A cougar cub (concolor cougar) was found this Wednesday (14) in the rural area of Rio Verde de Mato Grosso (MS) – a municipality in the south of Mato Grosso that covers parts of Cerrado and Pantanal. The cat is the second largest in Brazil, behind only the jaguar (panthera onca). The animal was alone, near the headquarters of a farm, and was rescued by the Military Environmental Police (PMA) at the request of the owner of the property.
The farmer called the PMA during the morning. On the call, he said that the jaguar appeared near the headquarters of his property, thirsty and hungry. The mother was not with the puppy, probably due to the presence of dogs on the farm, which may have cornered the animal. The information is contained in a note published by the police institution.
Following the PMA, the owner took the animal to the urban area of the city. From there, the cat was sent to the Wild Animal Rehabilitation Center (CRAS) in Campo Grande (MS) by a team from the institution.
The PMA told ((o))eco that the puppy should receive food and veterinary attention at CRAS, where it will gradually also receive training to feed itself.
However, reintroducing the leopard into the wild will depend on the animal’s adaptation to this process. If at an appropriate age the cat shows enough signs that it can survive on its own, it should be reintroduced into the wild. According to the PMA, it usually occurs in conservation units (CUs).
about the cougar
The puma, the second largest cat in Brazil, occurs in a wide variety of habitats, from forests to savanna formations and eventually appears in modified environments such as plantations and pastures, which are present in all Brazilian biomes. According to ICMBio (Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation), there are currently more and more reports that this animal is getting closer to humans. Among the causes of this phenomenon are the serious reduction in the availability of habitats, due to disorderly urban growth or the increase in human activities, and the reduction of prey. These same factors are also responsible for the sharp population decline that the species has suffered throughout its geographic distribution, points ICMBio. The hunting and expansion of the road network in the country is also another aggravating factor.