Picture of a Puma in Brazil

Here is a beautiful puma (AKA cougar or mountain lion) in Brazil, specifically the Pantanal. It was taken in 2009 by photographer: Greg S. Garrett and is published on Flickr also.

Puma - Brazil - Photo by Greg S. Garrett

I find the photo very interesting. It has nice composition and a painterly quality. This is probably deliberate but Greg can explain why if he wants to in a comment!

The puma has the widest distribution of all the world's wildcats in the Western Hemisphere. The range extends in the north from well into Alaska.  In the south it extends to the southern areas of South America. The one wild cat with a larger range on the planet is the common leopard. These cats are very adaptable. The puma can live in jungle and more open areas.

The puma is probably in the top three of the world's best feline jumpers. They have great skill and power in that department. Their hind legs are unusually long providing extra leverage.

Personally I find it sad that people are still allowed to hunt this animal in the USA. No doubt the gun lobby and right wingers prevent any change to national or regional legislation.

See more about the Puma: Puma Range -- Puma Cat -- Wild Cats of the World Map.