Petaca, a Chilean Beauty
- Report Authors: Sharon Osberg
- Publication Date: February 6, 2025
- Focus Species: Puma concolor (Mountain Lion)
Patagonia in Chile is a magical place famous for its jagged peaks, vast grasslands, and howling winds. It is also home to one of our most adaptable land predators: the puma (also known as the mountain lion, cougar, panther, or catamount). Adult pumas are highly territorial and generally solitary, except during the breeding season or when a female cares for cubs.During my recent visit to the Torres del Paine UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in Patagonia, which is home to around 100 Pumas, an unusual circumstance occurred after my subject Petaca’s seven-day dry spell of hunting. Petaca, watched over her cubs feeding at the carcass she’d just stolen. Afterwards, she allowed the young puma (who made the kill) to feed. During this episode, Petaca never stopped growling but stayed put. Eventually, Petaca left the carcass, signalled for her cubs to join, and moved off. We followed them far across a valley and into the hills.
Published in IBCA Vol 2 Issue 1 Jan-Feb 2025
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