Mountain Lion - Species Profile
Conservation • Description • Habitat • Ecology • Distribution • Taxonomy
Conservation Status
IUCN Red List
LC - Least Concern
NatureServe
N3 - Vulnerable
S3 - Vulnerable
Minnesota
Special Concern
Species in Greatest Conservation Need
Description
The species epithet concolor means “one color.” Mountain Lions are uniformly buff above, lighter below. There is usually a dark stripe down the middle of the back. The neck, chest, and belly are lighter. The fur is short and dense. The back of the ears, the sides of the nose, and the tip of the tail are dark brown.
Juveniles (cubs) are spotted.
Size
Total length: 34″ to 61″
Tail: 21″ to 32″
Sign
Similar Species
Habitat
Mostly remote, heavily forested areas, but also agricultural areas.
Ecology
Behavior
Lifespan
18 to 20 years
Life Cycle
Food
Mostly deer
Distribution |
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Sources Biodiversity occurrence data published by: Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas (accessed through the Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas Portal, bellatlas.umn.edu, 12/16/2025). Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. Wild cougar verifications tracked by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. Last updated February 13, 2024. Accessed December 16, 2025. https://www.dnr.state.mn.us/mammals/cougar/cougar_verifications.html U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS) Cougar (Puma concolor) Timm, R. M. 1975. Distribution, natural history, and parasites of mammals of Cook County, Minnesota. Occasional Papers, Bell Museum of Natural History, University of Minnesota 14:1–56. Hazard, Evan B. 1982. The Mammals of Minnesota. University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis, Minnesota. 280 pp. |
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| 12/16/2025 | ||
Occurrence |
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Occasional visitor While there are many verified sightings of Mountain Lions in Minnesota, these represent transient individuals and not a permanent, established population. According to the Minnesota DNR, “there is no evidence of a viable breeding population in Minnesota.” |
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Taxonomy
Class
Subclass
Theria
Infraclass
Placentalia (Placental Mammals)
Magnorder
Boreoeutheria
Superorder
Laurasiatheria (Ungulates, Carnivorans, and Allies)
Order
Carnivora (Carnivorans)
Suborder
Feliformia
Infraorder
Aeluroidea
Superfamily
Feloidea
Family
Felidae (Felids)
Subfamily
Felinae (Small Cats)
Genus
Puma (Mountain Lions)
Subordinate Taxa
Historically, Puma concolor was divided into as many as 32 subspecies. However, the scientific validity of most of these traditional groupings has been deemed doubtful.
A phylogeographic study by Culver et al. (2000), which analyzed mitochondrial DNA and microsatellite markers across the species' range, suggested the existence of six distinct phylogeographical groups that were proposed as subspecies.
A more recent and focused study on mitochondrial DNA (Caragiulo et al., 2014) indicates only two main geographical lineages. Based on this, the IUCN Cat Specialist Group now tentatively recognizes only two subspecies of Puma concolor for conservation management purposes.
North American Mountain Lion (Puma concolor couguar) 
South American Mountain Lion (Puma concolor concolor)
Synonyms
Felis aztecus
Felis bituminosa
Felis concolor
Felis coryi
Felis daggetti
Felis hawveri
Common Names
Cougar
Mountain Lion
Panther
Puma
