https://www.backpacker.com/news-and-events/news/a-mountain-lion-followed-a-hiker-so-he-charged-it/ Apex predators are thus named, because as adults they rarely face a natural competitor-except man. As with all living things their purpose is to survive and procreate. Food and the search for it is the most basic driver and there is a trigger that occurs with many predators that is called the ‘prey response’. […]
The Cougar Fund was started 22 years ago by visionaries, Tom Mangelsen and Cara Blessley Lowe. They had been inspired by the extraordinary experience of being able to witness a female mountain lion and her three kittens. Upon realizing how little people really knew about lions they turned that inspiration into action. Tom and Cara […]
https://www.thegazette.com/guest-columnists/its-time-to-protect-iowas-rare-but-returning-native-carnivores/ The return of puma concolor to historic home range has been long and arduous, complicated by fear, lack of knowledge, and the ever present fallacy that they are competitors for optimal ungulate production, the financial lifeblood of most western wildlife agencies. As dispersers-usually males, looking for love in the loneliest of lion places-move out […]
Let’s look at predation from the perspective of the management agencies and the funding model upon which they survive. In a nutshell revenue comes from hunting and fishing licenses, and the Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act, which is an excise tax on guns, ammunition, and other firearms accessories, collected by the federal government and reapportioned to […]
Why does The Cougar Fund invest so much time and energy in education? We really have to look no further than a quick overview of what people already think they know about mountain lions and the impact lions have on various aspects of human lives and interests. Let’s start with the name, or to be […]
New research conducted by biologists at the University of Alberta has uncovered novel insight into the various determinants that influence the habitats of cougars. What started as an extensive project concerning predation on elk promptly changed gears to focusing on the habitat patterns of cougars after researchers placed Global Positioning System (GPS) collars on the […]
Oh dear, you just received another ‘call to action’ in your mail. You want to help, you really do. You have written letters in the past, you have even gone to meetings where decisions are made, but does your voice ever get heard? Honestly, it is hard to say, categorically, that the public comment system […]
2020 is finally behind us and, honestly, who knows what 2021 will bring? If we have learned anything from the past year, it has been that we need each other to not only face the bad times but also to bring each other through them. At a time when we have never felt more separated, […]
We understand that everyone is getting a bit frazzled…home schooling, working remotely, worrying about loved ones, and health, and jobs, and bills. The Cougar Fund is willing to help by offering free online classrooms. Our certified elementary school teacher will take your little ones on a journey through nature. Just email us at info@cougarfund.org or […]
Recently an article appeared in the Salt Lake Tribune about the decision by legislators to bring a Bill to increase the removal of mountain lions, black bears, and coyotes. This issue is disturbing and it allows us to explore the complexities that lie beyond the binary position of hunt/don’t hunt. It was in the late […]