YEAR OF THE CAT

Once a phantom of Chile's windswept peaks, this plucky feline is making a comeback

- Mike Dilger's WILDLIFE SPECTACLES The broadcaster, naturalist and tour guide shares the most breathtaking seasonal events in the world

WITH A RANGE SPANNING FROM Canada's boreal forests and Arctic tundra all the way to the steppes of southern Chile, the puma — also known as the cougar and mountain lion – has the widest distribution of any terrestrial mammal in the New World.

It may vie with the leopard for the title of 'fourth largest cat', but in a hypothetical meeting of all big cats, the puma would probably only defer to the biggest three - the jaguar, lion and tiger.

Until recently, a far more suitable name for this adaptable cat was 'ghost', because confirmed sightings were extremely rare. But in Patagonia – and more specifically in Chile’s Torres del Paine National Park - efforts by the conservation community and the resulting boost from ecotourism have put an end to the cat’s ghostly epithet in spectacular fashion.