Felidae-Amarasekera

C o u g a r  __The Cougar: __ The cougar is a very interesting animal in the Felidae family. It is generally a sand-brown color, with a very long tail. The cougar is also known as the mountain lion or puma. __﻿ __

__ The Family Felidae: __ All members in the family felidae are carnivores. All have sharp, curved claws except for the cheetah. Animals in the family felidae have night vision which is great for hunting at night. Also, they have a short nose or snout. Animals in the felidae family include cougars, cheetahs, lions, tigers, and jaguars.

 

__Cougar Classifications: __
 * Kingdom-Animalia
 * Phylum-Chordata
 * Class-Mammalia
 * Order-Carnivora
 * Family-Felidae
 * Genus-Puma
 * Species-Puma concolor

__ Movement: __ Cougars usually make huge leaps and sprints when they move. They have very muscular legs that help them get around. Cougars can move up to 35-45 mph. They roam and hunt whenever necessary. __ Metabolism: __ Cougars are carnivores which means they only eat meat. Cougars are hunters. They stalk their prey for a while, then leap and kill the animal. Cougars have long, sharp teeth that cut meat and catch prey.Cougars usually hunt in evening and dawn. Their diet consists mainly on white-tailed deer, elk, moose-calves, birds, and other small mammals.

__ Growth and Devolpment: __ Adult male cougars can grow bigger than 8ft tall and can weigh around 130-150 pounds. Adult female cougars can grow to about 7.2ft tall and weigh around 90-110 pounds. Male cougars start mating when they are about 3 years old. Female cougars start mating when they are about 2.5 years old.

__ Responce to Stimuli: __ Cougars do many things to adapt to their environment. Cougars usually live in mountains, forests, and grasslands. They have very good sight and hearing, that helps them hunt for food. They also have sharp claws that are good for climbing and getting around in its environment. The cougar is also a good climber and swimmer which helps them quickly catch food in its environment.

__ Reproduction: __ Cougars reproduce sexually. A baby cougar, or a cub, gestates for about 90-96 days. Every 2 years, a female can have 2-4 offspring. Cubs are usually 200-450 grams when they are born and have a light brown coat with dark spots. __Differences Between Males and Females: __ Male and female cougars are generally the same except for their size. Male cougars are larger and weigh more than females. Both male and female cougars are the same color which is a light sand color or grayish dark brown. __ Conservation of Cougars: __ <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">Today there are only 30,000 cougars left in the world. They are disappearing because of hunters and destruction of their environment. If these actions do not stop, this magificient animal could be lost forever.

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