puma

puma

The puma (Brazilian Portuguese) or puma (Portuguese European) (scientific name: Puma concolor), also known in Brazil by suçuarana, is a carnivorous mammal of the family Felidae and genus Puma, native to America. It was originally classified in the genus Felis, but genetic studies demonstrate that the species evolved in a lineage close to the cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) and the buzzard (Puma yagouaroundi). It is the terrestrial mammal with the largest geographic distribution in the west, occurring from British Columbia in Canada to the extreme south of Chile, inhabiting dense forests, to desert areas, with tropical or subarctic climate, except tundra. It is able to survive in highly man-altered areas such as pastures and agricultural crops.

It is the largest member of the subfamily Felinae, measuring up to 155 cm in length, without the tail, and weighing up to 72 kg, with a size similar to that of the leopard (Panthera pardus), being the second largest felidae in the Americas. It has a coloration ranging from gray to reddish brown, with the tip of the tail of black color, lateral areas of the muzzle and belly of white color. The puppies are born with dark patches on the coat, which usually persist up to 14 weeks old. It has the longest hind legs of the felines. They live on average, between 7.5 and 9 years of age.

It is a lonely and more active animal at night. It feeds predominantly on deer, but can vary the diet, being considered an opportunistic predator. The presence of other carnivores directly influences the choice of prey and hunting environments. Areas of life range from 50 to 1000 km², with males being territorial and having large areas overlapping that of several females. The females have several estrus in the year, they have a gestation that lasts between 90 and 96 days and usually they are born between 3 and 4 puppies, every 2 years approximately.

The puma is not considered to be at risk of extinction by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, but has largely disappeared from its distribution in North America and in some locations in Central and South America. The main causes of this are hunting, whether for sport or retaliation for attacks on livestock, fragmentation and destruction of habitat, and in very crowded areas, run over. The only remaining population in the eastern United States is in Florida and is a good example of the deleterious effects of population isolation. Despite this, there is a trend of recolonization of the central-eastern United States. Because of its strength and elegance, this feline has been depicted in countless American cultures, but in today's Western societies, relationships are often conflicting, whether through attacks on domestic animals or attacks on humans.