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Post by downriver on Jan 16, 2024 1:16:05 GMT -8
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Travis
Trail Wise!
WYOMING NATIVE
Posts: 2,586 
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Post by Travis on Jan 16, 2024 3:23:58 GMT -8
Or, try the Los Angeles Times. Of course, as with many other species and despite the news headlines, mountain lion populations are not "counted." They are estimated using complex formulas based upon limited data. For many years the state wildlife agency assumed there were around 6000 mountain lions in California. Three new research studies now estimate an actual "count" between 3200 and 4500 mountain lions, perhaps as few as half previous assumptions. And the cats are at risk of genetic isolation. In South Dakota, when population estimates yield lower numbers, formulas are changed to produce higher "counts." The same revisions appear to have been used to produce higher estimates for grizzlies in Wyoming and Montana. What follows are the inevitable calls for trophy hunting. As with countless other species, the biggest threat to mountain lion numbers is the human population: highway traffic, settlement patterns, encroachment on habitat, poaching, and state-sponsored killing fests (also known euphemistically as "trophy hunting"). |
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Post by swmtnbackpacker on Jan 16, 2024 9:26:54 GMT -8
Ran into a juvenile one outside of San Diego extending a little hiking into the night, catching its eyes, then face, then body as I turned my headlamp. It took off
I no longer extend my hikes into the night..
Just to add I called the Forest Svc the next day if they wanted a wildlife report (and my encounter was right next to a car campground), .. but they said they tend not to worry as cougars are a protected species. They are all over the woods in CA.
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Travis
Trail Wise!
WYOMING NATIVE
Posts: 2,586
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Post by Travis on Jan 16, 2024 11:49:34 GMT -8
They are all over the woods in CA. Apparently, they are not. Even if there were actually 6000 mountain lions in the state, there are 33 million acres of forested land in the state ( source). That is equal to one mountain lion for every 5,500 acres of forest, IF mountain lion habitat were restricted to forests. |
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rangewalker
Trail Wise!
Agitate, organize and educate.
Posts: 1,029
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Post by rangewalker on Jan 16, 2024 13:12:09 GMT -8
As with countless other species, the biggest threat to mountain lion numbers is the human population: highway traffic, settlement patterns, encroachment on habitat, poaching, and state-sponsored killing fests (also known euphemistically as "trophy hunting"). Travis is absolutely right on the actual threats to all large predators. Hiking for recreation and work I have had the opportunity to observe three mountain lions, one audible encounter, and two signs that I was followed or observed without my in-the-moment awareness. I do not know the tally of various overhangs or brush clumps with lion sign overlooking a gulch or trail I have tread where I could have been observed. All but the upset audible were in the daylight, so refraining from night hiking, won't do much to avoid mountain lion encounters in my experiance. My first hike with Wycanislatrans, former member of these forums, New Years Day in 2007, in the Medicine Lodge WSA, WY, he discovered a female lounging on ledge above his head in a cave side-trip while I was photographing an arch. He backed out and we resumed our hike. |
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Post by marmotstew on Jan 18, 2024 10:29:04 GMT -8
I thought they are going to start killing more in Colorado. I read somewhere it’s estimated they kill half the deer population every year which seems kinda unbelievable.
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rebeccad
Trail Wise!
Writing like a maniac
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Post by rebeccad on Jan 19, 2024 8:33:25 GMT -8
I thought they are going to start killing more in Colorado. I read somewhere it’s estimated they kill half the deer population every year which seems kinda unbelievable. If true, then they are absolutely essential to the survival of vegetation in CO, based on what I’ve seen of the deer numbers. |
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