Who's the biggest animal in this menagerie?
Where do they live? What do they eat?
Are they endangered?
Answers:
Who's the biggest animal in this menagerie?
The large cat looming behind the surprisingly calm birds is a cougar! It was given to the Karshner Museum in 1942, and right now is on display in Gallery 2, with the bugs, bones, and fossils in the Natural History exhibit. Other names for cougars are puma, mountain lion, and panther (which can apply to any single-colored large cat).
Where do they live? What do they eat?
Cougars are native to the Americas, living as far South as Patagonia in South America and as far North as the Canadian Yukon. They are very adaptable animals, and can live in a wide variety of habitats, from forests to deserts. Like all cats, large and small, cougars are strict carnivores. The prey cougars hunt depends on availability in their habitat.
Are they endangered?
No, the cougar population is considered stable.
Helpful lynx:
(Nat Geo) Secret Lives of Cougar Families
(San Diego Zoo) Mountain lion