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Big cat

For other uses, see Big cat (disambiguation).

The Liger (Panthera leo × Panthera tigris) is the largest and heaviest living member of the Felidae (cat) family.

The informal term "big cat" is typically used to refer to any of the four largest (living) members of the entire Panthera genus. Among the five total species within the Pantheragenus, these four are the only animals that are able to roar.[1] In descending order of their maximum potential size, these four species are: tigers, lions, jaguars, and leopards.[1] A more liberal and expansive definition is sometimes used which may include the snow leopard, puma, clouded leopard, Sunda clouded leopard and/or cheetah, although these added species do not roar.[1] The two clouded leopard species are considered an evolutionary link between big and small cats.

Despite enormous differences in size, various species of cat are quite similar in both structure and behaviour, with the exception of the cheetah, which significantly stands out from the other big and small cats. All cats are carnivores and efficient apex predators.[2] Their range includes the Americas, Africa, Asia, and Europe.

Contents

RoaringEdit

The ability to roar comes from an elongated and specially adapted larynx and hyoid apparatus.[3] When air passes through the larynx on the way from the lungs, the cartilage walls of the larynx vibrate, producing sound. The lion's larynx is longest, giving it the most robust roar. All five extant members of the Panthera genus contain this elongated hyoid but due to differences in the larynx the snow leopard cannot roar.

ThreatsEdit

The principal threats to big cats vary by geographic location, but primarily are habitat destruction and poaching. In Africa many big cats are hunted by pastoralists or government 'problem animal control' officers. Certain protected areas exist that shelter large and exceptionally visible populations of lions, hyenas, leopards, and cheetahs, such as Botswana's Chobe, Kenya's Masai Mara, and Tanzania's Serengeti. Rather, it is outside these conservation areas where hunting poses the dominant threat to large carnivores.[4]

In the United States, 19 states have banned ownership of big cats and other dangerous exotic animals as pets, and the Captive Wildlife Safety Act bans the interstate sale and transportation of these animals.[5] The initial Captive Wildlife Safety Act (CWSA) was signed into law on December 19, 2003.[6] To address problems associated with the increasing trade in certain big cat species, the CSWA regulations were strengthened by a law passed on September 17, 2007.[7] The big cat species addressed in these regulations are the lion, tiger, leopard, snow leopard, clouded leopard, cheetah, jaguar, cougar, and any hybrid combination any of these species(liger,tigon,etc) that results from breeding of these big cats. Private ownership of these big cats is not prohibited by this law but the law does make it illegal to transport, sell, or purchase them in interstate or foreign commerce. Although these regulations seem to provide a strong legal framework for controlling the commerce involving big cats, international organizations such as the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) have encouraged the U.S. to further strengthen these laws. The WWF is concerned that weaknesses in the existing U.S. regulations could be unintentionally helping to fuel the black market for tiger parts.[8]

ConservationEdit

For the population of the big cats, see List of carnivorans by population

An animal sanctuary provides a refuge for animals to live out their natural lives in a protected environment. Usually these animal sanctuaries are the organizations which provide a home to big cats whose private owners are no longer able or willing to care for their big cats. However, use of the word sanctuary in an organization's name is by itself no guarantee that it is a true animal sanctuary in the sense of a refuge. To be accepted by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) as a bona fide animal sanctuary and to be eligible for an exemption from the prohibition of interstate movement of big cats under the Captive Wildlife Safety Act (CWSA), organizations must meet the following criteria:[9]

Must be a non-profit entity that is tax exempt under section 501(a) of the Internal Revenue Code

Cannot engage in commercial trade in big cat species, including their offspring, parts, and products made from them

Cannot breed big cats

Cannot allow direct contact between big cats and the public at their facilities

Must keep records of transactions involving covered cats

Must allow the Service to inspect their facilities, records, and animals at reasonable hours

SpeciesEdit

The lion, the tallest living species in the cat family, which includes the genus Panthera

Family Felidae

Genus Panthera

Tiger, Panthera tigris Asia

Lion, Panthera leo (Sub-Saharan Africa, Gir Forest in India; extinct in former range of southeast Europe, Middle East, much of Asia, and North America)

Jaguar, Panthera onca (the Americas; from the southern United States to northern Argentina)

Leopard, Panthera pardus (Asia and Africa)

Snow leopard, Panthera uncia (syn. Uncia uncia - mountains of central and south Asia)

Genus Acinonyx

Cheetah, Acinonyx jubatus (Sub-Saharan Africa and Iran; extirpated in former range of India)

Genus Puma

Puma/Cougar/Panther/Mountain lion Puma concolor (North and South America)

EvolutionEdit

A 2010 study published in Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution has given insight into the exact evolutionary relationships of the big cats.[10] The study reveals that the snow leopard and the tiger are sister species, while the lion, leopard, and jaguarare more closely related to each other. The tiger and snow leopard diverged from the ancestral big cats approximately 3.9 Ma. The tiger then evolved into a unique species towards the end of the Pliocene epoch, approximately 3.2 Ma. The ancestor of the lion, leopard, and jaguar split from other big cats from 4.3–3.8 Ma. Between 3.6–2.5 Ma the jaguar diverged from the ancestor of lions and leopards. Lions and leopards split from one another approximately 2 Ma.[11] The earliest big cat fossil, Panthera blytheae, dating to 4.1−5.95 MA, was discovered in southwest Tibet.[12]

3.9 Ma | 3.2 Ma |
| Snow leopard

| Tiger

3.6 Ma |
| Jaguar

2 Ma |
| Lion

| Leopard

GalleryEdit

Lion

Cheetah

Puma / Cougar / Panther / Mountain lion

1. Jaguar

Leopard

Snow leopard

Liger

Tigon

Tiger

ReferencesEdit

1. ^ a b c "Big Cat Facts". Animal Facts Encyclopedia. Copyright by Jenise Alongi. Retrieved March 17, 2016.

2. ^ Counting Cats, Guy Balme, Africa Geographic, May 2005.

3. ^ Weissengruber, GE; G Forstenpointner; G Peters; A Kübber-Heiss; WT Fitch (September 2002). "Hyoid apparatus and pharynx in the lion (Panthera leo), jaguar (Panthera onca), tiger (Panthera tigris), cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus), liger (Panthera leo × Panthera tigris), Tigon (Panthera tigris x Panthera leo) and the domestic cat. (Felis silvestris f. catus)". Journal of Anatomy. Anatomical Society of Great Britain and Ireland. 201 (3): 195–209. doi:10.1046/j.1469-7580.2002.00088.x. PMC 1570911 . PMID 12363272.

4. ^ Hunter, Luke (June 2004). "Carnivores in Crisis: The Big Cats" (PDF). Africa Geographic: 28–41. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 15, 2010.

5. ^ Pacelle, Wayne. "Captive Wildlife Safety Act: A Good Start in Banning Exotics as Pets". The Humane Society of the United States. Archived from the original on 19 April 2007. Retrieved 2007-04-01.

6. ^ U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

7. ^ Federal Register of the U.S. Congress

8. ^ America’s 5,000 Backyard Tigers a Ticking Time Bomb, WWF Says, David Braun, National Geographic, News Watch, October 21, 2010.

9. ^ Captive Wildlife Safety Act - What Big Cat Owners Need to Know, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Office of Law Enforcement.

10. ^ Davis, Brian W.; Li, Gang & Murphy, William J. (2010). "Supermatrix and species tree methods resolve phylogenetic relationships within the big cats, Panthera (Carnivora: Felidae)". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 56 (1): 64–76. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2010.01.036. PMID 20138224.

11. ^ "Tiger's ancient ancestry revealed". BBC News. 2010-02-12. Retrieved 2010-04-26.

12. ^ Z. Jack Tseng; Xiaoming Wang; Graham J. Slater; Gary T. Takeuchi; Qiang Li; Juan Liu; Guangpu Xie (7 January 2014). "Himalayan fossils of the oldest known pantherine establish ancient origin of big cats". Proceedings of the Royal Society B. 281 (1774): 20132686. doi:10.1098/rspb.2013.2686.

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# data[].attributes.body
Lions,cheetah,panthers and jaguars  and more.
All of these cats are carnivore.

Sadly thay are used for medicine and people are killing them for medicine.

Big cats are among the most pawerful animals dwelling on the planet.

By:Myriam

# data[].attributes.body
Big cats are for example cheetahs,lions, leopard,jagur.They are a part of the cat family. The big cats are way more turific than the normal cats olso there more fierless and much bigger. The size of a big cat is five times bigger than normal cats. The cheetah is the fastest animal in the world, reaching speeds between 112 and 120 (mph).lions do not have many predators,humans, other lions and hayinas are sometimes known to kill lions.

# data[].attributes.body
big cats are among the most powerful animals on earth.
Big cats are mammals such as lions,tigers,leopards, Cheetahs,panthers,puma and jaguars
Big cats are predators and should only live in the wild

# data[].attributes.body
By Lucian

Big cats are mammals that have lived in our world for a long time and there's lots of different types such as tigers, lions, cheetahs, pumas, leopards and panthers.

Sadly they are used for medicine are decorations and people kill them for these things.

Big cats are carnivores and like to eat meat such as deer and antelope. They are very fearsome and will sometimes attack people if they are threatened by them.

Lions are considered to be the king of the jungle.

# data[].attributes.headline
Adam                                                                   Big Cats\

# data[].attributes.subject
Adam                                                                   Big Cats\

# data[].attributes.body
Big cats are among one of the most powerful animals on the planet.They are carnivores which means they only eat meat.Most stalk and ambush there prey.The most famous big cats are found in countries like;Kenya,South Africa and Uganda.Some big cats are endangered like jaguars.there are many big cats like; leopards,lions, cheetahs and panthers.

# data[].attributes.body
big cats
Big cats are ferocious and wild cats.All of them are predators and meateaters.Big cats are not to be pets living in your houses.For example tigers hunt skin bones and their prey.Did you know that a leopard can cary its prey over twice the height of a tree.These are all examples of big cats cheetah, tiger,leopard,jaguars and many more
big cats should only live in the wild.

# data[].attributes.body
Big cats are fierce and never allowed to be owned by people big cats are never prey they stay predator they usesuly stay hidden and strike with a suprise attack they are in the top most powerful animal list they look a bit like oversized kittens but they are ferocious,hungry and uncontrollibile killers.

# data[].attributes.body
There are lots of big cats like lions, tigers, leopards and cheetahs and lots more. They are also mammals. They all eat meat by killing other animals. Some of them are realy fast and some are strong. They are scared of water but tigers are not scared of water because they are strong swimmers. ou will see some of them in zoos.

# data[].attributes.body
Big cats
The term big cat is typically used to refer to any of the four largest living members of the panthers genus. The main four species are tigers,lions,jaguars and leopards.these are the only animals that are able to roar.Around the world big cats are most recognized and adored!

# data[].attributes.body
Big cats
The cats are jaguars tigers lions ,cheetahs,lions and leopards.
Big cats eat meat which makes them a carnivore.
They all have something similar which is that they are all close to close to the top of the food chain.

# data[].attributes.body
Big cats

Big cats are ferocious and are not cats to keep home. Some Big cats are Lions,Tigers,Leopards,
Snow Leopards,Jaguars and Cheetahs. They eat meat. Bigcats can run fast, the fastest big cat is the Cheetah.They are predators and they eat meat also called carnivores

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Big Cats

Big cats are carnivores and one of the most powerful animals.

A Cheetha is the fastest land mammal. It can run at speeds of up to 70 miles per hour.

A lepoard can carry prey over twice it's weight up a tree.

Tigers have been hunted for their skin and bones for traditional Chinese medican.

Big cats are preditors and should only live in the wild.

# data[].attributes.body
why didn't you call them big cats?

# data[].attributes.body
BIG CATS

Big cats are among the most powerful  animals dwelling on the planet.They look like over sized kittens but they are ferocious killers.

The list of big cats are lions, tigers, leopards, jaguars, cheetahs and snow leopards.

The six are at the top of the cat food chain.

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Big cats are carnivorous creatures   (that means they eat meat.)          They hunt a lot of animals  here are some of the cat's  dinners     zebra, cow, deer and giraffes. To kill there pray they have long and razor sharp claws and teeth.Big Kats are stunning animals.

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BIG CATS!

Big cats are mammals and they have different species such as ,lions , tigers, cheetahs , puma ,leopards , snow leopards , panthers , mountain lions , and more. All big cats are wild but normal cats are not.

Big cats are one of the most powerful animals in the world . they don't catch their prey like other animals at night , they catch their prey during the day. they are all different from each other and all live in other habitats for example , lions live in forests but cheetahs don't , they live in dry , open grassland where they pick up speed to kill there prey. However , they are similar in other ways , for example , lions and tigers are two cats that roar.

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by Eisa

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Big cats get their name because of:

their size

their power

they are predators

they are wild

their speed

Big cats should not be kept at home!  However, if you are a cat lover then a Domestic cat will suit you.

lion,leopard,tiger,snow leopard,mountain lion,cheetah,panther

by Eisa 4A

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Big cats are very scary animals only sometimes there scary like for example if you hurt a big cat then he will get angry and try to attack you.For example these are the kind of big cats you can see lion,leopard,cheetah,black phanter.Big cats can roar and lots of the big cats have spiky teeth so they can grab on their prey.Most of the big cats are getting endangered so please protect the bigcats.

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big cats

the cats are leopard,puma,cheetah,panther,lion,tigers and last but not least normal cats

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big cats

# data[].attributes.body
big ca

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Big cats

Big cats are the most powerful animals in Earth.they may look like oversized kitties,but are ferocious hunters.most of them are sit and wait predators.they trap their prey by strategy rather than by speed or by strength and then they perform a surprise attack.

# data[].attributes.body
Big cats

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Big cats are among the most powerful animals on the planet. They look like over sized kitties but they are very ferocious predators.Many big cats are hunters that attack by striking the head or neck for a perfect kill.Wherever big cats live they are always at the top of the food chain. The official list of the big cats are lion, tiger, leopard, snow leopard, cloud leopard, puma, panther, cheetah and mountain lion.

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The term "Big cat" refers to the 4 living members of the Panthera Genus. The members are the African Lion, the Jaguar, the Tiger and the leopard which is the smallest.They are unique not only because of their size and strength but mainly their loud roar. All four of the roaring big cats are an endangered species.

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BIG Cats

example lions,cheetah ,jaguars and panthers are predators. Most big cats hunt stealthy and are very fast. Big cats live in different habitats like the lion lives in the savanna but jaguars live in jungle. Big cats are not supposed to be pets they should be in there habits.

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Big cats are predators that
live in the wild. Big Cats live in different habitats. Big cats which can't be kept as a
pets. Examples of Big Cats are Lions, Jaguar, Panther, Cheetah and Leopard.

Tom, 4A

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The theme for the text is 'Big Cats'