Distorted Donuts on Lazy Leopards and Jumping Jaguars
I've always wondered what the difference was between leopards and jaguars. Since my memory is worse than my ignorance, I keep forgetting every time I read about it or google it. Yea i know the Jaguar lives in South America and has a penchant for monkeys (maybe I made the last fact up) and the Leopard inhabits Africa and Asia. But how do you tell them apart? (Just in case I can tell forest rangers which one bit my hand off)
Jaguars for one, are stockier than leopards. They also have spots INSIDE the rosettes on their bodies. What the hell are rosettes you ask? Those ring like things that look vaguely like distorted donuts. And jaguars also have a car named after them. Which I would very much like for my birthday thank you.
Leopards on the other hand, are more agile and nimble. They have normal rosettes and a longer tail to keep their bodies in balance. Apparently leopards have their own car as well. Which is from Sweden, of all places.
Now when random assortment takes place and melanistic genes appear, these big cats will undergo mutation and tadaaa! Panthers are born! Most feline species are able to go through to this mutation and its a common misconception that it is its own species. And they're not all fully black. Some are chocolatey brown or rusty in colour. These mutations are most common in jaguars where the allele is dominant and in leopards where the allele is recessive. But just because they're mutants and different, doesn't mean we're allowed to poke fun at them okay kids?
Anyhoo..I'm off to check if Blackie has rosettas under her fur.
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