Margay (Leopardus wiedii) Classification

Biodiversity worldwide is affected by human activities, species that inhabits in Protected Natural Areas are not exempt to human impact. Habitat resources are limited, species that requires large territories and a constant food availability cannot survive for long. The objective of this work is to point out and describe the occasional record of a specimen of margay (Leopardus wiedii) as a result from a systematic long-term survey in the periurban Ecological Reserve "La Martinique", in the central mountainous area of the state of Veracruz (Mexico).

For about 25 months (May 2021 to June 2023), a non-invasive survey focused on terrestrial and arboreal mammals was deployed in "La Martinique". The camera traps were installed at ground (terrestrial stations) and in the canopy (arboreal stations), with an average distance of 300 m between them. The 24-hour cycles in which each camera operated correctly and uninterruptedly were considered 1 trap-day.

After a sampling effort of 2,525 trap days, and an effective sampling area of 0.5 km2, in January 2023, at an altitude of 1,553 m, a specimen of margay was recorded in "La Martinique". Due to the presence of other carnivores (exotic, introduced, and native) and the scarce mammal diversity at the study site (n = 12 species), it is unlikely that a resident population of Leopardus wiedii inhabit in the region. The specimen was probably passing through during its dispersal.

This record is the northernmost of the species obtained through systematic monitoring in the state of Veracruz.

Villafañe-Trujillo, Álvaro José & Delfín-Alfonso, Christian A.. (2025). Record of margay (Leopardus wiedii) in a periurban Ecological Reserve in the central mountain region of Veracruz, Mexico / Registro de margay (Leopardus wiedii) en Reserva Ecológica periurbana en la zona montañosa del centro de Veracruz, México. Therya Notes. 6. 10.12933/therya_notes-25-213.

Though jaguarundi Herpailurus yagouaroundi are considered a species of "Least Concern," the data dictating this status is limited owing to few targeted studies of the felid. In Panama, expanding the knowledge of jaguarundi ecology is essential to inform conservation decisions as the country continues to experience habitat conversion. With a decrease in habitat availability, it is important to elucidate interactions and resource partitioning between jaguarundi and sympatric felids.

In this study, we used presence-only data from camera traps deployed in the Mamon¡ Valley of Panama and in the Guna Yala Comarca, in a maximum entropy framework as an index of occurrence probability for jaguarundi. We included habitat variables as covariates to evaluate their relative importance to jaguarundi occupancy. Using spatial and temporal data, we then assessed the co-occurrence of jaguarundi with four sympatric felid species: margay Leopardus wiedii, ocelot Leopardus pardalis, puma Puma concolor, and jaguar Panthera onca.

Models indicated that jaguarundi were more likely to occur in secondary forests at lower slopes, and avoided open pasture land. Only the distribution of the ocelot affected modelled jaguarundi occurrence, and this relationship was positive. Jaguarundis had a likelihood of coexisting with all felid species in 57% of the jaguarundi's predicted occurrence range at the 0.5 threshold, and this was likely facilitated by temporal and ecological niche partitioning among the sympatric species.

The data from this research suggest that though jaguarundis occur sympatrically with other felid species, their habitat use is unique from larger, charismatic species and targeted conservation efforts may be necessary to ensure the conservation of jaguarundis in Panama.

Baron, S.; McCarthy, J.; McCarthy, K.P.; Ehinola, K.; McGonigle, S.; Perea, J.; Yacelga, M.; Craighead, K.
Jaguarundi occupancy and interaction with sympatric felids in Panama
2023 Cat News (77): 40-47

The Atlantic Forest of South America supports a rich terrestrial biodiversity but has been reduced to only a small extent of its original forest cover. It hosts a large number of endemic mammalian species but our knowledge of arboreal mammal ecology and conservation has been limited because of the challenges of observing arboreal species from ground level.

Camera trapping has proven to be an effective tool in terrestrial mammal monitoring but the technique has rarely been used for arboreal species. For the first time in the Atlantic Forest, we obtained data on the arboreal mammal community using arboreal camera trapping, focusing on Capara¢ National Park, Brazil. We placed 24 infrared camera traps in the forest canopy in seven areas within the Park, operating them continuously during January 2017-June 2019.

During this period the camera traps accumulated 4,736 camera-days of footage and generated a total of 2,256 photographs and 30-s videos of vertebrates. The arboreal camera traps were able to detect arboreal mammals of a range of body sizes. The mammal assemblage comprised 15 identifiable species, including the Critically Endangered northern muriqui (Brachyteles hypoxanthus) and buffy-headed marmoset (Callithrix flaviceps) as well as other rare, nocturnal and inconspicuous species. We confirmed for the first time the occurrence of the thin-spined porcupine (Chaetomys subspinosus) in the Park.

Species richness varied across survey areas and forest types. Our findings demonstrate the potential of arboreal camera trapping to inform conservation strategies.

Kaizer, M.C.; Alvim, T.H.G.; Novaes, C.L.; McDevitt, A.D.; Young, R.J.
Snapshot of the Atlantic Forest canopy: surveying arboreal mammals in a biodiversity hotspot
2022  Oryx (56): 825-836

The margay (Leopardus wiedii) and jaguarundi (Herpailurus yagouaroundi) are medium-sized neotropical felines for which few studies have been conducted in Guatemala. Both species are mainly known from sporadic observations and are rarely geographically referenced.

We report the presence of margay and jaguarundi in the Private Natural Reserve Ranchitos del Quetzal, Purulh , Baja Verapaz, Guatemala. We base our records on observations using camera traps placed in a cloud forest between 1,600 and 1,900 masl during 2017 and 2019.

We recorded the presence of jaguarundi 31 km SE of the closest registered site, increasing its reported distribution area in Guatemala. Additionally, we report the presence of margay over 1,500 masl in the cloud forest of Baja Verapaz, which increases its distribution by 30 km SE of the closest registered site in Guatemala up to date.

Marmol-Kattan, A.; Palomo-Munoz, G.; Pinto-Meneses, J.P.; Rosito-Prado, I.
Remarkable record of two mesocarnivores in the cloud forest of Baja Verapaz, Gautemala

2019  Revista Mexicana de Mastozoologia (9): 56-62

Four Neotropical small and medium felids-the ocelot, jaguarundi, margay, and southern tiger cat-have overlapping geographic distributions in the endangered Atlantic Forest. Local studies show that these felids avoid areas with high human impact, but the three smaller ones use human-modified areas more frequently than do ocelots.

To understand how landscape changes affect the habitat distribution of these four felids in the Atlantic Forest of Argentina, we used maximum entropy models to analyze the effect of environmental and anthropogenic factors. We estimated niche breadth and overlap among these felids.

The conversion of the native forest to land uses without trees was the most important variable that determined the habitat distribution of the four species. For all four species, the optimal habitat covered about 1/3 of the study area and corresponds mainly to the native forest areas. Nearly 50% of these areas had some level of protection. The niche width was higher for the small felids than for ocelots. Niche overlap was high for all species pairs, but higher among the small felids and lower for each of these with the ocelot. The four felids were negatively affected by native forest loss, with ocelots being more sensitive than the smaller felids.

The conversion of unprotected forest areas to other types of land uses would imply a greater habitat loss for these felids. The protection of current remnants of Atlantic Forest in Argentina is important for the long-term conservation of the four felids.

Cruz, P.; De Angelo, C.; Martinez Pardo, J.; Iezzi, M.E.; Varela, D.; Di Bitetti, M.S.; Paviolo, A.
Cats under cover: Habitat models indicate a high dependency on woodlands by Atlantic Forest felids
2019  Biotropica (51): 1-13