Jaguars are powerful swimmers. Unlike most cats, they actually like water, and they often hunt fish, caimans (a kind of small alligator) and turtles in rainforest rivers. Their dark spots help them blend in with shadows in the water.
Jaguars have the strongest bite of any big cat. They can crack right through a turtle's shell. Their name comes from a word in the Tupi language meaning 'one who kills with one leap'.
Jaguars are 'apex predators' - that means they sit at the very top of the rainforest food chain. Because of that, scientists watch jaguar numbers carefully: if jaguars are doing well, the whole rainforest is usually doing well. If jaguars are struggling, something deeper is wrong.
Wild jaguars are very shy. Most Panamanians, even those who live near jaguar country, have never actually seen one. But camera traps - cameras that automatically take a photo when an animal walks past - show that they are still moving silently through the Dari茅n rainforest at night.