When legislation is considered about how to avoid stock depredations by wild predators, it can become mired in looking at short term solutions. Killing coyotes, foxes, wolves, mountain lions, and bears en masse, doesn’t really solve anything. It is a very temporary ‘fix’. Let’s take a moment to ask ourselves why we opt for widespread […]
The most challenging aspect of advocating for wildlife is the uncertainty of whether our efforts are making progress or if we are losing ground. This is particularly relevant when it comes to recognizing that every species plays a role in the ecosystem. Requesting consideration for the ecological impact of large carnivores is not just about […]
Montana recently announced that three grizzlies were killed following confirmation that they had contracted bird flu. Bird flu is most likely passed by consumption of an infected carcass, the organism can live up to 48 hours on surfaces and much longer on organic materials such as feathers.
A Love Affair with America’s Lion: His presence has provided an open air classroom for anyone who wants to learn about mountain lions, through media posts, research, and even in-person sightings as he has become conditioned to his ‘island’ of habitat in one of the densest human developments in the country.
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 […]