The North American cougar (Puma concolor couguar), is a population of the mountain lion in North America. It was once commonly found in eastern North America, and is still prevalent in the western half of the continent. It is the biggest wild cat in North America.
The subspecies P. c. couguar encompasses populations found in the United States, western Canada, the critically endangered Florida panther population, the extinct Eastern cougar, Mexico and Central America, and possibly South America northwest of the Andes Mountains. Western populations of the cougar are occasionally seen in the former range of the extinct Eastern population. The population in Costa Rica had been listed as least concern by the IUCN Red List.
Video North American cougar
Taxonomic history
Puma concolor costaricensis had been regarded as a subspecies in Central America.
As of 2017, P. c. cougar was recognised as being valid by the Cat Classification Taskforce of the Cat Specialist Group.
Maps North American cougar
Description
It has a solid tan-colored coat without spots. This cougar reportedly weighs 25-80 kg (55-176 pounds). By comparison, a jaguar in the Chamela-Cuixmala Biosphere Reserve on the Mexican Pacific coast would weigh only about 50 kg (110 lb), making it similar to a female cougar.
Habitat and distribution
The cougar can be found in various places and habitats. Several populations still exist and are thriving in the Western United States as well as Western Canada, but the North American cougar was once commonly found in eastern portions of the United States. It was believed to be extirpated there in the early 1900s. Cougars in Michigan were thought to have been killed off and extinct in the early 1900s. Today there is evidence to support that cougars could be on the rise in Mexico and could have a substantial population in years to come. Some mainstream scientists believe that small relict populations may exist (around 50 individuals), especially in the Appalachian Mountains and eastern Canada. Recent scientific findings in hair traps in Fundy National Park in New Brunswick have confirmed the existence of at least three cougars in New Brunswick. Some theories postulate that modern sightings and scientific data (hair samples) are from a feral breeding population of former pets, possibly hybridizing with native North American cougar remnants, or claim that cougars from the western United States have been rapidly expanding their range eastwards. The Ontario Puma Foundation estimates that there are currently 850 cougars in Ontario.
Sightings in the eastern United States
Reported sightings of cougars in the eastern United States continue today, despite their status as extirpated.
- Wisconsin
- Genetic analysis of DNA from a cougar sighting in Wisconsin in 2008 indicated that a cougar was in Wisconsin and that it was not a captive animal. It is speculated that the cougar migrated from a native population in the Black Hills of South Dakota; however, the genetic analysis could not affirm that hypothesis. It is also uncertain whether there are other, perhaps breeding, cougars. A second sighting was reported and tracks were documented in a nearby Wisconsin community. Unfortunately, a genetic analysis could not be done and a determination could not be made. This cougar later made its way south into the northern Chicago suburb of Wilmette.
- On June 3, 2013, a verified sighting was made in Florence County, Wisconsin. The cougar was photographed by an automatic trail camera, and confirmed by DNR biologists in October, 2013.
- Tennessee
- On September 26, 2015, a hair sample was submitted by a hunter in Carroll County, Tennessee; DNA analysis indicated a female with genetics similar to cougars in South Dakota. Bobcats in this state currently reside in regions that were once roamed by cougars.
- Illinois
- On April 14, 2008, a cougar triggered a flurry of reports before being cornered and killed in the Chicago neighborhood of Roscoe Village while officers tried to contain it. The cougar was the first sighted in the city limits of Chicago since the city was founded in 1833.
- On November 22, 2013, a cougar was found on a farm near Morrison, Illinois in Whiteside County, Illinois. An Illinois Department of Natural Resource officer subsequently shot and killed the cougar after determining it posed a risk to the public.
- Connecticut
- In 2011, a cougar was sighted in Greenwich, Connecticut and later killed by an S.U.V. in Milford after allegedly travelling 1,500 miles (2,400 kilometres) from South Dakota.
While the origins of these animals are unknown, some cougar experts believe some are captive animals that have been released or escaped.
Ecology
This felid usually hunts at night and may sometimes travel long distances in search of food. Its average litter size is three cubs. Like other cougars, it is fast, and can maneuver quite easily and skillfully. Depending on the abundance of prey such as deer, it may share the same prey as the jaguar in Central or North America.
Aside from the jaguar, sympatric predators include the grizzly and American black bears. Cougars are known to prey on bear cubs.
Threats and conservation
Even though conservation efforts of the cougar have decreased against the "more appealing" jaguar, it is hunted less frequently because it has no spots, and is thus less desirable to hunters.
Cultural significance
Rivalry between the cougar and grizzly was a popular topic in North America. Fights between them were staged, and those in the wilderness were recorded by people, including Natives.
See also
- Shasta
- South American cougar
- American cheetah (related to the cougar, despite its name)
- Felinae
References
Sources
- Wright, Bruce S. The Eastern Panther: A Question of Survival. Toronto: Clarke, Irwin and Company, 1972.
External links
- Eastern Cougar Foundation
- National Heritage Information Centre: General Element Report: Puma concolor
- New York State Department of Environmental Conservation: Eastern Cougar Fact Sheet
- The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
- Photograph of a black or dark cougar in Costa Rica
- Largest North American Cat: Mountain Lion (Cougar)
Source of article : Wikipedia
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