142 NORTH AMERICAN FAUNA 75 



Fig. 110. Jaguar, Felis onca. Photo by R. K. LaVal 



where they range elevationally from sea level to nearly 3,800 m. Ocelots are in- 

 cluded on both the Costa Rican and U.S. listings of endangered species. Ocelots 

 and jaguarundis are the most frequently observed native felids in Costa Rica. 



Ocelots are primarily nocturnal and are not infrequently crepuscular. They 

 eat a wide variety of small and medium-sized mammals, reptiles, and birds. Spiny 

 rats (genus Proechimys), often abundant rodents in an area, are caught and eaten 

 frequently by ocelots. In Peru, Emmons (1988) found that males and females were 

 solitary and occupy distinct territories that are maintained by scent marks. Adult 

 females had nonoverlapping home ranges as did males. Male territories, however, 

 overlapped those of three or more adult females. 



We observed the tracks or scats of ocelots at 760 m, 2,000 m, and at 2,610 m 

 within Parque Nacional Braulio Carrillo. Ocelots have been observed at La Selva 

 on 17 occasions. 



