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Ocelot

Ocelot line art illustration (click image to enlarge)

Ocelot full color illustration (click image to enlarge)

Artist's notes:

The Ocelot drawing was completed on 9.3.2008. While not perhaps as gorgeous as a clouded leopard or snow leopard, ocelots are still one of the more beautiful of the big cats. While it might not be my strongest drawing, I believe I captured the animal pretty well. The overall coloration on this cat is simply amazing. The drawing is based on a photo by "Bea767" on Flickr.

Information about the Ocelot:

The Ocelot, sometimes called the "Dwarf Leopard" is a wild cat distributed over South and Central America and Mexico, but has been reported as far north as Texas. The Ocelot's appearance is similar to that of the domestic cat, although it is considerably larger, growing 27 to 39 inches long (68 to 100 centimeters) in length, plus 10 to 18 inches (26 to 45 centimeters) for the tail, and typically weighs 18 to 40 pounds (8 to 18 kilograms) These mammals can be found in a variety of habitats, but always in areas where relatively dense vegetation cover. Most of the time the Ocelot will hunt at night, using it's excellent night vision to catch it's prey. It is a very formidable predator, and will hunt small mammals, lizards, turtles, frogs, crabs, bird and fish. The adult Ocelot have large territories, usually of several square miles which it will defend ferociously. Occasionally these territorial disputes with result in injury or even death to one of the cats.