yanumaka kapala

Wauja

Jaguar at the Toronto Zoo, 2007. Photo: MarcusObal.

Etymology

yanumaka (jaguar) + kapala (having spots)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˌja.nuˈma.ka ka.paˈla/

Noun

yanumaka kapala

1. One or more spotted jaguars (Panthera onca)

Usage notes

• Black or melanistic forms of the jaguar also are relatively common, and often called 'black panthers' in the Americas. Genetic studies, however, indicate that both spotted and black jaguars are members of the same species, Panthera onca. The Wauja language, however, distinguishes between jaguars (yanumaka) that are:

  spotted (yanumaka kapala)

  black or melanistic (yanumaka yelaki)

Related terms

• yanumaka (jaguar, jaguars)
• yanumaka yelaki (one or more black jaguars)

See also

• outala (cougar, cougars)

References

• E. Ireland field notes, confirmed with Piitsa, Muri, and other elders (all experienced hunters) in 1982 using José Cândido de Melo Carvalho's Atlas da Fauna Brasileira, Edições Melhoramentos, São Paulo, 1981.