Illustration from Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia/Corbis
Mountain Lion (Puma, Cougar, Panther)
Puma concolor missoulensis
Subspecies of Mountain Lion
August 3, 1805, near the Jefferson River, Montana.
A large, unspotted cat with a relatively small head and a long, dark-tipped tail. Pale brown to tawny above; white overlaid with buff below. Dark spot at base of whiskers. Ears short and rounded, with dark backs. Legs long and heavy; feet large. Juvenile buff with black spots.
Originally varied; now generally mountainous, semi-arid terrain; subtropical and tropical forests and swamps.
Western North America from British Columbia and southern Alberta south through western Wyoming to California, western Texas and southern Texas.
Two subspecies of the mountain lion are on the U.S. Endangered Species List—the Eastern puma and the Florida panther.
The most widely distributed cat in the Americas (found from Canada to Argentina).