Mountain lions are the second largest cat species in North America, with only the jaguar besting them in size. While they’re found across large swaths of land, it’s unlikely you’ve seen one, though you may have seen signs of them, like paw prints, tree scratch marks, scat, or their kills. Here are 10 interesting facts about this elusive, sometimes misunderstood, animal.

They Have a Broad Range

Mountain lions have the largest range of any land mammal in the western hemisphere and are also the most widely distributed cat species in the world. They roam from Canada in North America down through Chile in South America.

They’re fond of any habitat with good cover and plentiful prey, particularly deer, and prefer rocky terrain, foothills, and mountains. However, they can be found in a large range of habitats, including tropical forests, coastal forests, deserts, prairies, and swamps. Altitude doesn’t make a difference, either. They’ll live down at sea level or up to 10,000 feet.

They Go By Many Names

Would a mountain by any other name be as sweet? Or, as impressive? Yes. Mountain lions, who have the scientific name puma concolor, are known by a variety of names. Those include puma, which was an Incan name for them, as well as cougar, which is believed to be derived from the indigenous South American word cuguacuarana. Panther is another term for them, as the Florida panther is a mountain lion subspecies.

They’re Agile and Strong

Mountain lions, or whichever name you prefer to call them, are impressive physical specimens. They can grow over eight feel long, if you include the tail, and weigh more than 200 pounds. The average for females is more like 75, though, while males usually weigh in at about 150 pounds. They’re around two-and-a-half feet tall at the shoulder.

These sturdy bodies are also built for athleticism. They can jump up 20 feet vertically and 40 feet horizontally. They can also sprint at speeds exceeding 40 miles per hour. Their nearly three feet long tails also provide plenty of balance and help with steering. As if this isn’t enough, they’re expert climbers and silent stalkers who can easily surprise their prey.

They Can Purr

Their dominating physical presence goes along with something a little cuter: These overgrown kitties can purr. This is thanks to the bone structure in smaller cat species, as mountain lions aren’t technically “big cats.” The noises don’t end there. Though they can’t roar, mountain lions can growl, hiss, yowl, and whistle. Females also let out screams when they’re ready to make some cubs, while chirping is also common.

Their Eyes Change Colors

We all go through a lot of changes in adolescence, but mountain lions may take the cake. They’re born with blue eyes, which will gradually change to a golden or yellow color. They have spots in their early months, too, which may help them camouflage and stay safe in their more vulnerable phase of life. Those will fade away, as well.

They also start life at only a pound before growing into the muscly, heavier adults we all know. They’ll spend a year or two learning how to be a mountain lion from their moms before striking out on their own.

'The Lion King' Was Right About One Thing

You know the scene in "The Lion King" where Simba looks for bugs to eat with Timon and Pumbaa? Well, while mountain lions aren’t actual lions, the dietary preference may not be too far off. They’ll sometimes eat insects, including grasshoppers, though it may not be their preferred prey. Mountain lions eat ungulates like deer for the most part, but they’ll also eat coyotes, rabbits, birds, and rodents. Interestingly, they can also chow down on porcupines, quills and all.

The Bat Signal Would Be Useless for Them

Mountain lion habitat tends to overlap with human habitat, and research has shown how they navigate the resulting light pollution. A study by UCLA of more than 100 mountain lions in Southern California found that the animals usually avoid areas where light is beamed into the sky from ground level. This is common around housing and commercial areas. The researchers believe their avoidance of this sort of light may stem from its link with people or its disruption of their ability to hunt unnoticed.

However, the same research found that a few cats didn’t mind this sort of light, demonstrating that they have their own personality traits, like boldness.

Their Presence – and Their Dinners – Shape Plant Life, Which May Lure More Prey

Other research shows how the mountain lion’s diet impacts the plant life around them. A study published in the journal Landscape Ecology looked at how 172 ungulate kills by Yellowstone area mountain lions impacted the ground where they lay. The findings showed that these carcasses helped plants and the soil absorb more nitrogen and led to better nutrient distribution overall. 

These improvements to the soil and plant life created an ideal place for more ungulates to eat, which allowed the mountain lions to continue to have a plentiful source of food there themselves. In fact, mountain lions in the study were found to create an average of 482 temporary nutrient-rich hotspots over a nine-year lifespan.

Other Species Depend on Them

It’s not just plant life that’s impacted by mountain lions. It’s other animal species. They help keep prey populations in check. They also feed small carnivorous scavengers through the kills they leave behind. One 2012 study estimated that mountain lions in Patagonia leave about three times as many scraps for other animals as Yellowstone wolves do. Insects also benefit, like those that break down carcasses, while birds can eat the insects.

Their presence is so important that a 2022 study in the journal Mammal Review showed that 485 species are impacted by them in some way. 

They Face Threats

These important animals aren’t without their threats, though. Habitat loss and fragmentation and blocked movement corridors can cause serious problems for mountain lions. It’s led populations in southern California to suffer low genetic diversity. Climate change and its increased wildfires are another threat, as is human conflict stemming from livestock kills, illegal hunting, and car crashes that may kill mothers before her cubs are properly raised.

Some of these problems have contributed to the species disappearing from much of its North American range, as it used to be found throughout most of the lower 48. These days, they’re primarily in western states and have a small population in Florida.

On the other end of their range, we’ve long been working to protect prime puma habitat in South America. If you’d like to help, click here!