The New Student's Reference Work/Jaguar
Jag'uar, the largest of American animals belonging to the cat family. An average specimen measures (with the tail) from six to seven feet. It is the tiger of the New World and the third most powerful of the entire cat tribe. The head is noticeably large, the legs massive. There is much variation in its color, but in general it is yellowish brown with spots like the leopard. The spots, however, are larger and more angular. It inhabits all South America, except Patagonia, and extends into North America as far as the Red River of Louisiana and the Medina River of Texas. It is found in the forests, especially along the Amazon, and is the dreaded foe of man, monkey, quadrupeds and small rodents. Deer are also hunted, alligators and boas sometimes devoured, and the animal is often expert in catching fish. It hunts both by pursuit and by leaping from ambush. There is some reason for believing that there are three species of jaguars — a large and a small spotted form and a large, black variety which attacks the tapir.