SOUTH TEXAS – – The Bexar County Sheriff’s Office sent out an alert Tuesday. “big” cat sightings in northwestern Bexar County.

BCSO said the cat was spotted in the greenbelt near the 10400 block of Foxen Way, a neighborhood off Highway 16 north of Helotes.

This is the general area where residents reported seeing large numbers of big cats to KSAT in May.

That’s why we turned to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department to learn about the big cats native to South Texas.

bobcats

• The bobcat is a bobcat cat with black-tipped ears, distinctive black bars on the forelimbs, and a black-tipped, short (or “bobbed”) tail; hence the name bobcat.

• His average height is around 3 feet 6 inches.

• Its weight is 12-20 pounds, but it can reach up to 36 pounds.

• Their diet consists mainly of small mammals and birds, but they may also prey on domestic sheep, goats and poultry.

Mountain lion (Puma, Puma)

• The mountain lion is a large, spotless cat.

• Males can be 8 feet, 6 inches long, while females can be 6 feet, 7 1/2 inches long. Men can weigh an average of 184 pounds, while women can weigh 118 pounds.

• They cover most of the Trans-Pecos in West Texas, the southern two-thirds of the Hill Country in Central Texas, and much of the South Texas scrub, as well as limited areas in North Central Texas.

• The cat is most common in remote, sparsely populated farmlands, but can be encountered almost anywhere.

• Shy by nature and mostly nocturnal in habit, the mountain lion is rarely seen.

• Their diet consists almost entirely of animals, but like the domestic cat they occasionally eat grass and other plant matter. Deer and javelin are the main food items; however, lions have been known to take a variety of small animals as well as deer and bighorn sheep.

• Contrary to popular opinion, mountain lions rarely use caves as shelter. Instead they prefer cliff crevices, overhanging ledges or enlarged badger burrows.

• They lead a solitary life, except for a brief breeding period lasting up to two weeks.

ocelots

• The ocelot is endangered, and you probably won’t see one in the wild while wandering around South Texas.

• Now restricted to a few isolated areas of suitable habitat in three or four counties of the Rio Grande Plains, the ocelot was once widespread throughout the southern part of the state, with occasional records from North and Central Texas.

• It is considered the most beautiful cat in Texas and is unique in that no two ocelots’ coats are alike.

• Adult males can be up to 3 feet and 10 inches long; Females up to 3 feet. Their weight is 20-35 kilos.

• Their diet includes birds, including domestic fowl, caught on roosts. Their diet also includes rabbits, tree shrews, mice, snakes and other reptiles.

• Its population in Texas is greatly threatened by habitat loss resulting from the conversion of natively vegetated areas in South Texas and the Rio Grande Valley to farmland.

jaguarundi

• They formerly roamed southern Texas in Cameron, Hidalgo, Starr and Willacy counties, but wild populations of the jaguarundi are no longer believed to be in Texas.

• Large numbers of sightings of this species are reported each year, but they are difficult to verify due to their resemblance to wild house cats.

• Jaguarundi is slightly larger than the domestic cat. There are two color phases: one grayish and the other reddish.

• Males are about 3 feet 6 inches tall, with the tail more than half the length.

• They reportedly eat rats, mice, birds, and rabbits. Among all cats, this cat stands out in its ability to leap and jump, given its size.

• Clearing brush in the Rio Grande Valley threatens to destroy habitat in Texas.

If residents see big cats in their neighborhood, they are asked not to approach the animal and instead call the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office. Their phone number is 210-335-6000.

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