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South American cougar

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The South American cougar (Puma concolor concolor), also known as the Andean mountain lion[4] or puma,[5] is a cougar subspecies occurring in northern and western South America, from Colombia and Venezuela to Peru, Bolivia, Argentina and Chile.[6] It is the nominate subspecies.

South American cougar
Cougar at Rio Doce State Park, Brazil

Near Threatened  (IUCN 3.1)[1] (Brazilian, Argentinian, Colombian and Peruvian population)

Data Deficient  (IUCN 3.1)[2] (Chilean population)
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Suborder: Feliformia
Family: Felidae
Subfamily: Felinae
Genus: Puma
Species:
P. concolor
Subspecies:
P. c. concolor
Trinomial name
Puma concolor concolor
(Linnaeus, 1771)
Synonyms[3]
  • P. c. anthonyi (Nelson and Goldman, 1931)
  • P. c. acrocodia (Goldman, 1943)
  • P. c. araucanus (Osgood, 1943)
  • P. c. bangsi (Merriam, 1901)
  • P. c. borbensis (Nelson and Goldman, 1933)
  • P. c. cabrerae (Pocock, 1940)
  • P. c. capricornensis (Goldman, 1946)
  • P. c. greeni (Nelson and Goldman, 1931)
  • P. c. hudsonii (Marcelli, 1922; Cabrera, 1958)
  • P. c. incarum (Nelson and Goldman, 1929)
  • P. c. nigra (Jardine, 1834)
  • P. c. osgoodi (Nelson and Goldman, 1929)
  • P. c. patagonica (Merriam, 1901)
  • P. c. pearsoni (Thomas, 1901; Trouessart, 1904)
  • P. c. puma (Marcelli, 1922; Molina, 1782; Trouessart, 1904)
  • P. c. soasoaranna (Lesson, 1842)
  • P. c. sussuarana
  • P. c. soderstromii (Lönnberg, 1913)
  • P. c. suçuaçuara (Liais, 1872)
  • P. c. wavula (Lesson, 1842)

Taxonomy

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Felis concolor was proposed by Carl Linnaeus in 1771 for the cougar type specimen, which originated in French Guiana.[7] Since then, several cougar specimens from South America were described:[6]

As of 2017, these specimens are considered synonyms of P. c. concolor, the cougar subspecies occurring in South America.[6]

Behavior and ecology

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A cougar in the Sierras Blancas, Argentina
 
A family with two cubs near the Salto Grande Waterfall on Lago Pehoé, in Torres del Paine National Park, the Magallenean-Patagonian part of Chile

The South American puma is a largely solitary and secretive cat. A single puma’s home range may span hundreds of square kilometres which the cat patrols, traversing significant distances daily. A large range potentially means more cached or hoarded kills (stored prey carcasses) for later consumption, as well as different nests, dens or bedding sites; vast territories enable the cats to scent-mark their territory and decipher the pheromones of other pumas, and animals, that have passed through.

Other than mothers with their young (or adolescent siblings newly on their own) and male-female encounters during the mating season, the South American puma is seldom seen in pairs or groups. Mothers care for and wean their cubs for up to a year before she abandons them or chases them off, in time for the next potential reproductive cycle. Large, dominant male pumas may threaten or kill young cubs if they are deemed potential competition for resources or future bloodlines.

Diet

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Depending on its location, the cougar hunts a variety of species; in the northern, more tropical regions, prey consists of many species of birds, primates, opossums and rodents (including agouti, capybara, paca, rats, as well as brocket deer, white-tailed deer, white-lipped and collared peccary, South American tapir, sloths, frogs, lizards and snakes. In the western and northwestern regions of South America, cougar sometimes prey on spectacled bear cubs.[11] Further south, the cats prey on guanaco, vicuña, pudu, South Andean deer and pampas deer, Patagonian mara, viscacha, rhea, Andean mountain cat and South American fox, as well as livestock such as sheep, goats, poultry, cattle, llama and alpaca.[12] Certain populations may also hunt and prey on non-native, introduced species, such as red deer in Argentina, blackbuck, or North American beaver. In San Guillermo National Park, the vicuña is the cougar's main prey species, and constitutes about 80% of its diet.[13] However, they will abandon kills if not cached quickly, as they will often be harassed by birds of prey, such as Andean condors; the presence of large raptors and other scavenging birds causes South American cougars to kill and store 50% more prey than North American cougars.[14]

Cultural significance

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Like the jaguar,[4] the cougar holds historical cultural significance amongst many South American indigenous people.[15] People in the Andes regard the puma as being either a snatcher of souls, or as a helper of people.[4] The cougar's name was used for Incan regions and people. The Chankas, who were enemies of the Incas, had the cougar as their deity.[16]

References

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  1. ^ "Puma concolor". iucnredlist.org.
  2. ^ "Puma concolor". iucnredlist.org.
  3. ^ Wozencraft, W. C. (2005). "Subspecies Puma concolor concolor". In Wilson, D. E.; Reeder, D. M. (eds.). Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Johns Hopkins University Press. pp. 544–545. ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0. OCLC 62265494.
  4. ^ a b c Strong, Mary (2012-05-01). "2: Andean Thinking". Art, Nature, and Religion in the Central Andes: Themes and Variations from Prehistory to the Present. Austin, Texas, the USA: The University of Texas Press. pp. 67–91. ISBN 978-0-2927-3571-2.
  5. ^ Lee, Jane J. (2014-12-06), Andean Pumas Bring National Park in Argentina Back to Life, The National Geographic, archived from the original on November 26, 2020, retrieved 2020-03-31
  6. ^ a b c Kitchener, A. C.; Breitenmoser-Würsten, C.; Eizirik, E.; Gentry, A.; Werdelin, L.; Wilting, A.; Yamaguchi, N.; Abramov, A. V.; Christiansen, P.; Driscoll, C.; Duckworth, J. W.; Johnson, W.; Luo, S.-J.; Meijaard, E.; O’Donoghue, P.; Sanderson, J.; Seymour, K.; Bruford, M.; Groves, C.; Hoffmann, M.; Nowell, K.; Timmons, Z.; Tobe, S. (2017). "A revised taxonomy of the Felidae: The final report of the Cat Classification Task Force of the IUCN Cat Specialist Group" (PDF). Cat News (Special Issue 11): 33–34.
  7. ^ Linnaeus, C. (1771). "Felis concolor". Mantissa plantarum altera. Generum editionis VI et specierum editionis II. Regni animalis appendix. Holmiae: Laurentii Salvii. p. 522.
  8. ^ Molina G. I. (1782). Saggio sulla storia naturale del Chilli. Bologna: Stamperia di S. Tommaso d’Aquino.
  9. ^ Pocock R. I. (1940). "Description of a new race of puma (Puma concolor), with a note on an abnormal tooth growth in the genus". Annals and Magazine of Natural History. 11. 6: 307–313. doi:10.1080/03745481.1940.9723683.
  10. ^ Goldman, E. A. (1946). "Classification of the races of the puma". In Young, S. P.; Goldman, E. A. (eds.). The Puma. Mysterious American cat. Washington D.C.: The American Wildlife Institute. pp. 175–302.
  11. ^ Servheen, C.; Herrero, S. & Peyton, B. (1999). Bears: Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan (PDF). Missoula, Montana: IUCN/SSC Bear Specialist Group. ISBN 978-2-8317-0462-3.
  12. ^ Nowell, K. & Jackson, P. (1996). "Puma, Puma concolor (Linnaeus, 1771)" (PDF). Wild Cats: Status Survey and Conservation Action Plan. Gland, Switzerland: IUCN/SSC Cat Specialist Group. pp. 131–137. ISBN 2-8317-0045-0.
  13. ^ "The Study Subjects: Vicunas and Pumas Wildlife Ecology in San Guillermo National Park". University of Wyoming. Retrieved 2015-01-12.
  14. ^ Elbroch, L. M.; Wittmer, H. U. (2013). "Nuisance Ecology: Do Scavenging Condors Exact Foraging Costs on Pumas in Patagonia?". PLOS ONE. 8 (1): e53595. Bibcode:2013PLoSO...853595E. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0053595. PMC 3536754. PMID 23301093.
  15. ^ Tarmo, K. "On the role of Creation and Origin Myths in the Development of Inca State and Religion". Electronic Journal of Folklore. Kait Realo (translator). Estonian Folklore Institute. Archived from the original on June 30, 2007. Retrieved May 22, 2007.
  16. ^ Berrin, K. (1997). The Spirit of Ancient Peru: Treasures from the Museo Arqueológico Rafael Larco Herrera. New York: Thames and Hudson.
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