Mountain Lion is found in South and Central America, USA, Alaska, and in Central Canada.Predator that is also called a puma, or cougar.Beautiful and graceful beast by nature - a great individualist.
External Unlike
mountain lion (cougar or) lives only in the Americas.This is a very large animal, the length of the male reaches two meters forty centimeters.The female is a little smaller, it is never more than two meters.This wild cat in size only slightly inferior to the jaguar.
Mountain Lion stronger sex can weigh from sixty to one hundred kilograms.Women - from thirty to sixty-five.Females weaker males, but they are more graceful.Among the large predatory cats mountain lion is in the fifth place: the first - the tiger, the second - the African lion, the third - the Asiatic lion, the fourth - the jaguar.Puma has a strong and massive hind legs, a round head and protruding ears.
It's quite a big cat.Mountain lion weighing kg hundred twenty-five was killed in Arizona.Color cougars may have a different shade and color.Adult animals are red, silver, dark yellow.Wool, which is located in the lower part of the body is slightly lighter than the top.
When the baby is born a wild cat, he covered with dark spots, and the tail - in strips.Over time, hair becomes monotonous.Puma - a great jumper, jump height can be up to about six meters, but its length - sometimes twelve meters.
abilities and life mountain lion
As mentioned above, the hind legs from Pumas are very powerful.Running speed - up to 70 km per hour.American mountain lion fine climbs a tree branch.The structure of the body and promotes rapid short run, long distance cougar can not win.This beast of prey - a fine hunter and can exist both on level ground and in the mountains.
Mountain Lion by nature - individualist prefers to live in solitude.Couples cougars (also known as the cat) are grouped together only to breed.This is a very short period of time (about ten days).In ordinary life, the female and male have their own separate area, where they hunt.Female Puma owns some 25 square meters, male cats have up to 50 square meters.Cougars mark their territory with urine and feces.On someone else's possession cougar does not interfere, or conflict can not be avoided.
Reproduction mountain lion
When the female reaches the age of three, she becomes sexually mature.The gestation period of a cougar lasts three months.During this time, the cat is preparing a place where give birth to their young.Female equips den in stone niche (or cave).On average, the cougar gives birth to two or three baby, but sometimes it can be a baby or as many as six.Cougar brings up her newborn for three months, milk.When the mother takes the children to hunt and teach everything that she knows.At the age of six months, the kids try their first catch small prey.
two years young wild cats live with my mother.After leaving the family of origin and begin to live alone.Females linger near the mother a little longer than males.Young animals often die in the wild, because it is very hot-tempered young cougars, and constantly in conflict with their neighbors.As a rule, one brood survives only one cub.
Dining mountain lion
cougars favorite treat - a mouse and frogs, rabbits and birds, reptiles and grasshoppers.They also prey on small and medium-sized ungulates.People living in rural areas, cougar called "harmful creature."Puma often attacks the sheep.On the hunt prey cat jumps on fast production and plunges its teeth into the back of the neck of the victim.Sometimes the maneuver fails, then the mountain lion is not trying to catch the animal, because the long run can not be a cougar.It is easier to pick up a new victim.When the hunt is successful, then it buries remains of carcasses cougar in branches or snow.The next day, the cougar will return for his food.Mountain Lion lived for more than twenty years.