They are the most widespread of the American cats and have the largest distribution of any western hemisphere mammal. They also hold the record as the mammal with the most names.

Subspecies
North America: P.c.borbensis, P.c.californicus, P.c.cougar, P.c.concolor, P.c.coryi, P.c.costaricensis.
Central America: P.c.hippolestes, P.c.kaibabensis, P.c.oregonensis, P.c.schorgeri, P.c.stanleyana.
South America: P.c.acrocodia, P.c.anthonyi, P.c.bangsi, P.c.greeni, P.c.hudsoni, P.c.osgoodi, P.c.pearsoni, P.c.puma.

Life span
Pumas live for an average of 12-13 years, but they can live for up to 21 years in captivity.

Statistics
Body length: 105-180cm, Tail length: 60-90cm, Shoulder height: 56-78cm, Average weight: males: 53-72kg, females: 34-48kg. Males have exceptionally weighed up to 120kg.

Physical description
Pumas are large, slender cats with muscular limbs and large feet. The hind legs are proportionally the longest of the cat family. They have uniform grey/brown fur which is short and coarse in texture, and a pink nose. Their underside is creamy white and they have a white throat and chest.

The tip of the tail is black and they have black muzzle stripes and are black behind the ears. The tail is very long and reaches a third of the cat.s total length.

The cubs are born with a spotted coat but the spots fade as the cat gets older.

Distribution
Pumas inhabit South and North America. They are the most widespread of the American cats and have the largest distribution of any western hemisphere mammal.

Habitat
Pumas keep to mountainous and unpopulated areas. They can be found in coniferous forest, lowland tropical forest, grassland, dry bush country, swamps and any area with adequate cover and prey. They use caves and dense vegetation as temporary shelters.

Diet
Pumas hunt moose, deer, beavers, raccoons, mice, birds, porcupines, squirrels, insects and fish. They will often bury unfinished food and return to eat it the next day. Large prey, such as elk, may provide food for over a week.

Behaviour
Pumas are solitary, with the exception of mothers and their young. They have different ranges during the winter and the summer which they will migrate to each year. The male may have ranges in excess of 160 sq. km, which will overlap with the territories of females.

Females may also have overlapping ranges, but males will very rarely overlap with each other. Pumas hunt at dawn, dusk and at night, and have limited activity during the day.

The cat manoeuvres to within 15m of the prey and then uses its powerful legs to lunge at its prey with single running jumps that can reach over 12m. It then leaps on to the back of its prey, breaking the animal's neck with a powerful bite.

Reproduction
Females give birth to an average of 3-4 cubs after a gestation period of about 91 days. The cubs weigh 400-500g at birth. They leave their mother at the age of two but siblings may stay together for a further few months.

Conservation status
Florida panthers (P.c.coryi) and Eastern cougars (P.c.cougar) are listed as Endangered by the IUCN. These two subspecies along with P.c.costaricensis are on CITES: Appendix I. All other subspecies are on Appendix II. They are hunted by ranchers due to the threat they pose to livestock.

Notes
Pumas have more than 40 names in the English language alone, including cougar, Florida panther and mountain lion.