Left-Right: A wild cat (specifically a margay) imitating a prey species in order to bring it within striking range.
Margays mimic the calls of their prey, tamarin monkeys to fool the primates.

ANY natural forestry is a place of absolute wonder. Not only from aesthetical point of view but also it is full of surprises and houses a vast array of mammal splendors. And when it comes to a magnificent natural setting like that of the great Amazon, one can surely expect nothing less of extraordinary. In a fascinating turn of events, scientists from the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and Federal University of Amazonas (UFAM) have documented a wild cat species, disguising its own voice, imitating the call of its intended victim. This astonishing behavior was recorded in the Amazonian forests of the Reserva Florestal Adolpho Ducke in Brazil and the wild cat concerned here was a Margay, a solitary and nocturnal spotted cat native to Central and South America. It's intended prey, a small, squirrel-sized monkey known as pied tamarin. It is important to note that, this is the first recorded instance of wild cat species in the Americas mimicking the calls of its prey. This discovery is quite remarkable in the sense that this particular observation by the scientists have confirmed the scientific community what, up until now had been only sketchy reports from Amazonian tribesmen of wild cat species like jaguars and pumas, actually mimicking primates, rodents, agoutis and other species in order to draw them within the striking range. The findings were published in the June issue of Neotropical Primates. According to Fabio Rohe of the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) who is also one of the authors of the paper, "Cats are known for their physical agility, but this vocal manipulation of prey species indicates a psychological cunning which merits further study".
It all started back in 2005 when a group of researchers observed a margay emitting calls similar to those made by tamarin babies. And this particularly attracted the attention of a tamarin "sentinel", which climbed down from the tree to investigate the sounds coming from a tangle of vines called lianas. Noticing the familiar yet strange nature of the calls, the sentinel monkey immediately started vocalizing to warn the rest of the group. The researchers quickly noticed that the monkeys were clearly confounded by these familiar vocalizations yet some (4 other tamarins) choose to investigate the matter rather than flee. This was followed by the most fundamental law of the nature, survival of the fittest. Sensing the possibility to dine, the margay emerged from the foliage walking down the trunk of a tree in a squirrel-like fashion, jumping down and then moving towards the monkeys. Realizing the nature of deception, the sentinel screamed an alarm and joined the other tamarins in fleeing. Even though this particular attempt of the margay was unsuccessful however the researchers were absolutely amazed at the ingenuity of the hunting strategy of the wild cat. The significance of this event was perhaps be best understood by the statement of Dr. Avecita Chicchon, director of the Wildlife Conservation Society's Latin America Program. According to her, "This observation further proves the reliability of information obtained from Amazonian inhabitants. This means that the accounts of jaguars and pumas using the same vocal mimicry to attract prey-but not yet recorded by scientists-also deserve investigation". Currently WCS is monitoring populations of pied tamarin which is listed as "Endangered" on IUCN's Red List whereas margay itself is listed as "Near Threatened". WCS firmly plans to protect both the species, and there is certainly no mimicry about it.

The contributor is a freelance science writer.