Jaguar (Panthera onca) Fact Sheet: Physical Characteristics

Body shape

• Body robust
  
• Largest extant (living) cat of the Americas
• Extinct North American cats, Smilodon and Megantereon, were larger
  
• Size variation
  
• Smaller in equatorial regions and in dense forests, larger north and south of equator
  
• Likely influenced by the size of available prey
  
• Similar to leopards though larger
  
• Chest more deep
• Head more broad
  
• Paws larger
  
• Tail shorter
  
• Heaviest cat that climbs well
• Limbs
  
• Relatively short
• shortest fore- and hind-limbs relative to body size of all pantherine cats
  
• Hindlimbs more narrowly set than forelimbs
  
• Feet and claws
• Retractile claw on each digit
  

Facial characteristics

• Head
  
• Massive
  
• Circumference usually greater than height at shoulder
  
• Sagittal crest (midline ridge) in males and older individuals
• Eyes
  
• Color of iris golden to reddish yellow
  
• Pupil round
  
• Canine teeth
  
• Lower canines relatively larger than in other pantherines
  
• Powerful bite; more powerful than in other large cats
  

Adult pelage

• Coat pattern highly variable
  
• Background pale yellow to tan to reddish yellow
  
• Some individuals with much smaller rosettes or without spot
• Melanistic individuals common
  
• Nearly all black; spots barely visible
  
• Results from a dominant gene variant
• Trait more common than in other large cats, except for leopards
  
• Term "black panther" applies to melanistic jaguars, leopards, and pumas
  
• Spotted with dark rosettes
  
• All ages with spots
  
• Young with adult pattern by c. 7 months of age
  
• "Butterfly" patterned
  
• Circular black markings in rosettes enclosing one or more small spots
• Spot structure used to distinguish jaguars from the leopard and cheetah
  
• Leopards lack smaller dark spots in the center of each rosette
  
• Cheetah with solid black spots; background color not visible at center
  
• Tail
  
• 2-3 black rings
• Ending with a black tip
• Ventral body whitish
  
• Throat, belly, and insides of limbs
  
• Tail white underneath

Dimorphic in size

• Males larger than females
  
• Females usually 10 to 20% smaller

Prints

• Appearance
  • Unlike that of a puma
  • Heel pad of jaguar
    • Larger; wider and more rounded than that of a puma, with pronounced lobes at the base
    • Pad extends forward to base of toes (compact, "filled in" appearance)
  • Toes of jaguar
    • Proportionally larger and more rounded than those of a puma
  • Print of hind-feet fall inside those of the front feet on the overstep
• Size
  • Width c. 12.1 cm (4.76 in)

Jaguar are one of several spotted cats.

The spots, known as rosettes, of jaguars are distinguished by a black, interrupted outer ring; the background coat color lies at the center of each spot, which may also contain one or more solid black dots. Compare the spots of a jaguar (top image) with those of a leopard (center) and a cheetah (bottom).

Image credit: © San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. All rights reserved.

Childs (1998)
Hoogesteijn et al. (1993; 1996)
Murie (1975)
Seymour (1989)
Turner (1997)
Wroe et al. (2004)