A puma is a mammal native to the American continent.
The puma is a mammalian animal native to America . This feline is distributed throughout much of the American continent: it can be found both in Patagonia and in the territory of Canada .
Located among the five largest cats on the planet (behind the jaguar , lion and tiger and next to the leopard ), the puma usually has a length of 1.80 meters . It is a hunter who stalks his prey for as long as necessary until he is in a position to attack. Guanaco , deer and various types of rodents are part of their diet .
Since it belongs to the group of ambush predators, which avoid direct confrontation until absolutely necessary, the puma usually opts for habitats where the vegetation is dense to pursue its potential prey. This does not hold in other situations, since this animal is capable of living in open regions.
Characteristics of pumas
Although it surpasses the snow leopard in size , it is closer to small cats, and this can be seen in its inability to roar , as the large cats belonging to the genus Panthera do; Instead, the puma purrs, similar to domestic cats.
The puma is a territorial animal and its population density is low. The breadth of its domain is linked to the abundance of species it can hunt and the vegetation. When a confrontation arises with a jaguar, among other predators, the puma does not usually emerge victorious, which is why it is not the dominant species in its area.
Cougars stand out for their agility , although a male can weigh up to 100 kilograms . Its jumping ability (more than 5 meters vertically and up to 12 meters horizontally) and its speed (it can reach 70 kilometers per hour) make it a very effective predator .
The puma is also known as the mountain lion.
Various denominations
The name puma , which is used very often in our language, comes from Quechua . Other names by which this animal is known, especially in rural areas of the American continent, are mountain lion , referring to the Old World lion , and panther .
No other wild terrestrial mammal in America lives in so many places throughout the continent, and this explains the diversity of names that identify it. One of its secrets is its great adaptability, which allows it to be found in the main biomes.
The puma and the human being
The puma is a solitary animal that usually avoids contact with humans . The advance of man on its natural habitat, however, means that, from time to time, attacks on people occur. Specialists say that, when faced with a puma, it is preferable not to run as it can awaken the animal's hunting instinct. It is best to stay upright and look him straight in the eyes.
Of course, unlike humans, the puma does no harm if it does not feel threatened and if it does not intend to eat its prey. Since the conquest of America , our species has taken more and more space from this precious animal, and thus we have managed to reduce its population in most of its habitats. In the eastern part of North America , for example, the advance of man eventually made it extinct .
Other uses of the term
It should be noted that this term is usually used as a proper noun and nickname.
Puma , in this framework, is also the name of a sports clothing brand founded in Germany ; the name by which the soccer team of the Club Universidad Nacional de México and the Argentine rugby team ( Los Pumas ) are known; and the nickname of the Venezuelan singer José Luis Rodríguez .