Modern Weights and Measurements of Jaguars

[Balam]

(06-21-2020, 07:32 PM)Richardrli Wrote: In terms of averages, would the Sumatran tiger still be larger than even the largest subspecies/population of jaguars? I would have thought so, as Sumatrans despite being the smallest living tiger subspecies still have larger skulls than jaguars from the Pantanal.

I'm wary of using skull measurements to determine the overall size of an animal because oftentimes skull lengths might be proportionally larger in a certain species than in another one, while the one with the shorter skull may present similar or larger overall body sizes. A clear example of this is cougars and leopards.

Based on the weights that I have seen of Sumatran tigers from different sources, their averages go from 110 kg to 120 kg, and the heaviest Sumatran confirmed in the wild weighed 148 kg. All of these weights are within the largest jaguars' ranges. But I think @peter who has studied the skulls of both species in person and is well versed in tiger anatomy could give us a better perspective on the subject. Reply