Mountain Lion

Description: The mountain lion, also known by many other names, including cougar and puma, is a medium-sized cat, weighing from 75 to 250 pounds, averaging around 150, with males generally larger than females. The cat's fur varies from golden brown to greyish brown, and is lighter on the animal's underside. The muzzle is white or cream colored, outlined in black, and the nose is pink. Young mountain lions are spotted, but the spots fade with age, becoming all but absent in adults. The ears are pointed, similarly to a housecat's, and the backs of the ears are darker in color, distinguishing it from the cats of the genus Panthera, which typically have round ears with a light spot on the back of each. Mountain lions are also distinguished from the true panthers in that they do not roar, but they do purr; they use a variety of other vocalizations as well, including chirps, whistles, growls, and screams.

Mountain lions have especially sharp claws, and are unrivaled in the cat world for their athletic ability. While their top speed is around 40 miles per hour, about average for large cats, they can leap more than fifteen feet vertically, and as much as forty feet horizontally with a running start. A cat in Colorado was observed jumping straight up from a standing position, turning upside down in mid-air, sinking the claws of all four of his feet into the bottom of a fifteen-foot-high deck, and hanging there for a few moments before retracting his claws and dropping gracefully to the ground.

Habitat: Mountain lions may be found in virtually any habitat within their range, from tropical forests to deserts to alpine tundra. In some regions they appear to show a preference for more vertical terrain, but in other parts of their range, they are at home in the flatlands. Areas that provide good cover from which to stalk prey are favored; such areas also make the cats less vulnerable to competitors that would steal their kills, like bears (Ursus arctos and U. americanus) and wolves (Canis lupus) in the north, and the jaguar (Panthera onca) and spectacled bear (Tremarctos ornatus) in the south.

Distribution: The mountain lion is the most widely distributed cat in the Americas, even after having been wiped out in the eastern half of the United States and Canada. Sightings in Maine and Michigan have yet to be verified, but small populations may remain in those areas, however these might also be animals that have escaped from captivity, or their offspring.The Florida panther (F. c. coryi) is the most critically endangered subspecies; fewer than 100 individuals remain in the wild, most of them found in the Big Cypress National Preserve.

Behavior: Mountain lions are mostly solitary cats, coming together only to breed, which may occur at any time of the year. Young animals may stay together for a brief period of time after they leave the care of their mothers at one to two years of age, but in general, the cats prefer to live and hunt alone. Each animal may occupy a territory of up to 50 square miles, significantly less where more prey is available.When hunting, mountain lions are attracted by movement; a typical cat finds it difficult to resist the urge to stalk prey, even with a full stomach. Mountain lions may take prey as large as deer and elk, or smaller animals like rabbits and squirrels. With big prey, the attack is somewhat different than that seen with other large cat species; where tigers (Panthera tigris) or lions (P. leo) would attempt to suffocate their prey, the mountain lion often holds onto a deer or other large animal with its front paws and kicks it with its hind feet, claws extended, until the animal bleeds to death. Uneaten portions of the kill are often buried, or 'cached', and the cat may return to feed from the remains for several days if they are not discovered and consumed by rival predators.

The mountain lion's strong hunting instinct has led to a number of attacks on humans in wilderness areas; joggers and cyclists are particularly vulnerable when they exercise alone in areas with a lot of cover. Their movement is irresistible to mountain lions, who may attack even when they are not hungry. While the cats are only doing what comes naturally, human beings can easily take steps to minimize attacks. To reduce the risk of being injured or killed by a mountain lion, people should not go into wilderness areas alone. Small children should remain close to their parents, and must not be allowed to run or to scream - a sound that a mountain lion may mistake for a distressed rabbit, leading it to come seeking an easy meal. If confronted by a cat, do not run or try to hide from it, as this will only arouse its hunting instinct. Look it in the eye, and throw something at it; this will usually be enough to frighten the animal away. If this does not work, back away slowly until you are out of sight, then proceed calmly to your vehicle or a safe area. If you are attacked, fight back; a punch in the nose or a finger in the eye hurts most animals as much as it hurts us. While attacks on humans receive a great deal of media attention, they are still quite rare, and should not deter anyone from enjoying the outdoors so long as common sense is used.

Human Impact: Seen as a threat to people and domestic animals, mountain lions have been mercilessly hunted to extinction in most of eastern North America, and they continue to be persecuted in the west. They are prized by trophy hunters, who often use hounds to track and tree them before unceremoniously shooting them to the ground. While they may be a legitimate threat to unguarded livestock, the presence of a few herding dogs is usually more than enough to send the cats looking elsewhere for sustenance. As human settlements encroach into the wilderness, mountain lion sightings are on the rise in the suburbs; a cat that is merely passing through an area may create a panic among neighborhood residents; the irresponsible actions of homeowners and law enforcement officers have led to cats that posed no real threat becoming legitimately dangerous after being harassed or wounded. Although rare, attacks on human beings often lead to full-scale hunts aimed at locating and eliminating the offending cat, but until the mountain lion has been shot and killed, it is impossible to determine that it was the specific animal responsible for the attack, and even then, DNA testing only proves that the cat fed from the kill, not that it did the actual killing. It is possible that in some cases, the victim was not attacked by a cat at all, but died from other causes, only to have an opportunistic mountain lion eat the evidence.

Despite the hysteria and archaic reasoning that make them the targets of predation by human beings, habitat loss remains the biggest threat to mountain lion populations. The Florida panther provides the best example of this, as resorts and retirement communities replace their hunting grounds and divert water away from their few remaining strongholds, effectively killing their habitat. Conservation groups have stepped in to protect the cats, but there may simply not be enough viable habitat left; scientists believe that for their population to stabilize, it must reach approximately three times its current size, and there does not appear to be enough contiguous wilderness to support that many cats.

Mountain lions are also popular in the wildlife trade, and there may be as many as 10,000 of them in private hands in the United States alone. They are too often expected to behave as oversized housecats, and when they fail to occupy this role, they may find themselves at hunting ranches and auction houses. Many are de-clawed, taking away their ability to climb - one of their most basic, natural behaviors. Captive mountain lions pose a threat to their keepers, as well as to the general public; they are too often kept in insufficient enclosures from which they easily escape. Once on the run, they are more likely to be shot than captured and placed in a reputable wildlife sanctuary. Stricter legislation and more reliable enforcement will help to protect mountain lions and other big cats from irresponsible and unnecessary captivity.

A typical mountain lion from western North America, displaying its characteristic pink nose and white muzzle outlined in black; Gerald and Buff Corsi; © California Academy of Sciences

In many areas, mountain lions prefer vertical terrain; Gerald and Buff Corsi; © California Academy of Sciences

A mother mountain lion nursing and cleaning her cubs; Gerald and Buff Corsi; © California Academy of Sciences

A mountain lion cub, showing its spotted coat; Gerald and Buff Corsi; © California Academy of Sciences

The Florida panther is not a true panther, but a mountain lion subspecies; it is distinguished from other North American subspecies by its smaller size, shorter, reddish fur, and greenish eyes; it may also have darker outlines around its eyes, resembling eyeliner, and a more prominent, thin, dark stripe running from its forehead to the back of its head.