Puma

• Its historical range — from Canada to the southern Andes — is the widest of any large land mammal in the Americas.
• It feeds mainly on deer and other ungulates, supplemented with smaller prey.
• It has the largest distribution of any wild mammal in the Western Hemisphere.
• comunicaciónIt cannot roar, as it lacks the specialised larynx of the roaring big cats; instead it mews, hisses and gives a characteristic high-pitched scream.
• locomociónIt can leap up to 6 metres horizontally and 2.5 metres vertically from a standstill, one of the highest jump-to-body-size ratios recorded among the big cats.

Skeleton type

Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (mammal)

Habitat & environment

A wide range of habitats from desert to forest, with the largest distribution of any wild mammal in the Western Hemisphere

Birth weight

226-453 g at birth, spotted and blind

Size at birth

226-453 g at birth

Sexual maturity

Female: ~2.5 years | Male: ~3 years

Gestation / incubation

82-96 days

Litter / clutch size

1 to 6 pups per litter (most commonly 2-3)

Lifespan in captivity

Documented record of up to 27 years

Sources consulted: A-Z Animals; Britannica; Zoo Idaho; Animal Diversity Web; AnAge (genomics.senescence.info); ScienceDirect Topics; Animal Kingdom; BioKIDS