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2024Lethal Beauty
Shot of the Month – November 2024
Ok, yeeessss, this female jaguar is an apex predator. Yes, she is a member of the biggest cat species in the Americas and the third largest in the world. Yes, this jaguar’s jaw is so powerful it can pierce the skull of a caiman (think alligator but a bit different) with one bite. Yes, she is terrifying.
Caiman:
But she is also stunningly beautiful. Those eyes! Could she look any more kitty-like? The bored gaze…the crossed paws. I just can’t…
I found this lethal kitty sitting in the shade under a tree along a riverbank in the Pantanal in Brazil.
Her looks are particularly striking after seeing male jaguars. Many males look like middle-aged heavyweight boxers. Massive, brutish, scarred, and battle-worn. This female is downright lithe, probably weighing in at the lower end of the typical 75 to 175 pounds for females. Males can weigh from 220 to 350 pounds. And her luscious fur coat — so beautiful!
Males often get into territorial battles to keep a preferred part of the jungle or win over rights to a female. Look at the wounds on this massive male:
Here is another male jaguar with an injury to his eye. This jaguar was well known to researchers, and despite the injury, this jaguar was the dominant male in his part of the jungle for many years.
But I digress. Our lovely female has no scratches or marks on her face. Given her size and perfect facial features, I guess that she is fairly young and has not yet endured many fights or injuries while hunting. Females rarely fight but will fiercely defend their young from male jaguars and engage in mock battles with courting males. They may also fight to defend a kill from other jaguars.
There you have it, a female jaguar in the prime of her life – a stunning, regal queen of the jungle. Admire at a distance, as her beauty is deceptively lethal.
Read more about Jaguars in my previous posts:
Until next month……michael
Nikon D4S, Nikon 600 mm, 1/400 sec, f/4, ISO 560, EV +0.5
