Yes, is the very positive answer to the question above because mountain lions (pumas) ‘kill and eat prey ranging in size from mice to moose’ (Sunquists in Wild Cats of the World). And why? Because they can’t afford to be picky unlike our darling domestic cats who have all the food they need supplied on demand.
This is the same for any large wild cat including the four big cats. They aren’t picky. Pumas even try and eat porcupines which is silly because some lose their lives as a result.
RELATED: Do pumas eat penguins?
But it is indicative of hunger and the constant search for food. It is hard, so a tasty little mouse will do nicely although they’ll have to eat a lot to survive. Tigers really have to catch and eat large prey animals in the long-term to survive which is why when humans kill the large prey animals of the tiger the tiger can starve.
As the puma lives in both tropical and temperate areas it meets a lot of different prey sizes. In tropical regions the mountain lion eats prey which, on average, is less than half its weight whereas in temperate regions this cat regularly preys on animals as large or large than itself. This is also why pumas in the tropics are smaller than those in the north.
One study found that 11 male mountain lions in Canada had an average weight of 71 kilograms (156 pounds) while another study found that the average weight of 43 males in Florida weighed 53.6 kilograms (118 pounds), a considerable size difference.
Other small animals that the mountain lion kills and eats (not a comprehensive list) are:
- beavers
- other rodent species
- reptiles
- birds
- marmots
- rabbits
- hares
- raccoons
- armadillos
- penguins
Below are some more articles on the mountain lion.
Puma cat – all aspects with links to more
Puma hunting, feeding and social organisation – comprehensive coverage
Highest-living mammalian predators on land: snow leopard and puma
40-pound midget, subadult female mountain lion killed by a porcupine
