Research overview: the puma as the most widely distributed cat of the Americas

The puma has the largest latitudinal range of any wild land mammal in the Western Hemisphere, occupying habitats from boreal forest and western mountains to deserts, grasslands, swamps, and tropical jungle. This overview synthesizes the ecological flexibility behind this distribution: a broad diet spanning deer to small mammals, tolerance of diverse climates and elevations, solitary habits, and the ability to persist alongside or in the absence of larger competitors. It reviews how the puma fills the role of dominant predator in North America and coexists with the jaguar in the south. The synthesis frames the puma as a supremely adaptable generalist. For enthusiasts it explains how one cat can thrive from Canada to Patagonia, why it goes by so many names, and how its versatility in diet and habitat underlies a range unmatched among the big cats of the New World.