Graceful puma - an animal who knows how to stand up for himself

In the south of Canada and in the forests of the United States, there is a graceful, beautiful and very powerful predator - the puma. The animal has more than fifty different names, but it is used most often. The beast belongs to the family of wild small cats, so it has the ideal genetic skills, good eyesight and hearing. In some regions, the puma is called a mountain lion, and this is no accident, because the animal in appearance looks like a small lioness, only the muzzle is smaller and rounder, and the ears are semicircular.

The habitat of the predator is quite wide, it feels well both in mountainous terrain, and on plains or swamps. Ability to adapt to any conditions is very helpful in the struggle for survival, even at an altitude of more than 3 km there was a cougar. An animal living high in the mountains is slightly smaller in size, which gives it quickness and confidence. The predator leads a solitary lifestyle, males face bloody fights rarely, because they have a habit of tagging the territory, warning other animals that the place is occupied.

Only at the time of procreation, the predators are looking for a couple. At this time, they prefer to hide and as rarely as possible to come across people's eyes. The female produces from one to three cubs, the pregnancy lasts 100 days. Excellent running speed is different, such as a cougar, an animal. Photo predator during the attack on the victim gives an idea of his skill and ingenuity. There were recorded jumps in height about 3-4 m, besides the cougar can jump from a height of 18 m and at the same time remain unharmed.

The main object of hunting for a predator is deer, but when there are not enough of them, the beast does not neglect other prey. Small birds, marmots, anteaters, meadow dogs, porcupines, skunks, snakes and turtles also get themselves a puma. The animal has very powerful limbs, but does not like to run for long, because it quickly loses strength. For this reason, the predator developed another tactic - to attack from an ambush. Puma imperceptibly creeps up to the victim, prepares for a jump and makes a swift, like a rocket, lunge.

When only the indigenous population lived on the American continent, and Columbus did not discover the New Land for Europeans, the animal, like a puma, lived and multiplied on the mainland. The Black Panther has long been considered one of its varieties, but it turned out to be an erroneous assumption. Puma is a separate species, and it used to be ubiquitous. After the arrival of the first settlers, cities began to expand, and farms were built where livestock was grown. Predators became addicted to horses, especially they liked the foal meat, constant attacks provoked fury from local residents, and the animals began to mass exterminate.

In some regions, after the disappearance of mountain lions , a huge number of battleships appeared, causing even greater losses to the farms. In 1960 in America there were about 6000 individuals, biologists began to sound the alarm, because almost on the verge of extinction was a puma. The animal is now protected by law, three subspecies were immediately brought to the Red Book. Puma does not pose a particular danger to man, she prefers not to show herself and hunts only animals. If there were incidents of assault, then this is just an attempt to protect one's life or cubs.