Big cats are still walking in El Salvador first photographic records of Puma concolor (Linnaeus, 1771) and an overview of historical records in the country

摘要

The presence of Puma, Puma concolor, has been controversial in El Salvador due to the lack of published, verifiabledata. We surveyed 119 sites in Montecristo National Park and 17 sites in the Río Sapo basin using wildlife cameras. Wedetected Pumas in both areas, representing the first photographic records for El Salvador. We call for a national Pumaconservation strategy with research in basic ecology and migration corridors, regulation of hunting, management oflivestock losses, and public acceptance programs. The Río Sapo basin should be granted formal protection.