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Puma (Felis Concolor)
Body Length:
Weight:
Gestation:
~6 Feet
100-200 lbs.
93 Days
Status:
The Florida Puma is critically endangered. There are less then 50 of the subspecies left. The puma population in whole is not endangered, although the puma is hunted in the west where its main population subsides. The highest cause of death of the puma is hunting where hunting has been legalized.
Report by Catamount

Picture of a Mountain Lion from the FCC
Picture from the Cathouse (FCC)

Physical Characteristics
The puma has a small broad head with dark, large, round eyes and rounded ears, an orange-red nose and its mouth is surrounded by white. Its coat is a tawny color with lighter under-parts and white on the chin and throat. It has a powerful body with long hind legs to jump over forty feet and a long tail which is 50-80 cm long (that is tipped with black) for gained balance. The puma is the second largest cat in the Americas and is a champion jumper among cats. Cougars vary in size and weight throughout their range. Adult males weight 1.4 times more then females.

Habitat / Daily Life
The puma is the cat with many names. Puma, cougar, panther, mountain lion, night screamer, and catamount are all names for the same animal. They range from north west Canada to south west of South America, with a small population in Florida; there have been sightings of the puma in states such as Massachusetts and Vermont, which may mean there are still scarce populations along the east coast of North America. The puma lives in many different habitats including in mountainous forests up to 16,000 feet to lowland swamps, grasslands, and desert. The puma is very territorial and marks its territory, which can be over one hundred square miles (depending on the food supply) by spraying urine or scratching trees.

Hunting
The puma hunts alone, day or by night. It generally eats deer, sheep, rodents, hare, and . But, if hungry enough, the puma will take down horses, cows, and other livestock and so it has a bad reputation by farmers. Using sight and sound more then scent, the puma stalks its prey. When the time is right, it will jump onto the prey with leaps over 40 feet It grips into the victims neck and either snaps the prey's neck or grips into the windpipe until it suffocates. After the puma kills its victim, it will cover it with debris to reduce the risk of other animals finding the carcass and to prolong the food.

Reproduction
Males breed with a large number of females to increase reproductive success. One male will have a very large range and all the females, who have much smaller ranges are resident in the male's territory, will mate with that one male. The male will search for days for the female(s), covering 50 km in a day and night. The puma, who hunts silently, will howl when ready to breed. Cougars don't choose a particular season to mate. The females mate starting around age two or three. The female will select a cave or other shelter as a spot for her cubs' birth. One to six cubs may be born, blind and helpless. They gain vision after two weeks. Cubs are spotted at birth but slowly lose their spots as they age. The cubs will the grow its parents' muscular jaws, wide gape, and long teeth which are designed to clamp into it's prey, as well as to eat it. While they are cubs, the female will protect and feed the cubs. This will continue until they are about a year and a half old and can defend for themselves.