Cougar (Puma concolor)

Cougar closeup. Philadelphia Zoo Photograph by Art G. Some rights reserved.

Description

The Cougar (also known as the Mountain Lion or Puma) is a large, slender cat. The fur is short and color varies from yellow brown to gray brown above, with pale underside. The chest and throat are white. The nose is pink with a black border. The long tail is tipped with black. The legs are relatively short and strong.

Other Names

Puma, Mountain Lion

Size

Length: males 1.0m-1.5m; females 0.85m-1.3m. Tail length 63cm - 93cm. Weight: average 62kg for males and 42kg for females.

Habitat

coniferous forests, tropical forests, grassland, brush country, swamps. Found in areas with rock crevices or dense vegetation fro cover and shelter.

Food

large mammals such as moose, elk, deer. Also eats smaller mammals such as squirrels, muskrat, beaver, raccoon, birds. Sometimes preys on domestic animals such as poultry, sheep, goats.

Breeding

A litter of 3 to 6 cubs is born after a gestation of 82 - 96 days. (Average litter size is 3 - 4 cubs). Cubs weigh 225g - 450g at birth. Cubs are fully weaned after about 40 days, but remain with their mother for around fifteen months.

Range

Argentina, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, French Guiana, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, USA, Uruguay, Venezuela.

Conservation Status

The conservation status in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Animals is "near threatened".

Classification Class: Mammalia Order: Carnivora Family: Felidae Genus: Puma Species: concolor

Relatives in same Genus   Jaguarundi (P. yagouaroundi)

Cougar Photograph by US Fish & Wildlife Service. License: Public Domain.

Mountain Lion kittens Photograph by WL Miller. License: Public Domain.