The Puma (Puma concolor)
Main features
Foto: Ricardo Cali
Morphological characteristics
• Males weigh on average between 55 and 70 kg, and females between 35 and 45 kg. However, it is not uncommon for some males to exceed 100 kg.
• Length, including the tail, can reach up to 2.20 m in males and 2 m in females.
• The coloration and length of the fur vary among individuals, seasons, and the environment. In the same region, two morphs often coexist: one tawny or reddish and the other brown or gray.
• It has a small head in proportion to its body, which is elongated, and it has short and muscular legs.
• The tail is very long, representing 30 to 40% of the body length.
• The canine teeth are relatively thick, giving the false impression of being short.
Reproductive and population data.
• Females give birth for the first time starting at two years of age.
• The interval between births is about two years.
• If a female loses her litter, she quickly returns to estrus.
• After about 90 days of gestation, females give birth to 2 to 3 cubs on average (up to six are possible).
• Cubs become independent when they reach 18 months, at which point they are considered subadults.
• Generally, all male cubs disperse, moving an average of about 80 km away from the maternal territory. Females often remain closer to it. There are cases of individuals dispersing 400-1000 km and one case of 3000 km. This phenomenon ensures that there is no inbreeding in subpopulations and allows the recolonization of areas from which pumas had been extirpated, as has happened and continues to occur in the Pampas ecoregion.
• This feline has an extraordinary ability to recover if its populations are affected by hunting. After reductions of around 50%, some populations returned to their previous numbers within 1 to 3 years.
Feeding
• The puma's diet relies on ungulates. In the USA, where it has been extensively studied, preferred prey includes white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), mule deer (Odocoilues hemionus), red deer (Cervus elaphus), and bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis)
• Among smaller prey, it appears to have a preference for porcupines and lagomorphs.
• In the Pampas, the puma used to prey on the Pampas deer, a cervid whose two remaining populations (Ozotocerus bezoarcticus celer) in the Pampas are threatened. Currently, its preferred prey appears to be the capybara (Hydrochaerus hydrochaeris) (a rodent whose populations have increased and colonized new regions in the Pampas), the rhea (American Rhea) y ungulados exóticos como los ciervos dama (Dama dama), axis (Axis axis), colorado y el antílope negro (Antilope cervicapra).
• Among smaller prey are the hairy armadillo (Chaetophractus villosus), the viscacha (Lagostomus maximus), the European hare (Lepus capensis), the coypu (Myocastor coipus), the wild cavy (Cavia aperea), as well as birds and fish captured in lagoon bodies.
• When wild prey decreases, especially larger species, pumas turn to livestock depredation. They have a preference for foal meat, followed by sheep and then cattle.
• It is important to note that while pumas can cause significant damage to certain livestock productions, they often become the perfect scapegoat for livestock losses caused by poor farming practices. These practices include improper soil use (resulting in nutritional and health problems) and the lack of appropriate facilities among other factors. For example, in Patagonia, the decline in sheep production was not due to predators but resulted from the loss of natural pastures due to overgrazing, the depreciation of wool value, lack of investment in roads, and many other factors, including droughts and volcanic eruptions like those of Hudson (1991) and Puyehue (2011). The exponential growth of mining in these provinces also carries tremendous consequences such as water scarcity or outright lack. Additionally, pumas are often blamed for attacks carried out by feral dogs or even dogs from the same farms.
The role of the puma in ecosystems
The puma, like any apex predator, plays a crucial role in ecosystems by limiting the populations of its prey, exerting a strong influence on plant communities. A clear example of this is what happened in Yellowstone with wolves and, to a lesser extent, with pumas and bears. When reintroduced to Yellowstone National Park, these predators initiated a series of processes that enriched biodiversity and even altered the course of rivers, changing the landscape.
Pumas act as a powerful force of selection for their prey, increasing competition among herbivores and keeping intermediate predator populations (mesopredators) in check through the phenomenon of intraguild interspecific killing. The interactions of this feline with the ecosystems it inhabits are countless, and new processes, as well as species benefiting from their mere existence, are discovered every day.
