Research overview: pumas as providers of carrion to ecosystems

By killing large prey and leaving partly eaten carcasses, pumas subsidize a wide community of scavengers and influence nutrient cycling. This overview synthesizes research showing that puma kills support birds, mammals, and invertebrates, that the cats are a major source of carrion in many ecosystems, and that their feeding habits create predictable resources for scavengers. It reviews how the puma's role as a provider of carrion connects it to biodiversity beyond its prey, and how the loss of pumas can reduce this subsidy. The synthesis frames the puma not just as a predator but as an ecosystem engineer of sorts through the carcasses it leaves. For enthusiasts it explains how a single cougar feeds a hidden web of scavengers, why puma kills are hotspots of activity, and how the cat's influence radiates outward through the food web it helps sustain.