Photo of an adult male mountain lion taken during Projeto Puma's field research in Brazil

LATIN NAME: Puma concolor

COMMON NAMES: Puma is a Quechua name of peruvian origin, meaning powerful, and suçuarana is of indigenous brazilian origin, meaning 'like the deer'

Brazil: leão-baio, onça-parda, puma, suçuarana

North America: catamount, cougar, mountain lion, panther, puma

DISTRIBUTION: Americas, from southern Chile to northern Canada

DESCRIPTION: Large predator from the Felidae family, weight from 30 to 60 Kg, body length 1.10 meter and tail 60 cm varying according to geographical location. Males are larger than females.

ECOLOGY AND CONSERVATION: The puma is both an umbrella and a keystone species. An umbrella species range over large territories, which are likely to incorporate a great diversity of organisms. A keystone species is considered a strong link in the food chain and its removal affects the biodiversity and abundance of several organisms. The puma has nonetheless been wiped out almost entirely from eastern North America and It is persecuted for livestock depredation throughout its distribution. In Brazil although protected by legislation there are no compensatory mechanisms for livestock losses, and pumas are poached by ranchers as a result. Large areas are necessary to maintain a minimum viable population size, which is one of the reasons why it is naturally rare over its entire range. Inbreeding is a threat to the puma in certain areas due to habitat fragmentation. The most notorious case of inbreeding occurs in Florida, where a relict population show signs of small physical anomalies. Puma populations have stabilized or increased in some areas of North America, but seem to be declining in parts of Latin America due to increased settlement in frontier areas. In the amazons region alone, for example, deforestation range from 20.000 to 30.000 sq km per year.