A black panther is the melanistic color variant of any big cat species. Black panthers in Asia and Africa are leopards (Panthera pardus), and those in the Americas are black jaguars (Panthera onca).
Close examination of the color of these black cats will show that the typical markings are still present, but are hidden by the excess black pigment melanin.
Melanistic and non-melanistic animals can be littermates.
There are no authenticated cases of truly melanistic cougars; sightings are assumed to be misidentifications.
Photos:
1. Melanistic leopard
2. Melanistic with non-melanistic leopard
3. Melanistic amur leopard cub with non-melanistic littermates
4. Melanistic jaguar
5. Melanistic jaguar
6. Melanistic jaguar cubLook at these beautiful babies!
they’re all so perfect and important!!!!! I love that the OP clarified the important leopard/jaguar distinction, because it is IMPORTANT!!!! Black panthers are actually TWO SEPARATE SPECIES sharing in common a SPECIAL COLOR MORPH.
There are so many good things to know about black panthers and so many things to love. Personally: I love that black jaguars are so chonky. I love the visible rosettes. I love that the selection pressures of evolution, which normally create very homogeneous-looking animal populations in the wild, loosen their reins enough to allow diversity and divergence in the same species, sometimes even in the same litter. ISN’T THAT GREAT. ANIMALS ARE SO GREAT
Fun fact: actual panthers (otherwise known as cougars or mountain lions) do not exhibit this color morph. So no black panthers are actual panthers.
Actually, “panther” is a common name for cougars (Puma concolor), but “black panther” refers to leopards and jaguars, which are members of the Panthera genus, and can still rightfully be called panthers.
SaladFrosting 
