Jaguar are the third largest cat in the feline family after tigers and lions. There are eight subspecies of jaguar and all are endangered. The largest cat and top terrestrial predator in the Americas, jaguars usually reach a size of 100 to 200 pounds by adulthood. Farther south, male jaguars have been recorded at more than 300 pounds and 8 feet from nose to tail tip.

Solitary except when raising cubs, the jaguar patrols its territory or home range searching for food. Traditionally thought of as being nocturnal, radio-collar tracking indicates that jaguars are active around-the-clock but mostly in the hours around sunrise and sunset.
An excellent climber, jaguars make good use of trees. They often drag kills to a secluded or sheltered spot for consumption but do not cover or bury them, as cougars do. It has been said that the jaguar is the only big cat that does not roar, but this is incorrect. The jaguar has an array of vocalizations including mews, grunts and a deep, repetitive “coughing” roar.

Except for humans, the jaguar has no other rivals; no other predator can overpower this powerful cat in its natural range. Unlike most cats, which kill by grabbing the prey's throat and suffocating it, the jaguar usually kills its prey by piercing the skull or neck with one swift bite. Short muscular limbs make the jaguar perfectly adapted to capturing prey such as deer, peccaries, monkeys, tapirs, and an assortment of smaller animals including birds, turtles and fish. While the jaguar does most of its stalking on the ground, it is an excellent climber, leaping from a tree or ledge to ambush prey. It also has expert fishing skills and, where possible, will inhabit areas close to water where it can swat at and spear fish with its sharp claws. The jaguar is one of the few cats that regularly go into the water.