a diet of small ground prey, not the arboreal hunting typical of similarly sized Neotropical cats.
Puma
- The species holds one of the longest lists of English common names of any mammal, a legacy of its enormous range.
- Vertical leaps of more than fifteen feet from a standing position have been documented.
- Highway crossing structures in California and Florida were built specifically to reconnect isolated puma populations.
Sources used for this comparison
- IUCN Red List of Threatened Species Global assessment categories, population trends and documented threats.
- IUCN SSC Cat Specialist Group Species accounts, distribution notes and Cat News reporting for every wild felid.
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Federal listing status and recovery planning for cats occurring in the United States.
- Small Wild Cat Conservation Foundation Dedicated research and field reporting on the lesser-known felids.
- Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan Museum of Zoology Reviewed species accounts with morphometric ranges and reproductive data.
- Panthera Field research programmes and species profiles for big and small wild cats.
- U.S. National Park Service Long-running monitoring of North American carnivores inside protected areas.