They were just passengers aboard an airplane, flying over California and having a chat. The couple was relating their adventures in hunting to the pair of fliers in the row ahead of them. Things apparently got cozy, and they confided that they had hunted a mountain lion. In fact, they said, a close relative was […]
Tag: mountain lions
Wyoming Lawmakers Tried to Declare Open Season on Mountain Lions. Local Houndsmen Shut It Down
Luke Worthington has chased lions in Wyoming‘s mountains with his ragtag pack of seven hounds for almost 20 years. His 16-year-old daughter doesn’t know what life would be like without the barking and baying, high-energy creatures in her life. But when the Wyoming legislature proposed a bill to allow unlimited hunting this winter, Worthington wasn’t […]
What Did Scientists Learn After Thousands of Penguins Were Slaughtered by Mountain Lions?
In 2007, only three years after the creation of Monte León National Park along the wild coastline of Argentine Patagonia, efforts to protect penguins took an unexpected turn. A female puma was slaughtering Magellanic penguins in droves. Some of these she would eat, while other surplus kills were left to rot. Before long, her cubs […]
MAGA Controlled Wyoming Legislature Proposes Open Season on Mountain Lions and Grizzly Bears
The Wyoming MAGA contingent that now controls the full legislature introduced House Bill 0286, a proposed bill that would strip critical protections for cougars in Wyoming. HB 0286 proposes the following changes: Elimination of hunting zones and geographic boundaries for cougars. Removal of statewide and local mortality limits, allowing unrestricted killing of cougars at any time, […]
Deadly Encounter: Mountain Lion Attacks Spark Controversy
Last March, two young California men were searching for shed deer antlers in the Sierra foothills east of Sacramento and were startled by a young mountain lion walking toward them, no more than 10 yards away. Experts say the best thing to do when a mountain lion approaches is to raise your arms to make […]
Fleeing mountain lions and scorched earth: can wildlife survive California’s wildfires?
Beth Pratt has spent her career protecting Los Angeles‘ mountain lions, which roam an area currently engulfed by wildfires. These apex predators, also known as cougars or pumas, share a scrubby landscape with lavish private homes and a dense network of roads. When major fires take out huge areas of open space, their options are […]
Mountain Lions Change Timing of Activity in Response to Recreation
Mountain lions in the greater Los Angeles area are more active at night in areas with higher levels of recreation. “We can feel really hopeful about the fact that mountain lions are flexible in their timing of activity,” said TWS member Ellie Bolas, a PhD candidate at the University of California, Davis. “That probably helps […]
New California law aims to protect free movement of mountain lions and other wildlife
Cities and counties must soon consider the impact of development on wildlife connectivity in their land-use plans following the passage of a law intended to promote safe travel across habitat fragmented by urban sprawl and freeways. Gov. Gavin Newsom last week signed AB 1889, which directs local leaders to identify connectivity areas and then “avoid, […]