Research overview: ocelot habitat selection in human-modified south Texas

Ocelots are tightly associated with dense thornscrub providing the cover they need for hunting and travel, making them especially vulnerable to land conversion. This overview synthesises radio-telemetry and resource-selection studies on how Texas ocelots concentrate in remnant brush patches on private ranches and refuges, avoiding open agricultural and developed ground. It examines the implications for corridor design, brush restoration and private-land conservation incentives, and how habitat specialisation constrains the species ability to use the matrix between fragments. The synthesis positions habitat-cover dependence as the central ecological fact shaping ocelot persistence at a developing range margin.