by Dr. Carlos López González
This photograph was taken with one of our camera traps.
Camera traps are not really 'traps,' but cameras encased
in a weatherproof box that take pictures of animals
as they go by. The cameras are placed along trails and
riverbeds, and are attached to trees at 50 cm height.
The camera shutter is activated by a motion detector.
Sometimes, the camera may only catch part of an animal.
The challenge is then identifying the animal. We look
carefully at clues like the coloration of an animal,
its relative size, its tail, and any other distinguishing
features. Look at the mystery photo and use the clues
and guiding questions below to help you identify the
animal that we 'caught' in one of our camera traps.
CLUE 1: COLORATION
CLUE 2: RELATIVE SIZE
CLUE 3: TAIL
If you have narrowed your selection to a jaguarundi,
you are right! Jaguarundis have several coat colorations
including a chestnut-brown color. They are about the
size of a large house cat, and have a long tail. They
are also active during the day, as is confirmed by the
The photograph from a camera trap not only tells us
what animals are present in an area, but also shows
the time of day different animals are active and if
an animal is mostly nocturnal (active at night) or mostly
diurnal (active during the day). The camera trap caught
this ocelot at night.
To date, the camera traps have recorded many different
predators: ocelots, pumas, coatimundis, coyotes, raccoons,
and bobcats, in addition to prey species such as Virginia
possum and white-tailed deer. The ocelot is the cat
species most frequently captured on camera. The bobcat
we documented with a camera trap is especially important
since bobcats were not thought to exist this far south.
Chamela is now one of the few places in Mexico with
six species of wild cats.