US scientists celebrate return of the cougar to the American midwest

The Guardian ^ | Thursday 14 June 2012 | Karen McVeigh

[MinorityRepublican]

Cougar in Montana: conservation strategies helped avoid extinction. Cougars are recolonising the mid-western United States, according to scientists, reversing 100 years of decline. The population of big cats, also known as American mountain lions, has rocketed in these states, from less than a hundred in 1990 to about 30,000 today.

Michelle LaRue from the University of Minnesota said that the midwest population of cougars had been "effectively zero" two decades ago. "That's why this is so exciting," she said. "We have hard evidence that the western population has spread."

The population of cougars declined substantially from about 1900, victims of hunting and a lack of suitable prey. Once considered a "bounty predator" and hunted to near extinction locally, cougars are now protected by law.

Three established breeding populations now exist in the upper midwest, in North Dakota, the Black Hills in South Dakota, and Nebraska, said LaRue, but cougars have been venturing far outside this range.

[Osage Orange]

Yeah....I went to a few years of school in Ark City, KS.

Hunted a couple times up near Great Bend.

I hunted birds and small game...back then. Deer weren't plentiful then. Oh they were around...but not lot's of them. I recall seeing the Arkansas River froze up once...with deer tracks crossing it.

Well...around here, there's plenty of food for cougars, and they are afraid of us. Not like in SoCal, where Puma's are living real close to large populated areas.

[Glennb51]

I spent a lifetime in Ark City when I was 18.

[EternalVigilance]

We’ve had family members spot them on one of their farms in the Loess Hills of western Iowa in recent years.

[MeganC]

I know Wyoming has three less of these vermin than it did a year ago.

[DManA]

You violated the last s in the SSS rule.

(shoot, shovel, shut up)

[Osage Orange]

Yeah Action City, can do that to a person!!

LOL!!

Actually....I had a lot of fun going to school there.

[VRWCarea51]

I live in Michigan and had an encounter with one just last night.

Last thing I remember was her asking if it was okay to spend the night... ;)

[Dr. Sivana]

Where are they headquartered? If they think this is a great idea they should have a dozen or so reintroduced in the general area of their parking lot.

Before Tim Cook finds himself on the wrong end of the predator/prey thing, I should let you know that I was making a joke about the name of Apple Inc.'s newest computer operating system, OS X 10.8, a k a "Mountain Lion". I don't believe Apple has plans to release the real thing anywhere.

[OldMissileer]

Black bears (with cubs) are turning up all the way down here around Jackson and Ann Arbor.

Yep. My sister lives in Leslie and has seen a bear around that local area.

[Lion Den Dan]

These dummies will think excitng when you open your back door and one of these blasted cats is sitting there waiting on you. Oh, that’s right, these restoration twits don’t live where the vermin roam. I am here to tell you , these buggers bite. I don’t want or need any of them.

[MarkL]

Three established breeding populations now exist in the upper midwest, in North Dakota, the Black Hills in South Dakota, and Nebraska, said LaRue, but cougars have been venturing far outside this range.

Yeah, I'd have to say that Lawrence, KS and Kansas City, MO are "far outside" that range.

Mark

[rustbucket]

WE have Bobcats all over down here in Georgia.

There is one less in Texas. We saw it lying dead by the road one morning. I threatened to stick it in with the ham and cheese in our ice chest (we were on vacation), but for some reason the wife objected. We figured someone would pick it up to take it to a taxidermist or skin it because it was in great shape, no blood or damage to the skin that we could see. It was gone when we came back by in the afternoon.

[sitetest]

Here in Anne Arundel County, Maryland (near Annapolis), we don’t have cougars, but we have seen a return of coyotes.

[Max in Utah]

In the mid 90’s I was driving north toward Emporia, Kansas and saw an animal run across the highway about a hundred yards ahead. It was tan in color and about the size of a large dog, and it was really moving.

I slowed down to have a look at the point where it disappeared into the tall grass but couldn’t get a good look, just glimpses through the grass on the hillside as the critter moved through it.

My Dad was in the car and I asked him, “Was that a mountain lion?” He said something like, “Looked like one... don’t know what else it could have been.”

[OldPossum]

Look at it this way, folks: they make everyday life more interesting.

[jch10]

The panthers are in NW Florida too. Several have been seen and photographed in Walton and Bay Counties.

[Georgia Girl 2]

We have Black Panthers too and wolves but the wildlife guys will tell you no. We had two juvenile Black panthers walk down the middle of the street one night right past our house.

[MasterGunner01]

Think we can get the Mountain Lions (Cougars) to eat illegal aliens? This is an untapped, renewable food source.

[Sarajevo]

Here, Kitty-kitty

[hometoroost]

Ah, missed it. Sorry, just not an Apple guy I guess. I do remember Clinton wanting to reintroduce grizzlies out West and a few govenors reminding him why they killed the things off in the first place.