RAYMONDVILLE, Texas (AP) - The Nature Conservancy has bought about 1,300 acres from a south Texas rancher in an effort to preserve habitat for the endangered ocelot.

Neither rancher Frank Yturria nor the conservancy would disclose the costs involved in the organization’s purchase of the easement Tuesday. The land is less than 15 miles inland from the Laguna Madre that separates South Padre Island from the Texas mainland.

The acquisition more than doubles the amount of land that the 86-year-old Yturria already has set aside for the rare cats.

Ocelots are about twice the size of a house cat. The conservancy says less than 1 percent of the land in south Texas is considered suitable habitat for the estimated 50 or fewer ocelots in the region.