Fig. 5

Patterns in the frequency of movement classes show broader seasonal signals in movement. Eight months of movements of a young female cougar occupying the North Rim of the Grand Canyon shows seasonal changes in the frequency of movement classes may be indicative of other behaviors with longer temporal windows. On June 29th, AS02 denned below the canyon rim and followed this with a bout of hunting and feeding near the den, returning frequently to the den site. The movement index, PII, signals this change in behavior by showing a period of time when directed movement did not occur. Prior to denning, AS02 moved to higher elevations on the Kaibab Plateau following migratory mule deer to their summer range. This period was marked by a longer and more frequent period of directed movement. Based upon the date of AS02’s first location at the den site, a ~90 day gestation period for Puma concolor, and the movement index, suggests AS02 spent longer at her kill sites during gestation than prior to pregnancy