animals Article Puma (Puma concolor) in the Neighborhood? Records Near Human Settlements and Insights into Human-Carnivore Coexistence in Central Chile Diego Ramírez-Álvarez 1,* , Constanza Napolitano 2,3,* and Iván Salgado 1 1 Unidad de Vida Silvestre, Servicio Agrícola y Ganadero (SAG), Región de O’Higgins, Rancagua 2820000, Chile;
[email protected] 2 Departamento de Ciencias Biológicas y Biodiversidad, Universidad de Los Lagos, Osorno 5312435, Chile 3 Instituto de Ecología y Biodiversidad (IEB), Santiago 7800003, Chile * Correspondence:
[email protected] (D.R.-Á.);
[email protected] (C.N.) Simple Summary: The presence of carnivores near human settlements is a poorly studied topic that generates concern and perception of risk in some human communities, especially for medium to large felids. Apart from the conflict of the potential predation of livestock, there is the insecurity perception of a potential attack on people. To gain a better understanding of how, when, and how close pumas approached human settlements, we analyze 51 puma records near populated areas over eight years in central Chile. The results show that pumas approached human-populated areas; in 23.5% of the records pumas are found between 0 and 999 m from the nearest human settlement, 25.5% are between 1000 and 4999 m, and 51% are over 5000 m. We associate puma records with landscape features, such as mountain ranges, land-use, road, and urban infrastructure; and based on previous knowledge of puma biology, behavior, and habitat preference, we identify their area of occupation Citation: Ramírez-Álvarez, D.; and the potential biological corridor used for their movements from the Andes Range to the coast.