Modern Weights and Measurements of Jaguars

[peter]

(06-21-2020, 07:48 PM)OncaAtrox Wrote:

(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 weary of using skull measurements to determine the overall size of an animal because often times skull lengths might be proportionally higher 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 are 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.

I think you, Richardrli and Dark Jaguar (referring to his last post) just about covered it. A major problem is a lack of recent information from Sumatra. As a result of the efforts of you and Dark Jaguar, we now know a bit more about Pantanal jaguars, but recent info on Sumatran tigers isn't there. 

A few years ago, I made a few tables based on the skulls I measured in natural history museums. I'll post them when I have time. 

By the way. The new thread on large wild pumas is a nice one, Onca. I saw a few documentaries on pumas recently. Experienced trackers and biologists were quite impressed by some of the males in Patagonia and Chili. Most unfortunately, they have not been measured and weighed. Reply