View source for Cougar

{{Short description|Wild cat species native to the Americas}}
{{Otheruses}}
{{Hatnote group|{{Redirect|Mountain lion|other uses|Mountain lion (disambiguation)}}{{Distinguish|lion}}}}
{{Redirect|Catamount}}
{{Featured article}}
{{Pp-semi-indef|small=yes}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2025}}
{{Use American English|date=October 2025}}
{{Speciesbox
| name = Cougar
| fossil_range = {{Fossil range|1.2|0}}<small>Early [[Pleistocene]] – [[Holocene]]</small>
| image = Mountain Lion in Glacier National Park.jpg
| image_caption = A [[North American cougar]] in [[Glacier National Park (U.S.)|Glacier National Park]], United States
| status = LC
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status_ref =<ref name=iucn>{{cite iucn |title=''Puma concolor'' |name-list-style=amp |author1=Nielsen, C. |author2=Thompson, D. |author3=Kelly, M. |author4=Lopez-Gonzalez, C. A. |article-number=e.T18868A97216466 |year=2015 |errata=2016 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-4.RLTS.T18868A50663436.en |access-date=January 16, 2022}}</ref>
 | status2 = CITES_A2 
 | status2_system = CITES 
 | status2_ref =<ref name=iucn/>{{efn|The populations of Costa Rica and Panama are included in Appendix I.}}
| genus = Puma
| species = concolor
| authority = ([[Carl Linnaeus|Linnaeus]], 1771)<ref name="MSW3" />
| range_map = Cougar_range_map_2010.png
| range_map_caption = Cougar range (without recent confirmations across northern Canadian territories, eastern U.S. states, and Alaska)
| subdivision_ranks = Subspecies
| subdivision =
* ''[[South American cougar|P. c. concolor]]''
* ''[[North American cougar|P. c. couguar]]''
Also see [[#Subspecies|text]]
}}

The '''cougar''' ('''''Puma concolor''''') ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|k|uː|g|ər}}, ''[[Help:Pronunciation respelling key|KOO-gər]]''), also called '''puma''', '''mountain lion''', '''catamount''', and '''panther''', is a large <!-- Yes this is accurate; needed to keep readers from confusing "large cat" with "[[big cat]]"  -->[[small cat]] native to the Americas. It inhabits [[North America|North]], [[Central America|Central]] and South America, making it the most widely distributed wild, terrestrial [[mammal]] in the [[Western Hemisphere]], and one of the most widespread in the world. Its range spans [[Yukon]], [[British Columbia]] and [[Alberta]] in Canada, the [[Rocky Mountains]] and areas in the western United States. Further south, its range extends through Mexico to the [[Amazon rainforest]] and the southern [[Andes Mountains]] in [[Patagonia]]. It is an adaptable [[Generalist and specialist species|generalist species]], occurring in most American [[habitat]] types. It prefers habitats with dense underbrush and rocky areas for stalking but also lives in open areas. 

The cougar is largely solitary. Its activity pattern varies from [[diurnality]] and [[cathemerality]] to [[Crepuscular animal|crepuscularity]] and [[nocturnality]] between protected and non-protected areas, and is apparently correlated with the presence of other predators, prey species, livestock and humans. It is an [[ambush predator]] that pursues a wide variety of prey. [[Ungulate]]s, particularly [[deer]], are its primary prey, but it also hunts [[rodent]]s. It is [[Territory (animal)|territorial]] and lives at low population densities. Individual [[home range]]s depend on terrain, vegetation and abundance of prey. While large, it is not always the dominant [[apex predator]] in its range, yielding prey to other predators. It is reclusive and mostly avoids people. [[List of fatal cougar attacks in North America|Fatal attacks on humans]] are rare but increased in North America as more people entered cougar habitat and built farms.

The cougar is listed as [[Least-concern species|Least Concern]] on the [[IUCN Red List]]. Intensive hunting following [[European colonization of the Americas]] and ongoing human development into cougar habitat has caused populations to decline in most parts of its historical range. In particular, the [[eastern cougar]] population is considered to be mostly [[locally extinct]] in eastern North America since the early 20th century, with the exception of the isolated [[Florida panther]] subpopulation.

==Naming and etymology==
{{Wiktionary}}

The cougar holds the [[Guinness World Records|Guinness]] record for the animal with the greatest number of names, with over 40 in English alone.<ref>{{cite book |author=Folkard, C. |title=The Guinness Book of World Records |publisher=Bt Bound |year=2004 |page=49}}</ref> The word ''cougar'' is borrowed from the [[Portuguese language|Portuguese]] ''çuçuarana'', via French; it was originally derived from the [[Tupi language]]. A current form in Brazil is ''suçuarana''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=jaguar |title=Online Etymology Dictionary |date=2001 |publisher=[[Douglas Harper]] |access-date=August 12, 2006 |archive-date=June 28, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170628080622/http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=jaguar |url-status=live}}<br /> & corresponding entry for [http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?l=c&p=27 "Cougar"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151202104804/http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?l=c&p=27 |date=December 2, 2015 }}</ref> In the 17th century, [[Georg Marcgrave]] named it ''cuguacu ara''. Marcgrave's rendering was reproduced in 1648 by his associate [[Willem Piso]]. ''Cuguacu ara'' was then adopted by [[John Ray]] in 1693.<ref>{{cite magazine |date=October 14, 2006 |title=Words to the Wise |magazine=Take Our Word for It |issue=205 |page=2 |url=http://www.takeourword.com/TOW205/page2.html |access-date=July 31, 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120812212012/http://www.takeourword.com/TOW205/page2.html |archive-date=August 12, 2012}}</ref> In 1774, [[Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon]] converted ''cuguacu ara'' to ''cuguar'', which was later modified to "cougar" in English.<ref>{{OEtymD|jaguar}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |year=1989 |url=http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/cougar |title=cougar |work=Oxford Dictionaries Online, Oxford University Press|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130601145645/http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/cougar| archive-date=June 1, 2013}}</ref> [[Goidelic languages|Gaelic]], or Erse, has similar (likely unrelated) words, including [[Scottish Gaelic]] ''cugar'' and ''cugarbhad'' (a wild or domesticated male cat; also signifying a hero, gallant, or champion).<ref>{{cite book |last=Dwelly |first=Edward |date=1994 |title=Faclair Gaidhlig gu Beurla le Dealbhan/Dwelly's Illustrated Gaelic to English Dictionary |location=Glasgow |publisher=Gairm Gaelic Publications |page=287 |isbn=1-871901-28-6}}
</ref> The usual Gaelic for ''cat'' is ''"cat"'' (with ''Cú'' or ''Coin'' signifying a [[Canidae|canid]]).

The name ''puma'' is the most [[common name]] now used in the global scientific literature.<ref name=puma>{{cite journal | vauthors=((Wood, E.)), ((Ambrosini, A.)), ((Wood, K.)), ((Demetrio, C.)), ((O'Malley, W. C.)), ((Stratton, A.)), ((Elbroch, L. M.)) | journal=Frontiers in Conservation Science | title=Online Noise as Illustrated by Pitfalls and Biogeography Associated With Common Names for Puma concolor | volume=2 | article-number=692607 | date=July 12, 2021 | issn=2673-611X | doi=10.3389/fcosc.2021.692607 | bibcode=2021FrCS....2.2607W | doi-access=free }}</ref> ''Puma'' is the common name used in Latin America and most parts of Europe and is occasionally used in the United States.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Rau, J. R. |author2=Jiménez, J. E. |name-list-style=amp |year=2002 |title=Diet of puma (''Puma concolor'', Carnivora: Felidae) in coastal and Andean ranges of southern Chile |journal=Studies on Neotropical Fauna and Environment |volume=37 |issue=3 |pages=201–205 |doi=10.1076/snfe.37.3.201.8567 |bibcode=2002SNFE...37..201R |s2cid=84264487 |issn = 0165-0521}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author1=Scognamillo, D. |author2=Maxit, I. E. |author3=Sunquist, M. |author4=Polisar, J. |name-list-style=amp |year=2003 |title=Coexistence of jaguar (''Panthera onca'') and puma (''Puma concolor'') in a mosaic landscape in the Venezuelan llanos |journal=Journal of Zoology |volume=259 |issue=3 |pages=269–279 |doi=10.1017/S0952836902003230}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author1=Holmes, B. R. |author2=Laundré, J. W.  |name-list-style=amp |year=2006 |title=Use of open, edge and forest areas by pumas Puma concolor in winter: are pumas foraging optimally? |journal=Wildlife Biology |volume=12 |issue=2 |pages=201–210 |doi=10.2981/0909-6396(2006)12[201:UOOEAF]2.0.CO;2 |doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author1=Dickson, B. G. |author2=Roemer, G. W. |author3=McRae, B. H. |author4=Rundall, J. M. |name-list-style=amp |year=2013 |title=Models of regional habitat quality and connectivity for Pumas (''Puma concolor'') in the southwestern United States |journal=PLOS ONE |volume=8 |issue=12 |article-number=e81898 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0081898 |pmid=24367495 |pmc=3867332 |bibcode=2013PLoSO...881898D |doi-access=free}}</ref> The first use of ''puma'' in English dates to 1777, introduced from Spanish from the [[Quechua language]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Puma |work=[[Online Etymology Dictionary]] |access-date=April 16, 2022 |url=https://www.etymonline.com/word/puma |archive-date=May 16, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220516211512/https://www.etymonline.com/word/puma |url-status=live}}</ref> 

In the United States, the name ''mountain lion'' is commonly used, and in Canada, the name ''cougar'' is most commonly used.<ref name=puma/> The term ''mountain lion'' was first seen in writing in 1858.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=George A. Jackson's Diary of 1858–1859 |author=Jackson, G. A. |journal=Colorado Magazine |year=1935 |volume=6 |pages=201–214}}</ref> ''Puma concolor'' is not a true lion of the genus ''Panthera'' and cannot roar, nor is its habitat restricted to mountainous regions. The name ''catamount,'' a shortening of name "cat of the mountain", has also been in English use for ''Puma concolor'' and other wild cats since at least 1664.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Definition of CATAMOUNT |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/catamount |access-date=February 12, 2025 |work=Merriam-Webster}}</ref> ''Panther'' is often used synonymously with ''cougar'', ''puma'' or ''mountain lion''.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mountain Lion {{!}} National Wildlife Federation |url=https://www.nwf.org/Educational-Resources/Wildlife-Guide/Mammals/Mountain-Lion |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250209210000/https://www.nwf.org/Educational-Resources/Wildlife-Guide/Mammals/Mountain-Lion |archive-date=February 9, 2025 |access-date=February 12, 2025 |website=National Wildlife Federation |url-status=live }}</ref> The name ''painter'' is also sometimes used instead of ''panther'', mostly in the southern United States.<ref>{{Cite web |date=February 4, 2025 |title=Definition of PAINTER |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/painter |access-date=February 12, 2025 |website=Merriam-Webster}}</ref>

==Taxonomy and evolution==
''Felis concolor'' was the [[scientific name]] proposed by [[Carl Linnaeus]] in 1771 for a cat with a long tail from Brazil.<ref>{{cite book |author=Linnaeus, C. |year=1771 |title=Mantissa plantarum altera |location=Holmiae |publisher=Impensis Direct. Laurentii Salvii |language=la |page=522 |chapter=''Felis concolor'' |chapter-url=https://bibdigital.rjb.csic.es/viewer/15082/?offset=#page=529&viewer=picture&o=bookmarks&n=0&q= |access-date=August 29, 2019 |archive-date=December 26, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191226233854/https://bibdigital.rjb.csic.es/viewer/15082/?offset=#page=529&viewer=picture&o=bookmarks&n=0&q= |url-status=live}}</ref> It was placed in the genus ''[[Puma (genus)|Puma]]'' by [[Sir William Jardine, 7th Baronet|William Jardine]] in 1834.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Jardine |first1=W. |year=1834 |title=Naturalists' library, Mammalia, volume 2 |location=Edinburgh |publisher=Lizars, Stirling and Kenney |pages=266–267 |chapter=Genus II. ''Puma'' |chapter-url=https://archive.org/details/naturalistslibra16jardrich/naturalistslibra16jardrich/page/266/mode/2up}}</ref> This genus is part of the [[Felinae]].<ref name=MSW3>{{MSW3 Wozencraft |id=14000204 |pages=544–545 |heading=Species ''Puma concolor''}}</ref> The cougar is most closely related to the [[jaguarundi]] and the cheetah.<ref name=Johnson2006 /><ref name="Culver">{{cite journal |author=Culver, M. |author2=Johnson, W. E. |author3=Pecon-Slattery, J. |author4=O'Brien, S. J. |year=2000 |title=Genomic Ancestry of the American Puma |journal=[[Journal of Heredity]] |volume=91 |issue=3 |pages=186–97 |doi=10.1093/jhered/91.3.186 |pmid=10833043 |doi-access=free}}</ref>

===Subspecies===
[[File:Torres del Paine puma JF2.jpg|thumb|[[South American cougar]] at [[Torres del Paine National Park]], in the Chilean part of [[Patagonia]]]]
Following Linnaeus's first scientific description of the cougar, 32 cougar [[zoological specimen]]s were described and proposed as [[subspecies]] until the late 1980s. [[Genetics|Genetic]] analysis of cougar [[mitochondrial DNA]] indicates that many of these are too similar to be recognized as distinct at a molecular level but that only six [[phylogeographic]] groups exist. The [[Florida panther]] samples showed a low [[Microsatellite (genetics)|microsatellite]] variation, possibly due to [[inbreeding]].<ref name=Culver/> Following this research, the authors of ''[[Mammal Species of the World]]'' recognized the following six subspecies in 2005:<ref name=MSW3/>

* ''P. c. concolor'' {{small|(Linnaeus, 1771)}} includes the [[Synonym (taxonomy)|synonyms]] ''bangsi'', ''incarum'', ''osgoodi'', ''soasoaranna'', ''sussuarana'', ''soderstromii'', ''suçuaçuara'', and ''wavula''
* ''P. c. puma'' {{small|([[Juan Ignacio Molina|Molina]], 1782)}} includes the synonyms ''araucanus'', ''concolor'', ''patagonica'', ''pearsoni'', and ''puma'' {{small|([[Édouard Louis Trouessart|Trouessart]], 1904)}}
* ''P. c. couguar'' {{small|([[Robert Kerr (writer)|Kerr]], 1792)}} includes ''arundivaga'', ''aztecus'', ''browni'', ''californica'', ''floridana'', ''hippolestes'', ''improcera'', ''kaibabensis'', ''mayensis'', ''missoulensis'', ''olympus'', ''oregonensis'', ''schorgeri'', ''stanleyana'', ''vancouverensis'', and ''youngi''
* ''P. c. costaricensis'' {{small|([[Clinton Hart Merriam|Merriam]], 1901)}}
* ''P. c. anthonyi'' {{small|([[Edward William Nelson|Nelson]] and [[Edward Alphonso Goldman|Goldman]], 1931)}} includes ''acrocodia'', ''borbensis'', ''capricornensis'', ''concolor'', ''greeni'', and ''nigra''
* ''P. c. cabrerae'' {{small|[[Reginald Innes Pocock|Pocock]], 1940}} includes ''hudsonii'' and ''puma'' proposed by Marcelli in 1922
In 2006, the Florida panther was still referred to as a distinct subspecies ''P. c. coryi'' in research works.<ref name=improving>{{cite journal |first=M. J. |last=Conroy |author2=Beier, P. |author3=Quigley, H. |author4=Vaughan, M. R. |year=2006 |title=Improving The Use Of Science In Conservation: Lessons From The Florida Panther |journal=Journal of Wildlife Management |volume=70 |issue=1 |pages=1–7 |doi=10.2193/0022-541X(2006)70[1:ITUOSI]2.0.CO;2 |s2cid=85920592}}</ref>

{{as of|2017}}, the Cat Classification Taskforce of the Cat Specialist Group recognizes only two subspecies as [[Valid name (zoology)|valid]]:<ref name=Catsg2017>{{cite journal |author1=Kitchener, A. C. |author2=Breitenmoser-Würsten, C. |author3=Eizirik, E. |author4=Gentry, A. |author5=Werdelin, L. |author6=Wilting, A. |author7=Yamaguchi, N. |author8=Abramov, A. V. |author9=Christiansen, P. |author10=Driscoll, C. |author11=Duckworth, J. W. |author12=Johnson, W. |author13=Luo, S.-J. |author14=Meijaard, E. |author15=O'Donoghue, P. |author16=Sanderson, J. |author17=Seymour, K. |author18=Bruford, M. |author19=Groves, C. |author20=Hoffmann, M. |author21=Nowell, K. |author22=Timmons, Z. |author23=Tobe, S. |year=2017 |title=A revised taxonomy of the Felidae: The final report of the Cat Classification Task Force of the IUCN Cat Specialist Group |journal=Cat News |issue=Special Issue 11 |pages=33–34 |url=https://repository.si.edu/bitstream/handle/10088/32616/A_revised_Felidae_Taxonomy_CatNews.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y#page=33 |access-date=September 3, 2020 |archive-date=July 30, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180730142355/https://repository.si.edu/bitstream/handle/10088/32616/A_revised_Felidae_Taxonomy_CatNews.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y#page=33 |url-status=live}}</ref>
*''[[South American cougar|P. c. concolor]]'' in South America, possibly excluding the region northwest of the Andes 
*''[[North American cougar|P. c. couguar]]'' in North and Central America and possibly northwestern South America

===Evolution===
{{cladogram|title=
|caption=The ''Puma'' lineage of the family [[Felidae]], depicted along with closely related genera<ref name="bcw2">{{cite book |last1=Werdelin |first1=L. |last2=Yamaguchi |first2=N. |last3=Johnson |first3=W. E. |last4=O'Brien |first4=S. J. |chapter=Phylogeny and evolution of cats (Felidae) |name-list-style=amp |year=2010 |pages=59–82 |chapter-url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/266755142 |editor1-last=Macdonald |editor1-first=D. W. |editor2-last=Loveridge |editor2-first=A. J. |title=Biology and Conservation of Wild Felids |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford, UK |isbn=978-0-19-923445-5 |access-date=April 4, 2022 |archive-date=September 25, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180925141956/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/266755142 |url-status=live}}</ref>
|1={{clade | style=font-size:90%;line-height:100%;width:475px;
|1={{clade
   |1={{clade
      |1={{clade
         |label1=''Lynx'' lineage
         |1=''[[Lynx (genus)|Lynx]]''
         }}
      |2={{clade
         |1={{clade
            |label1=''Puma'' lineage
            |1={{clade
               |label1=''[[Acinonyx]]''
               |1=Cheetah ''A. jubatus'' [[File:Acinonyx jubatus (white background).jpg|60px|alt=Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus)]]
               |2={{clade
                  |label1=''[[Puma (genus)|Puma]]''
                  |1='''Cougar''' [[File:Felis concolor - 1818-1842 - Print - Iconographia Zoologica - Special Collections University of Amsterdam -(white background).jpg|50px|alt=Cougar (Puma concolor)]]
                  |label2=''[[Herpailurus]]''
                  |2=[[Jaguarundi]] ''H. yagouaroundi'' [[File:Lydekker_-_Eyra_White_background.jpg|50px|alt=Jaguarundi (Herpailurus yagouaroundi)]]
                  }}
               }}
            }}
         |2={{clade
            |label1=Domestic cat lineage
            |1=''[[Felis]]''
            |label2=Leopard cat lineage
            |2={{clade
               |1=''[[Otocolobus]]''
               |2=''[[Prionailurus]]''
               }}
            }}
         }}
      }}
   }}
}}
}}

The [[family (biology)|family]] [[Felidae]] is thought to have originated in Asia about {{ma|11}}; taxonomic research on felids remains partial, and much of what is known about their evolutionary history is based on [[mitochondrial DNA]] analysis.<ref name=Johnson2006/> Significant [[confidence intervals]] exist with suggested dates. In the latest [[genomic]] study of the Felidae, the common ancestor of today's ''[[Leopardus]]'', ''[[Lynx]]'', ''[[Puma (genus)|Puma]]'', ''[[Prionailurus]]'', and ''[[Felis]]'' lineages migrated across the [[Beringia|Bering land bridge]] into the Americas {{ma|8|8.5}} million years ago. The lineages subsequently diverged in that order.<ref name=Johnson2006>{{cite journal |author1=Johnson, W. E. |author2=Eizirik, E. |author3=Pecon-Slattery, J. |author4=Murphy, W. J. |author5=Antunes, A. |author6=Teeling, E. |author7=O'Brien, S. J. |name-list-style=amp |date=2006 |title=The Late Miocene radiation of modern Felidae: A genetic assessment |journal=[[Science (journal)|Science]] |volume=311 |issue=5757 |pages=73–77 |doi=10.1126/science.1122277 |pmid=16400146 |bibcode=2006Sci...311...73J |s2cid=41672825 |url=https://zenodo.org/record/1230866 |access-date=July 12, 2019 |url-access= |archive-date=October 4, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201004075725/https://zenodo.org/record/1230866 |url-status=live}}</ref> North American felids then invaded South America {{ma|2|4}} as part of the [[Great American Interchange]], following the formation of the [[Isthmus of Panama]].<ref name=Culver/>

The cheetah lineage is suggested by some studies to have diverged from the ''Puma'' lineage in the Americas and migrated back to Asia and Africa,<ref name="Johnson2006" /><ref name=Culver/> while other research suggests the cheetah diverged in the [[Old World]] itself.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Ross, B. |author2=Barnes, I. |author3=Phillips, M. J. |author4=Martin, L D. |author5=Harington, C. R. |author6=Leonard, J. A. |author7=Cooper, A. |name-list-style=amp |date=2005 |title=Evolution of the extinct Sabretooths and the American cheetah-like cat |journal=[[Current Biology]] |volume=15 |issue=15 |pages=R589–R590 |doi=10.1016/j.cub.2005.07.052 |pmid=16085477 |s2cid=17665121|doi-access=free |bibcode=2005CBio...15.R589B}}</ref> A high level of genetic similarity has been found among North American cougar populations, suggesting they are all fairly recent descendants of a small ancestral group. Culver et al. propose the original North American cougar population was [[Local extinction|locally extinct]] during the [[Pleistocene extinctions]] some 10,000 years ago, when other large mammals, such as ''[[Smilodon]]'', also disappeared. North America was then repopulated by [[South American cougar]]s.<ref name=Culver/> Cougars in North America might have survived the [[Late Pleistocene megafaunal extinction]] due to their greater dietary flexibility as evidenced by [[dental microwear]] texture analysis.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=DeSantis |first1=L. R. G. |last2=Haupt |first2=R. J. |date=2014 |title=Cougars' key to survival through the Late Pleistocene extinction: insights from dental microwear texture analysis |journal=[[Biology Letters]] |volume=10 |issue=4 |article-number=20140203 |doi=10.1098/rsbl.2014.0203 |pmc=4013708 |pmid=24759373}}</ref>

A [[coprolite]] identified as from a cougar was [[Excavation (archaeology)|excavated]] in Argentina's [[Catamarca Province]] and dated to 17,002–16,573 years old. It contained ''[[Toxascaris leonina]]'' eggs. This finding indicates that the cougar and the parasite have existed in South America since at least the [[Late Pleistocene]].<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Petrigh, R. S. |author2=Martínez, J. G. |author3=Mondini, M. |author4=Fugassa, M. H. |name-list-style=amp |year=2019 |title=Ancient parasitic DNA reveals ''Toxascaris leonina'' presence in Final Pleistocene of South America |journal=[[Parasitology (journal)|Parasitology]] |volume=146 |issue=10 |pages=1284–1288 |doi=10.1017/S0031182019000787 |hdl=11336/177873 |pmid=31196226 |doi-access=free |hdl-access=free}}</ref> The oldest fossil record of a cougar (''Puma concolor'') in South America (Argentina) is a partial skull from the late [[Calabrian (stage)|Calabrian]] age.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Chimento |first1=N.R. |last2=Dondas |first2=A. |date=2018 |title=First record of ''Puma concolor'' (Mammalia, Felidae) in the Early-Middle Pleistocene of South America |journal=[[Journal of Mammalian Evolution]] |volume=25 |issue=3 |pages=381–389 |doi=10.1007/s10914-017-9385-x |hdl=11336/48212 |s2cid=16249074 |hdl-access=free}}</ref>

==Characteristics==
{{multiple image |align=right |direction=vertical |image1=Cougarskull.jpg |caption1=Cougar skull and jawbone |image2=Cougar track.jpg |caption2=Front paw print of a cougar}}

The head of the cougar is round, and the ears are erect. Its powerful forequarters, neck, and jaw serve to grasp and hold large prey. It has four retractile claws on its hind paws and five on its forepaws, of which one is a [[dewclaw]]. The larger front feet and claws are adaptations for clutching prey.<ref name="WhosWho">{{cite web |url=http://www.hww.ca/hww2.asp?pid=1&id=87&cid=8 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070518235841/http://www.hww.ca/hww2.asp?pid=1&id=87&cid=8 |archive-date=May 18, 2007 |title=Cougar |work=Hinterland Who's Who |access-date=May 22, 2007 |publisher=[[Canadian Wildlife Service]] and [[Canadian Wildlife Federation]]}}</ref>

The cougar is slender and agile. It is the fourth largest cat species;<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20101121100620/http://cougarnet.org/cougarfacts.html Expanding Cougar Population]. The Cougar Net.org</ref> adults stand about {{cvt|60|to|90|cm}} tall at the shoulders.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20120323144937/http://www.floridapanther.org/panther_facts.html Florida Panther Facts]. Florida Panther Refuge</ref> Adult males are around {{cvt|2.4|m}} long from nose to tail tip, and females average {{cvt|2.05|m}}, with overall ranges between {{cvt|1.50|to|2.75|m}} nose to tail suggested for the species in general.<ref name="Texas">{{cite web |url=http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/huntwild/wild/species/mlion/ |title=Mountain Lion (''Puma concolor'') |access-date=March 30, 2007 |publisher=Texas Parks and Wildlife |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070403213038/http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/huntwild/wild/species/mlion/ |archive-date=April 3, 2007}}</ref><ref name="NY">{{cite web |url=http://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/6974.html |title=Eastern Cougar Fact Sheet |access-date=March 30, 2007 |publisher=New York State Department of Environmental Conservat ion |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071229075135/http://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/6974.html |archive-date=December 29, 2007}}</ref> Of this length, the tail typically accounts for {{cvt|63|to|95|cm}}.<ref name="ADW">Shivaraju, A. (2003) [http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Puma_concolor.html ''Puma concolor''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090606152055/http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Puma_concolor.html |date=June 6, 2009}}. Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan Museum of Zoology. Retrieved on September 15, 2011.</ref> Males generally weigh {{cvt|53|to|72|kg}}. Females typically weigh between {{cvt|34|and|48|kg}}.<ref name="ADW" /><ref name="CAP">{{Cite web |author1=Nowell, K. |author2=Jackson, P. |name-list-style=amp |title=Wild Cats. Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan |publisher=IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland |year=1996 |url=http://carnivoractionplans1.free.fr/wildcats.pdf |access-date=July 27, 2007 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070807215533/http://carnivoractionplans1.free.fr/wildcats.pdf |archive-date=August 7, 2007}}</ref> Cougar size is smallest close to the [[equator]] and larger towards the [[Polar region|poles]].<ref name="diet">{{cite journal |author1=Iriarte, J. A. |author2=Franklin, W. L. |author3=Johnson, W. E. |author4=Redford, K. H. |year=1990 |title=Biogeographic variation of food habits and body size of the America puma |journal=[[Oecologia]] |volume=85 |issue=2 |pages=185–190 |doi=10.1007/BF00319400 |pmid=28312554 |bibcode=1990Oecol..85..185I |s2cid=10134066}}</ref> 

The largest recorded cougar, shot in 1901, weighed {{cvt|105.2|kg}}; claims of {{cvt|125.2|kg}} and {{cvt|118|kg}} have been reported, though they were probably exaggerated.<ref>{{cite book |last=Hornocker |first=Maurice |date=2010 |title=Cougar: ecology and conservation |url=http://library.wur.nl/WebQuery/clc/1941110 |publisher=Chicago [etc.] : University of Chicago Press |isbn=978-0-226-35344-9}}</ref> Male cougars in North America average {{cvt|62|kg}}, while the average female in the same region averages about {{cvt|42|kg}}.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |last=Beler |first=Paul |title=puma |url=https://www.britannica.com/animal/puma-mammal-species |encyclopedia=Britannica|access-date=October 2, 2023|archive-date=October 6, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231006055338/https://www.britannica.com/animal/puma-mammal-species|url-status=live}}</ref> On average, adult male cougars in British Columbia weigh {{cvt|56.7|kg}} and adult females {{cvt|45.4|kg}}, though several male cougars in British Columbia weighed between {{cvt|86.4|and|95.5|kg}}.<ref>{{cite web |last=Spalding |first=D. J. |title=Cougar in British Columbia |url=http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/wld/documents/cougar.htm |work=British Columbia Fish and Wildlife Branch|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110824110816/http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/wld/documents/cougar.htm|archive-date=August 24, 2011|access-date=June 5, 2011}}</ref>

Depending on the locality, cougars can be smaller or bigger than jaguars but are less muscular and not as powerfully built, so on average, their weight is less. Whereas the size of cougars tends to increase as much as distance from the equator increases,<ref name="diet" /> which crosses the northern portion of South America, jaguars are generally smaller north of the [[Amazon River]] in South America and larger south of it. For example, while South American jaguars are comparatively large, and may exceed {{cvt|90|kg}},<ref name="FrancisIserson2015">{{cite journal |author1=Francis, Adama M. |author2=Iserson, K. V. |year=2015 |title=Jaguar Attack on a Child: Case Report and Literature Review |journal=Western Journal of Emergency Medicine |volume=16 |issue=2 |pages=303–309 |doi=10.5811/westjem.2015.1.24043 |pmc=4380383 |pmid=25834674}}</ref> North American jaguars in Mexico's [[Chamela-Cuixmala Biosphere Reserve]] weigh approximately {{cvt|50|kg}}, about the same as female cougars.<ref name="Foodhabits">{{cite journal |author1=Nuanaez, R. |author2=Miller, B. |author3=Lindzey F. |name-list-style=amp |year=2000 |title=Food habits of jaguars and pumas in Jalisco, Mexico |journal=Journal of Zoology |volume=252 |issue=3 |pages=373–379 |url=http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=58851 |doi=10.1111/j.1469-7998.2000.tb00632.x |access-date=May 20, 2007 |archive-date=August 10, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160810211518/http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=58851 |url-status=live|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

Cougar coloring is plain tawny, ranging from silvery-grey to reddish with lighter patches on the underbody, including the jaws, chin, and throat. Kittens are spotted and born with blue eyes and rings on their tails;<ref name=CAP/> juveniles are pale, and dark spots remain on their flanks.<ref name=NY/> A [[leucistic]] individual was seen in [[Serra dos Órgãos National Park]] in Rio de Janeiro in 2013 when it was recorded by a camera trap, indicating that pure white individuals do exist within the species, though they are extremely rare.<ref name=Branco>{{cite web |url=https://revistapesquisa.fapesp.br/quando-o-pardo-e-branco/ |title=Quando o pardo é branco |date=2019 |work=Revista pesquisa |location=Brazil |language=pt |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200807222632/https://revistapesquisa.fapesp.br/quando-o-pardo-e-branco/ |archive-date=August 7, 2020 |access-date=August 18, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Dell'amore |first=C. |date=2020 |title=Extremely rare white cougar highlights a quirk of the species |work=National Geographic |url=https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/extrremely-rare-white-cougar-highlights-quirk-of-species?loggedin=true&rnd=1690918501116 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230801194030/https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/extrremely-rare-white-cougar-highlights-quirk-of-species?loggedin=true&rnd=1690918501116 |archive-date=August 1, 2023 |access-date=August 1, 2023}}</ref> 

The cougar has large paws and proportionally the largest hind legs in Felidae,<ref name="CAP" /> allowing for great leaping and powerful short sprints. It can leap from the ground up to {{cvt|5.5|m}} high into a tree.<ref name="Nowak, 1999">{{cite book |title=Walker's Mammals of the World |volume=1 |last=Nowak |first=R. M. |year=1999 |publisher=Johns Hopkins University Press |location=Baltimore |isbn=0-8018-5789-9 |page=818}}</ref>
It is the largest of the ''Felinae'' that is capable of [[purr]]ing.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Raber |first1=D. |title=Through Cougar's Eyes Life Lessons From One Man's Best Friend |date=2010 |publisher=St. Martin's Publishing Group |isbn=978-1-4299-7950-4 |page=6 |chapter=Introduction |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YXGtYA5VBq0C&pg=PA6 |access-date=June 15, 2025}}</ref>

==Distribution and habitat==
[[File:Puma concolor camera trap Arizona 2.jpg|thumb|A [[camera trap]] image of a cougar in [[Saguaro National Park]], [[Arizona]]]]

The cougar has the most extensive range of any wild land animal in the Americas, spanning 110 degrees of [[latitude]] from the Yukon in Canada to the southern Andes in Chile.<ref name="iucn" /> The species was extirpated from eastern North America, aside from Florida, but they may be recolonizing their former range and isolated populations have been documented east of their contemporary ranges in both the Midwestern US and Canada.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Morrison, C. D. |author2=Boyce, M. S. |author3=Nielsen, S. E. |year=2015 |title=Space-use, movement and dispersal of sub-adult cougars in a geographically isolated population |journal=PeerJ |volume=3 |article-number=e1118 |doi=10.7717/peerj.1118 |pmid=26290786 |pmc=4540023 |doi-access=free}}</ref>

The cougar lives in all forest types, lowland and mountainous deserts, and in open areas with little vegetation up to an elevation of {{cvt|5800|m}}.<ref name="iucn" /> In the [[Santa Ana Mountains]], it prefers steep canyons, escarpments, rim rocks and dense brush.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Dickson, B.G. |name-list-style=amp |author2=Beier, P. |year=2007 |title=Quantifying the influence of topographic position on cougar (''Puma concolor'') movement in southern California, USA |journal=Journal of Zoology |volume=271 |issue=3 |pages=270–277 |doi=10.1111/j.1469-7998.2006.00215.x |citeseerx=10.1.1.571.8947}}</ref> In Mexico, it was recorded in the [[Sierra de San Carlos]].<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Caso, A. |name-list-style=amp |author2=Domínguez, E. F. |year=2018 |title=Confirmed presence of jaguar, ocelot and jaguarundi in the Sierra of San Carlos, Mexico |journal=Cat News |issue=68 |pages=31–32}}</ref> In the [[Yucatán Peninsula]], it inhabits [[secondary forest|secondary]] and semi-[[deciduous]] forests in [[El Eden Ecological Reserve]].<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Ávila-Nájera, D. M. |name-list-style=amp |author2=Chávez, C. |author3=Pérez-Elizalde, S. |author4=Guzmán-Plazola, R. A. |author5=Mendoza, G. D. |author6=Lazcano-Barrero, M. A. |year=2018 |title=Ecology of ''Puma concolor'' (Carnivora: Felidae) in a Mexican tropical forest: adaptation to environmental disturbances |journal=Revista de Biología Tropical |volume=66 |issue=1 |pages=78–90 |doi=10.15517/rbt.v66i1.27862 |doi-access=free}}</ref> In [[El Salvador]], it was recorded in the lower montane forest in [[Montecristo National Park]] and in a river basin in the [[Morazán Department]] above {{cvt|700|m}} in 2019.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Morales-Rivas, A. |name-list-style=amp |author2=Álvarez, F. S. |author3=Pocasangre-Orellana, X. |author4=Girón, L. |author5=Guerra, G. N. |author6=Martínez, R. |author7=Pablo Domínguez, J. |author8=Leibl, F. |author9=Heibl, C. |year=2020 |title=Big cats are still walking in El Salvador: first photographic records of ''Puma concolor'' (Linnaeus, 1771) and an overview of historical records in the country |journal=Check List |volume=16 |issue=4 |pages=563–570 |doi=10.15560/16.3.563 |doi-access=free}}</ref>
In [[Colombia]], it was recorded in a [[palm oil]] [[plantation]] close to a [[riparian forest]] in the [[Llanos Basin]], and close to water bodies in the [[Magdalena River Valley]].<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Olarte-González, G. |name-list-style=amp |author2=Escovar-Fadul, T. |author3=Balaguera-Reina, S.A. |year=2015 |title=First record of ''Puma concolor'' Linneus, 1771 (Carnivora: Felidae) preying ''Odocoileus virginianus'' (Zimmermann, 1780) on a palm-oil plantation in the Meta department, Colombia |journal=Mammalogy Notes |volume=2 |issue=1 |pages=8–10 |doi=10.47603/manovol2n1.8-10 |doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author1=Boron, V. |name-list-style=amp |author2=Xofis, P. |author3=Link, A. |author4=Payan, E. |author5=Tzanopoulos, J. |year=2020 |title=Conserving predators across agricultural landscapes in Colombia: habitat use and space partitioning by jaguars, pumas, ocelots and jaguarundis |journal=Oryx |volume=54 |issue=4 |pages=554–563 |doi=10.1017/S0030605318000327 |doi-access=free|hdl=1992/47075 |hdl-access=free }}</ref>
In the human-modified landscape of central Argentina, it inhabits [[bushland]] with abundant vegetation cover and prey species.<ref name=Guerisoli2019>{{cite journal |author1=Guerisoli, M. D. L. M. |author2=Caruso, N. |author3=Luengos Vidal, E. M. |name-list-style=amp |author4=Lucherini, M. |year=2019 |title=Habitat use and activity patterns of ''Puma concolor'' in a human-dominated landscape of central Argentina |journal=Journal of Mammalogy |volume=100 |issue=1 |pages=202–211 |doi=10.1093/jmammal/gyz005 |doi-access=free |hdl=11336/104140 |hdl-access=free}}</ref>

==Behavior and ecology==
The cougar is a [[keystone species]] in Western Hemisphere ecosystems as it links numerous species at many [[trophic level]]s interacting with 485 other species as food source and prey, carcass remains left behind and competitive effects on other [[Predation|predator]]s in shared habitat.<ref name="LaBarge et al. 2022">{{Cite journal |last1=LaBarge |first1=L. R. |last2=Evans |first2=M. J. |last3=Miller |first3=J. R. B. |last4=Cannataro |first4=G. |last5=Hunt |first5=C. |last6=Elbroch |first6=L. M. |date=2022 |title=Pumas ''Puma concolor'' as ecological brokers: a review of their biotic relationships |journal=Mammal Review |volume=52 |issue=3 |pages=360–376 |doi=10.1111/mam.12281 |doi-access=free |bibcode=2022MamRv..52..360L}}</ref>

===Hunting and diet===
[[File:P-35 and the Bears (25382928560).jpg|thumb|right|Camera trap image of cougar in the [[Santa Susana Mountains]] northwest of Los Angeles]]
[[File:P-35 and the Bears (25657563476).jpg|thumb|Cougar with deer kill]]

The cougar is a [[Generalist and specialist species|generalist]] [[hypercarnivore]]. It prefers large mammals such as [[mule deer]], [[white-tailed deer]], [[elk]], [[moose]], [[mountain goat]] and [[bighorn sheep]]. It opportunistically takes smaller prey such as [[rodent]]s, [[lagomorph]]s, smaller carnivores, birds, and even domestic animals, including pets.<ref name="Naughton" /> The mean weight of cougar vertebrate prey increases with its body weight and is lower in areas closer to the [[equator]]. A survey of North America research found 68% of prey items were ungulates, especially deer. Only the Florida panther showed variation, often preferring feral [[Hog (swine)|hog]]s and [[armadillo]]s.<ref name="diet" /> Cougars have been known to prey on introduced [[gemsbok]] populations in [[New Mexico]]. One individual cougar was recorded as hunting 29 gemsbok, which made up 58% of its recorded kills. Most gemsbok kills were neonates, but some adults were also known to have been taken.<ref name="TWS">{{cite web |last1=Kobilinsky |first1=D. |date=2023 |title=Rising oryx numbers may distress New Mexico ecosystem |url=https://wildlife.org/rising-oryx-numbers-may-distress-new-mexico-ecosystem/ |access-date=March 12, 2023 |work=The Wildlife Society |archive-date=March 11, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230311220740/https://wildlife.org/rising-oryx-numbers-may-distress-new-mexico-ecosystem/ |url-status=live}}</ref> Elsewhere in the southwestern United States, they have been recorded to also prey on [[feral horse]]s in the [[Great Basin]],<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://wildlife.org/jwm-cougars-prey-on-feral-horses-in-the-great-basin |title=JWM: Cougars prey on feral horses in the Great Basin |date=2021|access-date=May 10, 2023|archive-date=May 10, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230510190218/https://wildlife.org/jwm-cougars-prey-on-feral-horses-in-the-great-basin/|url-status=live}}</ref> as well as [[feral donkey]]s in the [[Sonoran Desert|Sonoran]] and [[Mojave Desert]]s.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://wildlife.org/do-cougars-affect-ecosystems-by-preying-on-feral-donkeys/ |title=Do cougars affect ecosystems by preying on feral donkeys? |date=May 10, 2023|access-date=May 10, 2023|archive-date=May 10, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230510184027/https://wildlife.org/do-cougars-affect-ecosystems-by-preying-on-feral-donkeys/|url-status=live}}</ref>

Investigations at [[Yellowstone National Park]] showed that elk and mule deer were the cougar's primary prey; the prey base is shared with the park's [[Wolf|wolves]], with which the cougar competes for resources.<ref name="Yellowstone">{{cite web |title=Wildlife: Wolves |publisher=[[Yellowstone National Park]] |url=http://www.yellowstonenationalpark.com/wolves.htm |access-date=April 8, 2007 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070420174741/http://www.yellowstonenationalpark.com/wolves.htm |archive-date=April 20, 2007}}<br />* {{cite web |author1=Akenson, H. |author2=Akenson, J. |author3=Quigley, H. |title=Winter predation and interactions of Wolves and Cougars on Panther Creek in Central Idaho |url=http://www.yellowstonenationalpark.com/wolves.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070420174741/http://www.yellowstonenationalpark.com/wolves.htm |archive-date=April 20, 2007}}<br />* {{cite web |author1=Oakleaf, John K. |author2=Mack, C. |author3=Murray, D. L. |title=Winter predation and interactions of Cougars and Wolves in the Central Idaho Wilderness |url=http://www.yellowstonenationalpark.com/wolves.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070420174741/http://www.yellowstonenationalpark.com/wolves.htm |archive-date=April 20, 2007}}</ref> A study on winter kills from November to April in [[Alberta]] showed that ungulates accounted for greater than 99% of the cougar diet. Learned, individual prey recognition was observed, as some cougars rarely killed bighorn sheep, while others relied heavily on the species.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Ross |first=R. |author2=Jalkotzy, M. G. |author3=Festa-Bianchet, M. |year=1993 |title=Cougar predation on bighorn sheep in southwestern Alberta during winter |journal=Canadian Journal of Zoology |volume=75 |issue=5 |pages=771–775 |doi=10.1139/z97-098 |name-list-style=amp}}</ref>

In the Central and South American cougar range area, the ratio of deer in the diet declines. Small to mid-sized mammals, including large rodents such as the [[capybara]], are preferred. Ungulates accounted for only 35% of prey items in one survey, about half that of North America. Competition with the larger jaguar in South America has been suggested for the decline in the size of prey items.<ref name="diet" /> In Central or North America, the cougar and jaguar share the same prey, depending on its abundance.<ref name="GGLG2017">{{cite journal |last1=Gutiérrez-González |first1=C. E. |last2=López-González |first2=C. A. |title=Jaguar interactions with pumas and prey at the northern edge of jaguars' range |journal=PeerJ |volume=5 |article-number=e2886 |date=2017 |doi=10.7717/peerj.2886 |pmid=28133569 |pmc=5248577 |name-list-style=amp |doi-access=free}}</ref> Other listed prey species of the cougar include [[Mouse|mice]], [[porcupine]]s, [[American beaver]]s, [[raccoon]]s, [[hare]]s, [[guanaco]]es, [[Peccary|peccaries]], [[vicuña]]s, [[Rhea (bird)|rhea]]s and [[wild turkey]]s.<ref>{{cite book |author=Whitaker, J. O. |year=1980 |title=The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Mammals |location=New York |publisher=Chanticleer Press |chapter=|chapter-url= |isbn=0-394-50762-2}}</ref> Birds and small reptiles are sometimes preyed upon in the south, but this is rarely recorded in North America.<ref name="diet" /> [[Magellanic penguin]]s (''Spheniscus magellanicus'') constitute the majority of prey items in cougar diet in [[Patagonia]]'s [[Bosques Petrificados de Jaramillo National Park]] and [[Monte León National Park]].<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Martínez, J.I.Z. |name-list-style=amp |author2=Travaini, A. |author3=Zapata, S. |author4=Procopio, D. |author5=Santillán, M.Á. |year=2012 |title=The ecological role of native and introduced species in the diet of the puma ''Puma concolor'' in southern Patagonia |journal=Oryx |volume=46 |issue=1 |pages=106–111 |doi=10.1017/S0030605310001821 |doi-access=free |hdl=11336/81623 |hdl-access=free}}</ref>

Although capable of sprinting, the cougar is typically an [[ambush predator]]. It stalks through brush and trees, across ledges, or other covered spots, before delivering a powerful leap onto the back of its prey and a suffocating neck bite. The cougar can break the neck of some of its smaller prey with a strong bite and momentum bearing the animal to the ground.<ref name="WhosWho" /> Kills are generally estimated around one large ungulate every two weeks. The period shrinks for females raising young, and may be as short as one kill every three days when cubs are nearly mature around 15 months.<ref name="CAP" /> The cat drags a kill to a preferred spot, covers it with brush, and returns to feed over a period of days. The cougar is generally reported to not be a [[scavenger]], but deer carcasses left exposed for study were scavenged by cougars in California, suggesting more opportunistic behavior.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Bauer |first=J. W. |author2=Logan, K. A. |author3=Sweanor, L. L. |author4=Boyce, W. M. |date=2005 |title=Scavenging behavior in Puma |journal=The Southwestern Naturalist |volume=50 |issue=4 |pages=466–471 |name-list-style=amp |doi=10.1894/0038-4909(2005)050[0466:SBIP]2.0.CO;2 |s2cid=85632179}}</ref> 

The cougar's hunting success rate in central [[Idaho]] was estimated at 82% hunting elk and mule deer in the snow during winter.<ref>{{Cite thesis |last=Hornocker |first=M. G. |date=1970 |title=An analysis of Mountain Lion predation upon Mule Deer and Elk in the Idaho Primitive Area |url=https://open.library.ubc.ca/soa/cIRcle/collections/ubctheses/831/items/1.0104372 |journal=Wildlife Monographs |issue=21 |pages=3–39 |doi=10.14288/1.0104372 }}</ref> In central [[Argentina]], its success rate was estimated at 10% hunting [[Plains viscacha]] in semi-arid scrub areas.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Branch |first=L. C. |date=1995 |title=Observations of predation by pumas and Geoffroy's cats on the plains vizcacha in semi-arid scrub of central Argentina |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/295520218 |journal=Mammalia |volume=59 |issue=1 |pages=152–156}}</ref>

===Interactions with other predators===
[[File:Feeling Unwelcome.jpg|thumb|Juvenile cougar in conflict with [[coyote]]s at [[National Elk Refuge]], using a [[split-rail fence#Buck-and-rail fence|buck-and-rail fence]] for refuge]]

Aside from humans, no species preys upon mature cougars in the wild, although conflicts with other predators or scavengers occur. Of the large predators in [[Yellowstone National Park]] – the [[grizzly bear|grizzly]] and [[American black bear|black bear]]s, [[Wolf|gray wolf]] and cougar – the massive grizzly bear appears dominant, often (though not always) able to drive a gray wolf pack, black bear or cougar off their kills. One study found that grizzlies and [[American black bear]]s visited 24% of cougar kills in Yellowstone and [[Glacier National Park (U.S.)|Glacier National Parks]], usurping 10% of carcasses. Bears gained up to 113%, and cougars lost up to 26% of their daily energy requirements from these encounters.<ref>{{Cite web |author=COSEWIC. Canadian Wildlife Service |title=Assessment and Update Status Report on the Grizzly Bear (''Ursus arctos'') |website=[[Environment Canada]] |year=2002 |url=http://dsp-psd.pwgsc.gc.ca/Collection/CW69-14-166-2002E.pdf |access-date=April 8, 2007 |archive-date=October 9, 2022 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://dsp-psd.pwgsc.gc.ca/Collection/CW69-14-166-2002E.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> 

In [[Colorado]] and California, black bears were found to visit 48% and 77% of kills, respectively. In general, cougars are subordinate to black bears when it comes to kills, and when bears are most active, the cats take prey more frequently and spend less time feeding on each kill. Unlike several subordinate predators from other ecosystems, cougars do not appear to exploit spatial or temporal refuges to avoid competitors.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Elbroch, L. M. |author2=Lendrum, P. E. |author3=Allen, M. L. |author4=Wittmer, H. U. |year=2014 |title=Nowhere to hide: pumas, black bears, and competition refuges |journal=Behavioral Ecology |doi=10.1093/beheco/aru189 |volume=26 |pages=247–254 |doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |author=ELboch, M. |date=November 1, 2014 |title=Mountain Lions Versus Black Bears |magazine=National Geographic |access-date=September 24, 2016 |url=http://voices.nationalgeographic.com/2014/11/01/mountain-lions-versus-black-bears/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160925021131/http://voices.nationalgeographic.com/2014/11/01/mountain-lions-versus-black-bears/ |archive-date=September 25, 2016}}</ref>

The gray wolf and the cougar compete more directly for prey, mostly in winter. Packs of wolves can steal cougars' kills, and there are some documented cases of cougars being killed by them. One report describes a large pack of seven to 11 wolves killing a female cougar and her kittens,<ref name="Park wolf pack kills mother cougar">{{cite web |title=Park wolf pack kills mother cougar |url=http://www.forwolves.org/ralph/wolves-deadcougar.htm |publisher=forwolves.org|access-date=April 12, 2013|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131102015747/http://www.forwolves.org/ralph/wolves-deadcougar.htm|archive-date=November 2, 2013}}</ref> while in nearby [[Sun Valley, Idaho]], a 2-year-old male cougar was found dead, apparently killed by a wolf pack.<ref name="IME">{{cite web |title=Predators clash above Elkhorn |url=http://archives.mtexpress.com/index2.php?ID=2005125077 |last=Kauffman |first=J. |date=2009 |publisher=Idaho Mountain Express|access-date=August 21, 2013|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170807071659/http://archives.mtexpress.com/index2.php?ID=2005125077|archive-date=August 7, 2017}}</ref> Conversely, one-to-one confrontations tend to be dominated by the cat, and there are various documented accounts where wolves have been ambushed and killed,<ref name="Wolf B4 Killed by Mountain Lion?">{{cite web |url=http://www.forwolves.org/ralph/32596.html |title=Wolf B4 Killed by Mountain Lion? |date=March 25, 1996 |publisher=forwolves.org|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131102020159/http://www.forwolves.org/ralph/32596.html|archive-date=November 2, 2013|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://forests.org/shared/reader/welcome.aspx?linkid=22714&keybold=wildlife%20AND%20%20cougar |title=In Yellowstone, it's Carnivore Competition |last=Gugliotta |first=G. |date=2003 |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |access-date=April 9, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130723074822/http://forests.org/shared/reader/welcome.aspx?linkid=22714&keybold=wildlife%20AND%20%20cougar |archive-date=July 23, 2013}}</ref><ref name="Autopsy Indicates Cougar Killed Wolf">{{cite web |url=http://www.igorilla.com/gorilla/animal/1999/cougar_kills_wolf.html |title=Autopsy Indicates Cougar Killed Wolf |date=2000 |publisher=igorilla.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924033237/http://www.igorilla.com/gorilla/animal/1999/cougar_kills_wolf.html|archive-date=September 24, 2015|url-status=live|access-date=May 22, 2015}}</ref><ref name="Mountain lions kill collared wolves in Bitterroot">{{cite web |url=http://missoulian.com/news/state-and-regional/mountain-lions-kill-collared-wolves-in-bitterroot/article_68c0c60c-d792-59e3-b736-5b10c17eb10a.html |title=Mountain lions kill collared wolves in Bitterroot |date=May 29, 2012 |publisher=missoulian.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130517113554/http://missoulian.com/news/state-and-regional/mountain-lions-kill-collared-wolves-in-bitterroot/article_68c0c60c-d792-59e3-b736-5b10c17eb10a.html|archive-date=May 17, 2013|access-date=May 29, 2012}}</ref> including adult male specimens.<ref name="This lion doesn't run, instead kills, eats wolf">{{cite web |url=https://www.jhnewsandguide.com/news/environmental/this-lion-doesn-t-run-instead-kills-eats-wolf/article_bdf4e68b-49d2-52b7-af68-302a559a9361.html |title=This lion doesn't run, instead kills, eats wolf |date=December 11, 2013 |publisher=National Geographic|access-date=October 7, 2019|archive-date=October 7, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191007213926/https://www.jhnewsandguide.com/news/environmental/this-lion-doesn-t-run-instead-kills-eats-wolf/article_bdf4e68b-49d2-52b7-af68-302a559a9361.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Wolves more broadly affect cougar population dynamics and distribution by dominating territory and prey opportunities, and disrupting the feline's behavior. Preliminary research in [[Yellowstone]], for instance, has shown displacement of the cougar by wolves.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.greateryellowstonescience.org/topic/wolves/wolvesoverview.html |title=Overview: Gray Wolves |access-date=April 9, 2007 |publisher=Greater Yellowstone Learning Center| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070929115515/http://www.greateryellowstonescience.org/topic/wolves/wolvesoverview.html| archive-date=September 29, 2007}}</ref> 

One researcher in Oregon noted: "When there is a pack around, cougars are not comfortable around their kills or raising kittens&nbsp;... A lot of times a big cougar will kill a wolf, but the pack phenomenon changes the table."<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.oregonwild.org/press-room/press-clips/turf-wars-in-idaho-s-wilderness |title=Turf wars in Idaho's wilderness |last=Cockle |first=Richard |date=2006 |newspaper=[[The Oregonian]] |access-date=April 9, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071213022857/http://www.oregonwild.org/press-room/press-clips/turf-wars-in-idaho-s-wilderness |archive-date=December 13, 2007}}</ref> Both species are capable of killing mid-sized predators, such as [[bobcat]]s, [[Canada lynx]]es, [[wolverine]]s and [[coyote]]s, and tend to suppress their numbers.<ref name="Yellowstone" /> Although cougars can kill coyotes, the latter have been documented attempting to prey on cougar cubs.<ref name="Cougars vs. coyotes photos draw Internet crowd">{{cite web |title=Cougars vs. coyotes photos draw Internet crowd |date=2013 |url=http://missoulian.com/news/state-and-regional/cougars-vs-coyotes-photos-draw-internet-crowd/article_f6ecdb1a-a051-11e2-85a3-001a4bcf887a.html |publisher=missoulian.com|access-date=April 8, 2013 |url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130411040326/http://missoulian.com/news/state-and-regional/cougars-vs-coyotes-photos-draw-internet-crowd/article_f6ecdb1a-a051-11e2-85a3-001a4bcf887a.html|archive-date=April 11, 2013}}</ref>

The cougar and jaguar share overlapping territory in the southern portion of its range.<ref name="HAMDIG">{{cite web |url=http://www.ecology.info/ecology-jaguar-puma.htm |first=Paul |last=Hamdig |title=Sympatric Jaguar and Puma |publisher=Ecology Online Sweden |access-date=August 30, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060716064117/http://www.ecology.info/ecology-jaguar-puma.htm| archive-date = July 16, 2006}}</ref> The jaguar tends to take the larger prey where ranges overlap, reducing both the cougar's potential size and the likelihood of direct competition between the two cats.<ref name="diet" /> Cougars appear better than jaguars at exploiting a broader prey niche and smaller prey.<ref name="foodhabits">{{cite journal |author1=Nuanaez, R. |author2=Miller, B. |author3=Lindzey, F. |year=2000 |title=Food habits of jaguars and pumas in Jalisco, Mexico |journal=Journal of Zoology |volume=252 |issue=3 |pages=373–379 |doi=10.1111/j.1469-7998.2000.tb00632.x}}</ref>

===Social spacing and interactions===
The cougar is a mostly solitary animal. Only mothers and kittens live in groups, with adults meeting rarely. Subadult cougars of same sexes have been known to temporarily form sibling groups.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Thompson |first1=D. J. |last2=Jenks |first2=J. A. |date=October 27, 2010 |title=Dispersal movements of subadult cougars from the Black Hills: the notions of range expansion and recolonization |journal=Ecosphere |volume=1 |issue=4 |pages=1–11 |doi=10.1890/ES10-00028.1 |bibcode=2010Ecosp...1....8T |doi-access=free}}</ref> While generally loners, cougars will reciprocally share kills and seem to organize themselves into small communities defined by the territories of dominant males. Cats within these areas socialize more frequently with each other than with outsiders.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Adaptive social strategies in a solitary carnivore |first1=L. M. |last1=Elbroch |first2=M. |last2=Levy |first3=M. |last3=Lubell |first4=H. |last4=Quigley |first5=A. |last5=Caragiulo |date=2017 |journal=Science Advances |volume=3 |issue=10 |name-list-style=amp |article-number=e1701218 |doi=10.1126/sciadv.1701218 |pmid=29026880 |pmc=5636203 |bibcode=2017SciA....3E1218E}}</ref> 

In the vicinity of a cattle ranch in northern Mexico, cougars exhibited [[Nocturnality|nocturnal]] activity that overlapped foremost with the activity of [[Calf (animal)|calves]].<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Gutiérrez-González, C.E. |name-list-style=amp |author2=López-González, C.A. |year=2017 |title=Jaguar interactions with pumas and prey at the northern edge of jaguars' range |journal=PeerJ |volume=5 |article-number=e2886 |doi=10.7717/peerj.2886 |doi-access=free |pmid=28133569 |pmc=5248577}}</ref> In a nature reserve in central Mexico, the activity of cougars was [[Crepuscular animal|crepuscular]] and nocturnal, overlapping largely with the activity of the [[nine-banded armadillo]] (''Dasypus novemcinctus'').<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Soria-Díaz, L. |author2=Monroy-Vilchis, O. |author3=Zarco-González, Z. |year=2016 |title=Activity pattern of puma (''Puma concolor'') and its main prey in central Mexico |journal=Animal Biology |volume=66 |pages=13–20 |doi=10.1163/15707563-00002487 |name-list-style=amp |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/292946569 |access-date=April 24, 2024 |archive-date=May 5, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240505151909/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/292946569_Activity_pattern_of_puma_Puma_concolor_and_its_main_prey_in_central_Mexico |url-status=live}}</ref> Cougars in the montane Abra-Tanchipa Biosphere Reserve in southeastern Mexico displayed a [[Cathemerality|cathemeral]] activity pattern.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Hernández-Saintmartín, A.D. |author2=Rosas-Rosas, O.C. |author3=Palacio-Núñez, J. |author4=Tarango-Arámbula, L.A. |author5=Clemente-Sánchez, F. |author6=Hoogesteijn, A.L. |year=2013 |title=Activity patterns of jaguar, puma and their potential prey in San Luis Potosí, Mexico |journal=Acta Zoológica Mexicana |volume=29 |issue=3 |url=https://www.scielo.org.mx/scielo.php?pid=S0065-17372013000300005&script=sci_arttext |name-list-style=amp |access-date=April 20, 2024 |archive-date=April 20, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240420154521/https://www.scielo.org.mx/scielo.php?pid=S0065-17372013000300005&script=sci_arttext |url-status=live}}</ref> Data from 12 years of camera trapping in the Pacific slope and Talamanca Cordillera of Costa Rica showed cougars as cathemeral.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Botts, R.T. |author2=Eppert, A.A. |author3=Wiegman, T.J. |author4=Rodriguez, A. |author5=Blankenship, S.R. |author6=Asselin, E.M. |author7=Garley, W.M. |author8=Wagner, A.P. |author9=Ullrich, S.E. |author10=Allen, G.R. |author11=Mooring, M.S. |year=2020 |title=Circadian activity patterns of mammalian predators and prey in Costa Rica |journal=Journal of Mammalogy |volume=101 |issue=5 |pages=1313–1331 |doi=10.1093/jmammal/gyaa103 |doi-access=free |pmid=33343263 |pmc=7733402 |name-list-style=amp}}</ref> Both cougars and jaguars in the [[Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary|Cockscomb Basin]] of Belize were nocturnal but avoided each other.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Harmsen, B.J. |author2=Foster, R.J. |author3=Silver, S.C. |author4=Ostro, L.E.T. |author5=Doncaster, C.P. |year=2009 |title=Spatial and temporal interactions of sympatric Jaguars (''Panthera onca'') and Pumas (''Puma concolor'') in a Neotropical forest |journal=Journal of Mammalogy |volume=90 |issue=3 |pages=612–620 |doi=10.1644/08-MAMM-A-140R.1 |name-list-style=amp}}</ref> In a protected cloud forest in the central Andes of Colombia, cougars were active from late afternoon to shortly before sunrise and sometimes during noon and early afternoon.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Cepeda-Duque, J.C. |author2=Gómez–Valencia, B. |author3=Alvarez, S. |author4=Gutiérrez–Sanabria, D.R. |author5=Lizcano, D.J. |year=2021 |title=Daily activity pattern of pumas (''Puma concolor'') and their potential prey in a tropical cloud forest of Colombia |journal=Animal Biodiversity and Conservation |volume=44 |issue=2 |pages=267–278 |doi=10.32800/abc.2021.44.0267 |name-list-style=amp|doi-access=free}}</ref> In protected areas of the [[Madidi National Park|Madidi]]-[[Tambopata National Reserve|Tambopata]] Landscape in Bolivia and Peru, cougars were active throughout the day but with a tendency to nocturnal activity that overlapped with the activity of main prey species.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Ayala, G.M. |name-list-style=amp |author2=Viscarra, M.E. |author3=Sarmento, P. |author4=Negrões, N. |author5=Fonseca, C. |author6=Wallace, R.B. |year=2021 |title=Activity patterns of jaguar and puma and their primary prey in the Greater Madidi-Tambopata Landscape (Bolivia, Peru) |journal=Mammalia |volume=85 |issue=3 |pages=208–219 |doi=10.1515/mammalia-2020-0058}}</ref> 

During an 8-year-long study in a modified landscape in southeastern Brazil, male cougars were primarily nocturnal, but females were active at night and day.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Azevedo, F.C. |author2=Lemos, F.G. |author3=Freitas-Junior, M.C. |author4=Rocha, D.G. |author5=Azevedo, F.C.C. |year=2018 |title=Puma activity patterns and temporal overlap with prey in a human-modified landscape at southeastern Brazil |journal=Journal of Zoology |volume=305 |issue=4 |pages=246–255 |doi=10.1111/jzo.12558 |name-list-style=amp}}</ref> Cougars were diurnal in the Brazilian [[Pantanal]], but crepuscular and nocturnal in protected areas in the [[Cerrado]], [[Caatinga]] and [[ecotone]] biomes.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Foster, V.C. |author2=Sarmento, P. |author3=Sollmann, R. |author4=Tôrres, N. |author5=Jácomo, A.T. |author6=Negrões, N. |author7=Fonseca, C. |author8=Silveira, L. |year=2013 |title=Jaguar and Puma activity patterns and predator-prey interactions in four Brazilian Biomes |journal=Biotropica |volume=45 |issue=3 |pages=373–379 |doi=10.1111/btp.12021 |jstor=23525363 |bibcode=2013Biotr..45..373F |name-list-style=amp}}</ref> Cougars in the Atlantic Forest were active throughout the day but displayed peak activity during early mornings in protected areas and crepuscular and nocturnal activity in less protected areas.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Paviolo, A. |name-list-style=amp |author2=Di Blanco, Y. E. |author3=De Angelo, C.D. |author4=Di Bitetti, M.S. |year=2009 |title=Protection affects the abundance and activity patterns of pumas in the Atlantic Forest |journal=Journal of Mammalogy |volume=90 |issue=4 |pages=926–934 |doi=10.1644/08-MAMM-A-128.1 |doi-access=free |hdl=11336/59545 |hdl-access=free}}</ref> In central Argentina, cougars were active day and night in protected areas but were active immediately after sunset and before sunrise outside protected areas.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Zanón-Martínez, J.I. |name-list-style=amp |author2=Kelly, M.J. |author3=Mesa-Cruz, J.B. |author4=Sarasola, J.H. |author5=DeHart, C. |author6=Travaini, A. |year=2016 |title=Density and activity patterns of pumas in hunted and non-hunted areas in central Argentina |journal=Wildlife Research |volume=43 |issue=6 |pages=449–460 |doi=10.1071/WR16056|bibcode=2016WildR..43..449Z |hdl=11336/44202 |hdl-access=free}}</ref> Cougars displayed a foremost crepuscular and nocturnal activity pattern in a ranching area in southern Argentina.<ref name="Guerisoli2019" />

[[Home range]] sizes and overall cougar abundance depend on terrain, vegetation, and prey abundance.<ref name="Utah2">{{cite web |author=Cougar Discussion Group |date=1999 |title=Utah Cougar Management Plan (Draft) |url=http://www.wildlife.utah.gov/pdf/cmgtplan.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070616200443/http://www.wildlife.utah.gov/pdf/cmgtplan.pdf |archive-date=June 16, 2007 |access-date=May 2, 2007 |publisher=Utah Division of Wildlife Resources}}</ref> Research suggests a lower limit of {{cvt|25|km2}} and upper limit of {{cvt|1300|km2}} of home range for males.<ref name="Utah">{{cite web |url=http://www.wildlife.utah.gov/pdf/cmgtplan.pdf |title=Utah Cougar Management Plan (Draft) |access-date=May 2, 2007 |author=Cougar Discussion Group |date=1999 |publisher=Utah Division of Wildlife Resources |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070616200443/http://www.wildlife.utah.gov/pdf/cmgtplan.pdf |archive-date=June 16, 2007}}</ref> Large male home ranges of {{cvt|150|to|1000|km2}} with female ranges half that size.<ref name="CanGeo2">{{cite web |title=Cougars in Canada (Just the Facts) |url=http://www.canadiangeographic.ca/Magazine/mj04/indepth/justthefacts.asp |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070820172927/http://www.canadiangeographic.ca/Magazine/mj04/indepth/justthefacts.asp |archive-date=August 20, 2007 |access-date=April 2, 2007 |publisher=[[Canadian Geographic Magazine]]}}</ref> One female adjacent to the [[San Andres Mountains]] was found with a big range of {{cvt|215|km2}}, necessitated by poor prey abundance.<ref name="Dispersal2">{{cite journal |author1=Sweanor, L. |author2=Logan, K. A. |author3=Hornocker, M. G. |name-list-style=amp |year=2000 |title=Cougar dispersal patterns, metapopulation dynamics, and conservation |journal=Conservation Biology |volume=14 |issue=3 |pages=798–808 |doi=10.1046/j.1523-1739.2000.99079.x |bibcode=2000ConBi..14..798S |s2cid=26735359}}</ref> Research has shown cougar abundances from 0.5 animals to as many as seven per {{cvt|100|km2}}.<ref name="CAP2">{{Cite web |author1=Nowell, K. |author2=Jackson, P. |name-list-style=amp |year=1996 |title=Wild Cats. Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan |url=http://carnivoractionplans1.free.fr/wildcats.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070807215533/http://carnivoractionplans1.free.fr/wildcats.pdf |archive-date=August 7, 2007 |access-date=July 27, 2007 |publisher=IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland}}</ref>

Male home ranges include or overlap with females but, at least where studied, not with those of other males. The home ranges of females overlap slightly. Males create scrapes composed of leaves and [[Plant litter|duff]] with their hind feet, and [[Territorial marking|mark]] them with [[urine]] and sometimes [[feces]].<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Allen, M. L. |name-list-style=amp |author2=Wittmer, H. U. |author3=Wilmers, C. C. |year=2014 |title=Puma communication behaviours: understanding functional use and variation among sex and age classes |journal=Behaviour |volume=151 |issue=6 |pages=819–840 |doi=10.1163/1568539X-00003173}}</ref> When males encounter each other, they vocalize and may engage in violent conflict if neither backs down.<ref name="UWSP22">{{cite web |author1=Hamilton, M. |author2=Hundt, P. |author3=Piorkowski, R. |title=Mountain Lions |url=http://www.uwsp.edu/wildlife/carnivore/Mountain%20Lion%20Natural%20History_files/Mountain%20Lion%20Natural%20History_copy(1).htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070613114602/http://www.uwsp.edu/wildlife/carnivore/Mountain%20Lion%20Natural%20History_files/Mountain%20Lion%20Natural%20History_copy%281%29.htm |archive-date=June 13, 2007 |access-date=May 10, 2007 |publisher=[[University of Wisconsin, Stevens Point]]}}</ref>

Cougars communicate with various vocalizations. Aggressive sounds include growls, spits, snarls and hisses. During the mating season, estrus females produce [[Cat communication#Call|caterwauls]] or yowls to attract mates, and males respond with similar vocals. Mothers and offspring keep in contact with whistles, chirps, and mews.<ref name=Naughton>{{cite book |author=Naughton, D. |year=2014 |title=The Natural History of Canadian Mammals |publisher=University of Toronto Press |pages=368–373 |isbn=978-1-4426-4483-0}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author1=Hornocker, M. G. |author2=Negri, S. |name-list-style=amp |title=Cougar: ecology and conservation |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZSDUxT3fSYEC&pg=PA114 |date=2009 |publisher=University of Chicago Press |isbn=978-0-226-35344-9 |pages=113–114}}</ref>

===Reproduction and life cycle===
{{multiple image |align=right |direction=vertical  |image1=Puma cub Malibu Springs area National Park Service December 2013.jpg |caption1=North American cougar [[Cub (organism)|cub]] in the [[Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area|Santa Monica Mountains]]  |image2=Mountain lion kittens.jpg |caption2=Cubs}}

Females reach [[sexual maturity]] at the age of 18 months to three years and are in [[estrus]] for about eight days of a 23-day cycle; the [[gestation period]] is approximately 91 days.<ref name="CAP" /> Both adult males and females may mate with multiple partners, and a female's litter can have multiple paternities.<ref name="Naughton" /> Copulation is brief but frequent. Chronic stress can result in low reproductive rates in captivity as well as in the field.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Bonier, F. |author2=Quigley, H. |author3=Austad, S. |name-list-style=amp |year=2004 |title=A technique for non-invasively detecting stress response in cougars |journal=Wildlife Society Bulletin |volume=32 |issue=3 |pages=711–717 |doi=10.2193/0091-7648(2004)032[0711:ATFNDS]2.0.CO;2 |s2cid=85819163}}</ref>

[[Gestation]] is 82–103 days long.<ref name="Naughton" /> Only females are involved in parenting. Litter size is between one and six cubs, typically two. Caves and other alcoves that offer protection are used as litter dens. Born blind, cubs are completely dependent on their mother at first and begin to be weaned at around three months of age. As they grow, they go out on forays with their mother, first visiting kill sites and, after six months, beginning to hunt small prey on their own.<ref name="Utah" /><ref name="Naughton" /> Kitten survival rates are just over one per litter.<ref name="CAP" />

Juveniles remain with their mothers for one to two years.<ref name="Naughton" /> When a female reaches estrous again, her offspring must [[Biological dispersal|disperse]] or the male will kill them. Males tend to disperse further than females.<ref name="UWSP">{{cite web |author1=Hamilton, M. |author2=Hundt, P. |author3=Piorkowski, R. |title=Mountain Lions |url=http://www.uwsp.edu/wildlife/carnivore/Mountain%20Lion%20Natural%20History_files/Mountain%20Lion%20Natural%20History_copy(1).htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070613114602/http://www.uwsp.edu/wildlife/carnivore/Mountain%20Lion%20Natural%20History_files/Mountain%20Lion%20Natural%20History_copy%281%29.htm |archive-date=June 13, 2007 |access-date=May 10, 2007 |publisher=[[University of Wisconsin, Stevens Point]]}}</ref> One study has shown a high [[mortality rate]] among cougars that travel farthest from their maternal range, often due to conflicts with other cougars.<ref name="Utah" /> In a study area in [[New Mexico]], males dispersed farther than females, traversed large expanses of non-cougar habitat and were probably most responsible for nuclear gene flow between habitat patches.<ref name="Dispersal">{{cite journal |author1=Sweanor, L. |author2=Logan, K. A. |author3=Hornocker, M. G. |s2cid=26735359 |year=2000 |title=Cougar dispersal patterns, metapopulation dynamics, and conservation |journal=Conservation Biology |volume=14 |issue=3 |pages=798–808 |doi=10.1046/j.1523-1739.2000.99079.x |bibcode=2000ConBi..14..798S |name-list-style=amp}}</ref>

Life expectancy in the wild is reported at 8 to 13 years and probably averages 8 to 10; a female of at least 18 years was reported killed by [[hunter]]s on [[Vancouver Island]].<ref name="CAP" /> Cougars may live as long as 20 years in captivity. Causes of death in the wild include disability and disease, competition with other cougars, starvation, accidents, and, where allowed, hunting. The [[feline immunodeficiency virus]] is well-adapted to the cougar.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Biek, R. |author2=Rodrigo, A. G. |author3=Holley, D. |author4=Drummond, A. |author5=Anderson Jr., C. R. |author6=Ross, H. A. |author7=Poss, M. |date=2003 |title=Epidemiology, Genetic Diversity, and Evolution of Endemic Feline Immunodeficiency Virus in a Population of Wild Cougars |journal=Journal of Virology |volume=77 |issue=17 |pages=9578–9589 |doi=10.1128/JVI.77.17.9578-9589.2003 |pmid=12915571 |pmc=187433 |name-list-style=amp}}</ref>

==Conservation==
[[File:Florida panther kittens.jpg|thumb|Two cougar kittens at [[White Oak Conservation]]]]

The cougar has been listed as [[Least Concern]] on the [[IUCN Red List]] since 2008. However, it is also listed on [[CITES Appendix II]].<ref name="iucn" /> Hunting it is prohibited in California, [[Costa Rica]], [[Honduras]], [[Nicaragua]], [[Guatemala]], [[Panama]], [[Venezuela]], Colombia, [[French Guiana]], [[Suriname]], [[Bolivia]], Brazil, Chile, [[Paraguay]], [[Uruguay]] and most of Argentina. Hunting is regulated in Canada, Mexico, [[Peru]], and the United States.<ref name="CAP" /> Establishing [[wildlife corridor]]s and protecting sufficient range areas are critical for the sustainability of cougar populations. Research simulations showed that it faces a low extinction risk in areas larger than {{cvt|2200|km2}}. Between one and four new individuals entering a population per decade markedly increases persistence, thus highlighting the importance of habitat corridors.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Beier |first=P. |s2cid=55580710 |date=1993 |title=Determining minimum habitat areas and habitat corridors for Cougars |journal=Conservation Biology |volume=7 |issue=1 |pages=94–108 |doi=10.1046/j.1523-1739.1993.07010094.x |jstor=2386646 |bibcode=1993ConBi...7...94B}}</ref>

The [[Florida panther]] population is afforded protection under the [[Endangered Species Act]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Eastern Cougar |url=http://www.fws.gov/endangered/i/a/saa48.html |access-date=May 20, 2007 |work=Endangered and Threatened Species of the Southeastern United States (The Red Book) |year=1991 |publisher=[[U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service]]| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070403000340/http://www.fws.gov/endangered/i/a/saa48.html| archive-date=April 3, 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fws.gov/endangered/i/a/saa05.html |title=Florida Panther |access-date=June 7, 2007 |work=Endangered and Threatened Species of the Southeastern United States (The Red Book) |year=1993 |publisher=[[United States Fish and Wildlife Service]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070604163840/http://www.fws.gov/endangered/i/a/saa05.html|archive-date=June 4, 2007}}</ref> The Texas Mountain Lion Conservation Project was launched in 2009 and aimed at raising local people's awareness of the status and ecological role of the cougar and mitigating conflict between landowners and cougars.<ref>{{cite web |date=2007–2013 |title=Texas Mountain Lion Conservation Project |website=Balanced Ecology Inc. |url=http://balancedecology.org/MountainLionWebSite/Mountain_Lion_Conservation_Project.html |access-date=January 18, 2010 |archive-date=July 29, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200729010958/http://balancedecology.org/MountainLionWebSite/Mountain_Lion_Conservation_Project.html |url-status=live}}</ref>

[[File:Gendarmeria-libera-a-un-ejemplar-de-puma.jpg|thumb|A juvenile cougar about to be released into the wild in [[La Rioja Province, Argentina|La Rioja]], Argentina]]
The cougar is threatened by [[habitat loss]], [[habitat fragmentation]], and depletion of its prey base due to [[poaching]]. Hunting is legal in the western United States. In Florida, heavy traffic causes frequent accidents involving cougars. Highways are a major barrier to the dispersal of cougars.<ref name=iucn/> The cougar populations in California are becoming fragmented with the increase in human population and infrastructure growth in the state.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Ernest |first1=H. B. |last2=Vickers |first2=T. W. |last3=Morrison |first3=S. A. |last4=Buchalski |first4=M. R. |last5=Boyce |first5=W. M. |title=Fractured genetic connectivity threatens a southern California Puma (''Puma concolor'') population |journal=PLOS ONE |volume=9 |issue=10 |article-number=e107985 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0107985 |pmc=4189954 |pmid=25295530 |year=2014 |bibcode=2014PLoSO...9j7985E  |doi-access=free}}</ref>

[[Human–wildlife conflict]] in proximity of {{cvt|5|km2}} of cougar habitat is pronounced in areas with a median human density of {{cvt|32.48|/km2|/sqmi|disp=preunit|inhabitants|inhabitants}} and a median livestock population density of {{cvt|5.3|/km2|/sqmi|disp=preunit|heads|heads}}. Conflict is generally lower in areas more than {{cvt|16.1|km}} away from roads and {{cvt|27.8|km}} away from settlements.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Guerisoli, M. D. L. M. |name-list-style=amp |author2=Luengos Vidal, E. |author3=Caruso, N. |author4=Giordano, A. J. |author5=Lucherini, M. |year=2021 |title=Puma–livestock conflicts in the Americas: A review of the evidence |journal=Mammal Review |volume=51 |issue=2 |pages=228–246 |doi=10.1111/mam.12224 |bibcode=2021MamRv..51..228G |s2cid=226336427}}</ref>

==Relationships with humans==
===Attacks on humans===
====In North America====
{{See also|List of fatal cougar attacks in North America}}
[[File:MountainLionAttackProtocol.jpg|thumb|right|Mountain lion warning sign in California, U.S.]]

Due to the [[Population growth|expanding human population]], cougar [[Range (biology)|range]]s increasingly overlap with areas inhabited by humans.<ref>{{Cite web |date=November 20, 2023 |title=Mountain lion caught on camera in Tesoro Viejo in Madera County |url=https://abc30.com/tesoro-viejo-madera-county-mountain-lion-camera-spotting/14085089/ |access-date=November 21, 2023 |website=ABC30 Fresno |language=en |archive-date=November 21, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231121004735/https://abc30.com/tesoro-viejo-madera-county-mountain-lion-camera-spotting/14085089/ |url-status=live}}</ref> Attacks on humans are very rare, as cougar prey recognition is a learned behavior and they do not generally recognize humans as prey.<ref name="Med">{{cite journal |last=McKee |first=Denise |year=2003 |title=Cougar Attacks on Humans: A Case Report |journal=Wilderness and Environmental Medicine |volume=14 |issue=3 |pages=169–73 |pmid=14518628 |doi=10.1580/1080-6032(2003)14[169:CAOHAC]2.0.CO;2|doi-access=free}}</ref> In a 10-year study in New Mexico of wild cougars who were not habituated to humans, the animals did not exhibit threatening behavior to researchers who approached closely (median distance=18.5 m; 61 feet) except in 6% of cases; {{frac|14|16}} of those were females with cubs.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Puma responses to close approaches by researchers |first1=Linda L. |last1=Sweanor |first2=Kenneth A. |last2=Logan |first3=Maurice G. |last3=Hornocker |journal=Wildlife Society Bulletin |volume=33 |issue=3 |pages=905–913 |year=2005 |doi=10.2193/0091-7648(2005)33[905:PRTCAB]2.0.CO;2 |s2cid=86209378 |doi-access=free}}</ref> Attacks on people, livestock, and pets may occur when a cougar [[Habituation|habituates]] to humans or is in a condition of severe starvation. Attacks are most frequent during late spring and summer when juvenile cougars leave their mothers and search for new territory.<ref name="GovBC" />

Between 1890 and 1990 in North America, there were 53 reported, confirmed attacks on humans, resulting in 48 nonfatal injuries and 10 deaths of humans (the total is greater than 53 because some attacks had more than one victim).<ref name="Beier">{{cite web |first=Paul |last=Beier |url=http://users.frii.com/mytymyk/lions/beier.htm |title=Cougar attacks on humans in the United States and Canada |work=Wildlife Society Bulletin |year=1991 |access-date=May 20, 2007 |publisher=Northern Arizona University |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120622033418/http://users.frii.com/mytymyk/lions/beier.htm |archive-date=June 22, 2012}}</ref> By 2004, the count had climbed to 88 attacks and 20 deaths.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.azgfd.gov/w_c/mtn_lion_attacks.shtml |title=Confirmed mountain lion attacks in the United States and Canada 1890 – present |access-date=May 20, 2007 |publisher=Arizona Game and Fish Department |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070518181449/http://www.azgfd.gov/w_c/mtn_lion_attacks.shtml |archive-date=May 18, 2007}}</ref>

Within North America, the distribution of attacks is not uniform. The heavily populated state of California saw a dozen attacks from 1986 to 2004 (after just three from 1890 to 1985), including three fatalities.<ref name="California">{{cite web |url=https://www.dfg.ca.gov/news/issues/lion.html |title=Mountain Lions in California |access-date=May 20, 2007 |year=2004 |publisher=California Department of Fish and Game|url-status=live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070430012010/http://www.dfg.ca.gov/news/issues/lion.html| archive-date = April 30, 2007}}</ref> In March 2024, two brothers in California were attacked by a male cougar, with one being fatally wounded; it was the state's first fatal attack in 20 years.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Razek |first1=Raja |last2=Flynn |first2=Jessica |date=March 25, 2024 |title=First fatal mountain lion attack in California in 20 years leaves one man dead, brother injured, authorities say |url=https://www.ctvnews.ca/climate-and-environment/article/first-fatal-mountain-lion-attack-in-california-in-20-years-leaves-one-man-dead-brother-injured-authorities-say/ |access-date=March 25, 2024 |work=CTV News |archive-date=March 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240325170316/https://www.ctvnews.ca/climate-and-environment/first-fatal-mountain-lion-attack-in-california-in-20-years-leaves-one-man-dead-brother-injured-authorities-say-1.6821205 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last1=Dowd |first1=Katie |last2=Bartlett |first2=Amanda |title=Mountain lion kills man in Northern California for first time in 30 years |url=https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/mountain-lion-kills-man-northern-california-19365657.php |access-date=March 28, 2024 |work=SFGATE |language=en |archive-date=March 28, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328003539/https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/mountain-lion-kills-man-northern-california-19365657.php |url-status=live}}</ref> Washington state was the site of a fatal attack in 2018, its first since 1924.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Fisher |first1=Michelle |title=Victim in Deadly Washington State Cougar Attack Had Boston Ties |url=http://boston.cbslocal.com/2018/05/21/cougar-attack-victim-sj-brooks-washington-seattle-boston/|access-date=May 23, 2018 |publisher=CBS BOston |date=May 21, 2018|archive-date=May 23, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180523173303/http://boston.cbslocal.com/2018/05/21/cougar-attack-victim-sj-brooks-washington-seattle-boston/|url-status=live}}</ref> Lightly populated New Mexico reported an attack in 2008, the first there since 1974.<ref>[[New Mexico Department of Game and Fish]]: [https://web.archive.org/web/20120620114802/http://www.wildlife.state.nm.us/publications/press_releases/documents/2008/062308pinosaltoslion.html Search continues for mountain lion that killed Pinos Altos man], June 23, 2008; [https://web.archive.org/web/20120620114802/http://www.wildlife.state.nm.us/publications/press_releases/documents/2008/062508pinosaltoslion.html Wounded mountain lion captured, killed near Pinos Altos], June 25, 2008; [https://web.archive.org/web/20120620114802/http://www.wildlife.state.nm.us/publications/press_releases/documents/2008/070108pinosaltoslion2.html Second mountain lion captured near Pinos Altos], July 1, 2008</ref>

As with many predators, a cougar may attack if cornered, if a fleeing human stimulates their instinct to chase, or if a person "[[wikt:play dead|plays dead]]". Standing still may cause the cougar to consider a person easy prey.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Subramanian |first=Sushma |title=Should You Run or Freeze When You See a Mountain Lion? |url=http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=should-you-run-or-freeze-when-you-see-a-mountain-lion |magazine=Scientific American|access-date=March 10, 2012 |date=April 14, 2009|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110319160359/https://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=should-you-run-or-freeze-when-you-see-a-mountain-lion|archive-date=March 19, 2011}}</ref> Exaggerating the threat to the animal through intense eye contact, loud shouting, and any other action to appear larger and more menacing, may make the animal retreat. Fighting back with sticks and rocks, or even bare hands, is often effective in persuading an attacking cougar to disengage.<ref name="Med" /><ref name="GovBC">{{cite web |url=http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/wld/documents/cougsf.htm |title=Safety Guide to Cougars |work=Environmental Stewardship Division |year=1991 |access-date=May 28, 2007 |publisher=[[Government of British Columbia]], Ministry of Environment |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070823061650/http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/wld/documents/cougsf.htm |archive-date=August 23, 2007}}</ref>

When cougars do attack, they usually employ their characteristic neck bite, attempting to position their teeth between the [[vertebrae]] and into the [[spinal cord]]. Neck, head, and spinal injuries are common and sometimes fatal.<ref name="Med" /> Children are at greatest risk of attack and least likely to survive an encounter. Detailed research into attacks before 1991 showed that 64% of all victims – and almost all fatalities – were children. The same study showed the highest proportion of attacks to have occurred in [[British Columbia]], particularly on [[Vancouver Island]], where cougar populations are especially dense.<ref name="Beier" /> Preceding attacks on humans, cougars display aberrant behavior, such as activity during daylight hours, a lack of fear of humans, and stalking humans. There have sometimes been incidents of pet cougars mauling people.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna27756765 |agency=Associated Press |work=NBC News |date=November 16, 2008 |title=Neighbor saves Miami teen from cougar|access-date=February 11, 2012|archive-date=September 23, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200923224535/http://www.nbcnews.com/id/27756765|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=2-Year-Old Boy Hurt In Pet Cougar Attack |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1995/06/04/nyregion/2-year-old-boy-hurt-in-pet-cougar-attack.html |date=June 4, 1995 |work=The New York Times|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170625060218/http://www.nytimes.com/1995/06/04/nyregion/2-year-old-boy-hurt-in-pet-cougar-attack.html|archive-date=June 25, 2017}}</ref>

Research on new wildlife collars may reduce human-animal conflicts by predicting when and where predatory animals hunt. This may save the lives of humans, pets, and livestock, as well as the lives of these large predatory mammals that are important to the balance of ecosystems.<ref>Williams, Terrie M. (November 6, 2014) [http://www.latimes.com/opinion/op-ed/la-oe-williams-wildlife-coburn-wastebook-20141107-story.html "As species decline, so does research funding"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141109194703/http://www.latimes.com/opinion/op-ed/la-oe-williams-wildlife-coburn-wastebook-20141107-story.html |date=November 9, 2014 }} ''[[Los Angeles Times]]''</ref>

====In South America====
Cougars in the [[southern cone]] of South America are reputed to be extremely reluctant to attack people; in legend, they defended people against jaguars.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Chébez |first1=J. C. |last2=Nigro |first2=R. Á. |title=Aportes preliminaares para un plan de conservación y manejo del Puma (''Puma concolor'') en la República Argentina |language=es |url=http://maaz.ihmc.us/rid=1PP8CK25F-1FYP3P-2VPC/chebez-y-nigro-aportes-para-un-plan-de-conservacion-y-m.pdf |access-date=February 23, 2018 |archive-date=February 26, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180226211612/http://maaz.ihmc.us/rid=1PP8CK25F-1FYP3P-2VPC/chebez-y-nigro-aportes-para-un-plan-de-conservacion-y-m.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> The nineteenth-century naturalists [[Félix de Azara]]<ref>{{cite book |last=Azara |first=F. d. |title=The Natural History of the Quadrupeds of Paraguay and the River la Plata |pages=207–208 |publisher=Adam and Charles Black |location=[[Edinburgh]], [[Scotland]] |year=1838 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QNc0AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA207 |quote=I have not heard that they have assaulted or attempted to assault man, nor dogs and boys, even when it encounters them asleep |access-date=June 6, 2020 |archive-date=May 5, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240505151936/https://books.google.com/books?id=QNc0AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA207#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live}}</ref> and [[William Henry Hudson]]<ref>{{cite book |last=Hudson |first=W. H. |title=The Naturalist in La Plata |pages=31–49 |publisher=Chapman and Hall Ltd |year=1892 |location=London |url=https://archive.org/stream/naturalistinlapl1892huds#page/n43/mode/2up|access-date=February 15, 2018 |quote=This, however, is not a full statement of the facts; the puma will not even defend itself against man}}</ref> thought that attacks on people, even children or sleeping adults, did not happen. Hudson, citing anecdotal evidence from hunters, claimed that pumas were positively inhibited from attacking people, even in self-defense. Attacks on humans, although exceedingly rare, have occurred.<ref>{{cite book |last=Roosevelt |first=Theodore |title=Through the Brazilian Wilderness |pages=27–8 |publisher=Charles Scribner's Sons |year=1914 |location=New York |url=https://archive.org/stream/cu31924086561119#page/n53/mode/2up|access-date=February 15, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Young |first1=S. P. |last2=Goldman |first2=E. A. |title=The Puma: Mysterious American Cat |year=1964 |publisher=Dover Publications Inc |url=https://archive.org/details/pumamysteriousam00youn/page/99 |location=New York |pages=99, 103–105 |url-access=registration}}</ref>

An early, authenticated, non-fatal case occurred near [[Lake Viedma]], Patagonia, in 1877 when a female mauled the Argentine scientist [[Francisco P. Moreno]]; Moreno afterward showed the scars to [[Theodore Roosevelt]]. In this instance, however, Moreno had been wearing a [[guanaco]]-hide [[poncho]] round his neck and head as protection against the cold;<ref>{{cite book |last=Roosevelt |first=Theodore |title=Through the Brazilian Wilderness |publisher=Charles Scribner's Sons |year=1914 |location=New York |url=https://archive.org/stream/cu31924086561119#page/n53/mode/2up|access-date=February 15, 2018 |pages=26–31}}</ref> in Patagonia the guanaco is the puma's chief prey animal.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Response of pumas (''Puma concolor'') to migration of their primary prey in Patagonia |last1=Gelin |first1=Maria L. |last2=Branch |first2=Lyn C. |last3=Thornton |first3=Daniel H. |last4=Novaro |first4=Andrés J. |last5=Gould |first5=Matthew J. |last6=Caragiulo |first6=Anthony |journal=PLOS ONE |volume=12 |issue=12 |article-number=e0188877 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0188877 |pmid=29211753 |pmc=5718558 |year=2017 |bibcode=2017PLoSO..1288877G |doi-access=free}}</ref> Another authenticated case occurred in 1997 in [[Iguazú National Park]] in northeastern Argentina, when the 20-month-old son of a ranger was killed by a female puma. Forensic analysis found specimens of the child's hair and clothing fibers in the animal's stomach. The [[coati|coatí]] is the puma's chief prey in this area. Despite prohibitory signs, coatis are hand-fed by tourists in the park, causing unnatural approximation between cougars and humans. This particular puma had been raised in captivity and released into the wild.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Faletti |first=Dra. Alicia |title=Caso Ignacio Terán Luna |journal=Revista Química Viva |year=2013 |volume=12 |issue=2 |language=es |issn=1666-7948 |url=http://www.quimicaviva.qb.fcen.uba.ar/contratapa/ignacio.htm |access-date=February 16, 2018 |archive-date=February 20, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180220024430/http://www.quimicaviva.qb.fcen.uba.ar/contratapa/ignacio.htm |url-status=live}}</ref> 

On March 13, 2012, Erica Cruz, a 23-year-old shepherdess was found dead in a mountainous area near [[Rosario de Lerma]], Salta Province, in northwestern Argentina.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Redacción |date=2012 |title=Un puma mató a una pastora en Salta |url=https://www.rionegro.com.ar/un-puma-mato-a-una-pastora-en-salta-OBRN_835496/ |access-date=November 30, 2021 |website=Diario Río Negro |language=es |archive-date=November 30, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211130020602/https://www.rionegro.com.ar/un-puma-mato-a-una-pastora-en-salta-OBRN_835496/ |url-status=live}}</ref> Claw incisions, which severed a jugular vein, indicated that the attacker was a felid; differential diagnosis ruled out other possible perpetrators.{{efn|There are no jaguars in the area; other felids were too small to kill humans.}} There were no bite marks on the victim, who had been herding goats.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Ataque fatal en humano, por puma (''Puma concolor'') |last1=Portelli |first1=C.M. |last2=Eveling |first2=C.R. |last3=Lamas |first3=J. |last4=Mamaní |first4=P.J. |journal=Cuadernos de Medicina Forense |volume=18 |issue=3–4 |year=2012 |pages=139–142 |doi=10.4321/S1135-76062012000300008 |language=es |url=http://scielo.isciii.es/scielo.php?script=sci_abstract&pid=S1135-76062012000300008 |access-date=February 26, 2018 |doi-access=free |archive-date=February 26, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180226211656/http://scielo.isciii.es/scielo.php?script=sci_abstract&pid=S1135-76062012000300008 |url-status=live}}</ref> In 2019 in [[Córdoba Province, Argentina]], an elderly man was badly injured by a cougar after he attempted to defend his dog from it, while in neighboring Chile a 28-year-old woman was attacked and killed in [[Corral, Chile|Corral]], in [[Los Ríos Region]], on October 20, 2020.<ref name="BioBioexp">{{Cite news |title=Expertos tras eventual ataque de un puma en Corral: 'Es inusual, no buscan enfrentar a los humanos' |url=https://www.biobiochile.cl/noticias/sociedad/animales/2020/10/21/expertos-tras-ataque-mortal-de-un-puma-en-corral-hay-que-tener-conciencia-es-un-animal-salvaje.shtml |last=Contreras |first=E. |date=2020|access-date=December 4, 2020 |work=[[Radio Bío-Bío]] |language=es|archive-date=November 1, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201101014350/https://www.biobiochile.cl/noticias/sociedad/animales/2020/10/21/expertos-tras-ataque-mortal-de-un-puma-en-corral-hay-que-tener-conciencia-es-un-animal-salvaje.shtml|url-status=live}}</ref>

Fatal attacks by other carnivores, such as feral dogs, can be misattributed to cougars without appropriate forensic knowledge.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Fonseca |first1=G. M. |last2=Palacios |first2=R. |title=An Unusual Case of Predation: Dog Pack or Cougar Attack? |journal=Journal of Forensic Sciences |volume=58 |issue=1 |year=2013 |pages=224–227 |doi=10.1111/j.1556-4029.2012.02281.x |pmid=22971181 |hdl=11336/10589 |s2cid=205771079|hdl-access=free}}</ref>

===Predation on domestic animals===
[[File:The Cougar Hunt (1920s silent film).webm|right|thumb|''[[s:The Cougar Hunt|The Cougar Hunt]]'', a 1920s silent film created by the [[United States Department of Agriculture]] which explains the procedures to successfully hunt livestock-threatening cougars]]
During the early years of ranching, cougars were considered on par with wolves in destructiveness. According to figures in [[Texas]] in 1990, 86 calves (0.0006% of Texas's 13.4&nbsp;million cattle and calves), 253 mohair goats, 302 mohair kids, 445 sheep (0.02% of Texas's 2&nbsp;million sheep and lambs) and 562 lambs (0.04% of Texas's 1.2&nbsp;million lambs) were confirmed to have been killed by cougars that year.<ref name="NASS-cattle">{{cite web |url=https://usda.mannlib.cornell.edu/usda/nass/Catt//1990s/1990/Catt-07-27-1990.pdf |title=Cattle report 1990 |work=National Agricultural Statistics Service |access-date=September 11, 2009 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110608154849/http://usda.mannlib.cornell.edu/usda/nass/Catt//1990s/1990/Catt-07-27-1990.pdf | archive-date=June 8, 2011}}</ref><ref name="NASS-sheep-goats">{{cite web |url=https://usda.mannlib.cornell.edu/usda/nass/SheeGoat//1990s/1990/SheeGoat-02-02-1990.pdf |title=Sheep and Goats report 1990 |work=National Agricultural Statistics Service |access-date=September 11, 2009 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110608154900/http://usda.mannlib.cornell.edu/usda/nass/SheeGoat//1990s/1990/SheeGoat-02-02-1990.pdf |archive-date=June 8, 2011}}</ref>

Some instances of [[surplus killing]] have resulted in the deaths of 20 sheep in one attack.<ref name="Livestock">{{cite web |url=http://www.aws.vcn.com/mountain_lion_fact_sheet.html |title=Mountain Lion Fact Sheet |publisher=Abundant Wildlife Society of North America |access-date=July 10, 2008 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120720162250/http://www.aws.vcn.com/mountain_lion_fact_sheet.html |archive-date=July 20, 2012}}</ref> A cougar's killing bite is applied to the back of the neck, head, or [[Throat clamp|throat]] and the cat inflicts puncture marks with its claws usually seen on the sides and underside of the prey, sometimes also shredding the prey as it holds on. Coyotes also typically bite the throat, but the work of a cougar is generally clean, while bites inflicted by coyotes and dogs leave ragged edges. The size of the tooth puncture marks also helps distinguish kills made by cougars from those made by smaller predators.<ref name="Predation">{{cite web |url=http://agrilife.org/texnatwildlife/predators-and-predation/predator-species/cougars/ |title=Cougar Predation – Description |work=Procedures for Evaluating Predation on Livestock and Wildlife |access-date=August 3, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110111165333/http://agrilife.org/texnatwildlife/predators-and-predation/predator-species/cougars/ |archive-date=January 11, 2011}}</ref>

Remedial hunting appears to have the paradoxical effect of increased livestock predation and complaints of human-cougar conflicts. In a 2013 study, the most important predictor of cougar problems was the remedial hunting of cougars the previous year. Each additional cougar on the landscape increased predation and human-cougar complaints by 5%, but each animal killed during the previous year increased complaints by 50%. The effect had a dose-response relationship with very heavy (100% removal of adult cougars) remedial hunting, leading to a 150–340% increase in livestock and human conflicts.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Effects of Remedial Sport Hunting on Cougar Complaints and Livestock Depredations |author1=Peebles, K. A. |author2=Wielgus, R. B. |author3=Maletzke, B. T. |author4=Swanson, Mark E. |journal=PLoS One |date=2013 |volume=8 |issue=11 |article-number=e79713 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0079713 |pmid=24260291 |pmc=3834330 |bibcode=2013PLoSO...879713P|doi-access=free}}</ref> This effect is attributed to the removal of older cougars that have learned to avoid people and their replacement by younger males that react differently to humans. Remedial hunting enables younger males to enter the former territories of the older animals.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Cougar attacks on humans in the United States and Canada |author=Beier, P. |journal=Wildlife Society Bulletin |volume=19 |issue=4 |pages=403–412 |year=1991 |jstor=3782149}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |title=Mountain lion and human activity in California: testing speculations |author1=Torres SG |author2=Mansfield, T.M. |author3=Foley, J.E. |author4=Lupo, T. |author5=Brinkhaus, A. |year=1996 |journal=Wildlife Society Bulletin |volume=24 |issue=3 |pages=451–460 |jstor=3783326}}</ref> Predation by cougars on dogs "is widespread, but occurs at low frequencies".<ref>{{cite book |editor-last1=Gompper |editor-first=M. E. |author1=Butler, J. R. A. |author2=Linnell, J. D. C. |author3=Morrant, D. |author4=Athreya, V. |author5=Lescureux, N. |author6=McKeown, A. |chapter=5: Dog eat dog, cat eat dog: social-ecological dimensions of dog predation by wild carnivores |title=Free-ranging dogs and wildlife conservation |date=2014 |publisher=Oxford University Press |page=127}}</ref>

===In mythology===
The grace and power of the cougar have been widely admired in the cultures of the [[indigenous peoples of the Americas]]. The [[Inca Empire|Inca]] city of [[Cusco]] is reported to have been designed in the shape of a cougar, and the animal also gave its name to both Inca regions and people. The [[Moche (culture)|Moche]] people often represented the cougar in their ceramics.<ref>Berrin, Katherine & Larco Museum. ''The Spirit of Ancient Peru: Treasures from the [[Larco Museum|Museo Arqueológico Rafael Larco Herrera]]''. New York: Thames and Hudson, 1997.</ref> The sky and thunder god of the Inca, [[Viracocha]], has been associated with the animal.<ref>{{cite web |first=Kulmar |last=Tarmo |url=http://folklore.ee/folklore/vol12/inca.htm |others=Kait Realo (translator) |title=On the role of Creation and Origin Myths in the Development of Inca State and Religion |access-date=May 22, 2007 |work=Electronic Journal of Folklore |publisher=Estonian Folklore Institute |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070630045739/http://www.folklore.ee/folklore/vol12/inca.htm |archive-date=June 30, 2007}}</ref>

In North America, mythological descriptions of the cougar have appeared in the stories of the [[Hocąk language]] ("Ho-Chunk" or "Winnebago") of [[Wisconsin]] and [[Illinois]]<ref>[http://hotcakencyclopedia.com/ho.Cougars.html "Cougars"]; {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100421212756/http://hotcakencyclopedia.com/ho.Cougars.html |date=April 21, 2010 }}. ''The Encyclopedia of Hočąk (Winnebago) Mythology''. Retrieved: 2009/12/08.</ref> and the [[Cheyenne]], among others. To the [[Apache]] and [[Walapai]] of the Southwestern United States, the wail of the cougar was a harbinger of death.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.aphis.usda.gov/wildlife_damage/nwrc/publications/living/cougar.pdf |title=Living with Wildlife: Cougars |access-date=April 11, 2009 |publisher=[[United States Department of Agriculture|USDA]] [[Wildlife Services]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090420203146/http://www.aphis.usda.gov/wildlife_damage/nwrc/publications/living/cougar.pdf |archive-date=April 20, 2009}}</ref> The [[Algonquin people|Algonquins]] and [[Ojibwe]] believe that the cougar lived in the underworld and was wicked, whereas it was a sacred animal among the [[Cherokee]].<ref>{{cite book |title=The Element Encyclopedia of Magical Creatures |author1=Matthews, John |author2=Matthews, Caitlín |year=2005 |publisher=HarperElement |isbn=978-1-4351-1086-1 |page=364}}</ref>

==See also ==
{{Portal|Cats|Mammals}}
* [[List of largest cats]]
* [[Pumapard]]

== Explanatory notes ==
{{Notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

== Further reading ==
* Mark Elbroch:  ''The Cougar Conundrum: Sharing the World with a Successful Predator''. Island Press, 2020, {{ISBN|9781610919982}}.
* Maurice Hornocker (ed.), Sharon Negri (ed.): ''Cougar: Ecology and Conservation''. University of Chicago Press, 2009, {{ISBN|9780226353470}}.
*Kenneth A. Logan, Linda L. Sweanor: ''Desert Puma: Evolutionary Ecology And Conservation Of An Enduring Carnivore''. Island Press, 2001, {{ISBN|9781610910583}}.
* Paula Wild: ''The Cougar: Beautiful, Wild and Dangerous''. Douglas and McIntyre, 2013, {{ISBN|9781771620031}}.

==External links==
{{NIE Poster|year=1905|Puma}}
{{Commons and category|Puma concolor|Puma concolor}}
{{Wikispecies|Puma concolor}}
{{Spoken Wikipedia|Cougar1.ogg|date=November 6, 2008}}
* {{cite web |url=http://www.catsg.org/index.php?id=94 |website=IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group |title=Cougar ''Puma concolor'' |access-date=December 15, 2014 |archive-date=July 31, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180731153609/http://www.catsg.org/index.php?id=94 |url-status=dead }}
* [http://northernbushcraft.com/animalTracks/cougar/notes.htm Cougar Tracks]: How to identify cougar tracks in the wild
* {{cite web |url=http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/mountain-lion/?rptregcta=reg_free_np&rptregcampaign=20130924_rw_membership_r3p_c1#close-modal |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131103143721/http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/mountain-lion/?rptregcta=reg_free_np&rptregcampaign=20130924_rw_membership_r3p_c1#close-modal |archive-date=November 3, 2013 |title=Puma sounds |publisher=National Geographic Society |date=September 10, 2010}}
* [http://santacruzpumas.org/ Santa Cruz Puma Project]
* [http://www.eprn.homestead.com/ Eastern Puma Research Network]
* [http://felidaefund.org/ Felidae Conservation Fund]
* [http://www.easterncougar.org/ Cougar Rewilding Foundation], formerly the "Eastern Cougar Foundation"
* [http://www.cougarnet.org/ The Cougar Network --Using Science to Understand Cougar Ecology]; {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180731190549/http://www.cougarnet.org/ |date=July 31, 2018 }}
* {{cite web |url=http://www.mountainlion.org/about_the_foundation.asp |website=Mountain Lion Foundation |title=Saving America's Lion |access-date=December 11, 2010 |archive-date=July 31, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180731153509/http://www.mountainlion.org/about_the_foundation.asp }}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20040831044323/http://www.savethecougar.org/ SaveTheCougar.org]: Sightings of cougars in Michigan
* [http://www.cougarfund.org/ The Cougar Fund – Protecting America's Greatest Cat]. A Definitive Resource About Cougars: Comprehensive, non-profit [[501(c)(3)]] site with extensive information about cougars, from how to live safely in cougar country, to science abstracts, hunting regulations, state-by-state cougar management/policy info, and rare photos and videos of wild cougars.
* [http://sagehen.ucnrs.org/Documents/visitors/wildlife/lion.pdf Living with California Mountain Lions] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131226223350/http://sagehen.ucnrs.org/Documents/visitors/wildlife/lion.pdf |date=December 26, 2013 }}
* [https://www.statesmanjournal.com/story/news/2018/09/11/oregons-first-ever-fatal-cougar-attack-reported-near-mount-hood/1272976002/ Oregon's first fatal cougar attack in the wild claims hiker near Mount Hood]

{{Carnivora|Fe.}}
{{North American Game}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q35255}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Cougar| ]]
[[Category:Animal taxa named by Carl Linnaeus]]
[[Category:Apex predators]]
[[Category:Big cats]]
[[Category:Carnivorans of Brazil]]
[[Category:Extant Middle Pleistocene first appearances]]
[[Category:Fauna of the Amazon]]
[[Category:Fauna of the California chaparral and woodlands]]
[[Category:Felids of Central America]]
[[Category:Felids of North America]]
[[Category:Felids of South America]]
[[Category:Mammals described in 1771]]
[[Category:Mammals of Patagonia]]
[[Category:Mammals of the Andes]]
[[Category:Pleistocene carnivorans]]
[[Category:Pleistocene mammals of North America]]
[[Category:Pleistocene mammals of South America]]
[[Category:Puma (genus)]]
[[Category:Quaternary carnivorans]]