PJM Archives - The Cougar Fund

Comments by the Cougar Fund before the Utah Wildlife Board 01/08/2026

January 11, 2026/in Policy Comments, Utah

My name is Penny Maldonado, representing The Cougar Fund and our Utah constituents.

Thank you very much for allowing me to appeal to you today. I understand how hard it is to be bound by statute that is not simply about promulgation of regulations, but directives for the science itself that has always been seen as a foundation of the work of DNR.

My staff and I were alerted by our Utah residents to the 3 year study being discussed today. To be honest we were alarmed at the scope, the methods of removal and the ultimate goal of this PhD thesis. There have been many studies that have provided sound data based evidence that the impact by lion predation on deer survival is only one of many variables. Sadly, people in authority, in this case, your legislature, feel this is the contributing factor that can be controlled by humans. That is not sound science, this is grabbing on to something that might work and which in so many other studies has been shown not to.

In fact, removal of so many lions, as many impassioned and deeply concerned houndsman stated in the December RAC meetings, destabilize lion populations, which are already exhibiting long term decline and younger age structures. Younger lions select for deer, especially more vulnerable deer. We watched every RAC meeting and at one, a staff member stated, lions ONLY eat does. While this is not quite accurate, it is true that lions, being opportunists, especially young immigrants will take the easiest prey for energy conservation. What you are proposing may actually have the opposite effect to what you intend.

After a deadly winter in 2022/23 a large group of deer hunters joined together to buy tags but to deliberately not hunt deer to allow them to recover, with human help, showing that human control can take many forms.

Lastly and most importantly, I must address the methods. Trapping and snaring, of any lion, and most disturbingly of family groups is just unacceptable. Kittens are born any time of year, making distinct the reproductive cycles of lions from other species. Female lions work hard to ensure the survival of their kittens to become successful hunters of appropriate prey-not of livestock or domestic animals.

NAM celebrated its 100th Birthday in 2002. It has served ungulates well, but in the past 124 years, it has never once addressed predators. They have never been afforded the same respect and ethical consideration that name provides for other species. This study harks back to the ways these majestic landscape partners and ecological contributors were treated in the days we can recall in grainy photos of skulls and pelts piled high.

The work you do is hard, you are so often in the middle, with people throwing stones from both sides. I understand. The methodology of this study has drawn many diverse constituents against it, houndsman, ungulate hunters, and advocates. It is never too late to change something so charged.

Thank you for your time today.

Penelope J. Maldonado Executive Director, The Cougar Fund

A Victory for Lions. The Cougar Fund’s long serving Directors help defeat Wyoming’s notorious cougar bill

Spirit and her cubs taught us to be passionate and compassionate about protecting cougars, and to tell their story of mystery and vulnerability, especially mothers and their kittens.

In Cheyenne Wyoming, on a chilly late Saturday afternoon, January 26th 2025, one of the most devastating wildlife bills ever to reach the floor of the State Legislature was introduced.

HB0286, if passed, would have heralded a new standard of legislative overreach in a state rich with wildlands and the wildlife that lives there.

The Cougar Fund Board of Directors, staff, and fellow professionals leapt into action to start a campaign to bring awareness to this grave injustice.

HB0286 proposed the following changes and threatened the overall survival of mountain lions in Wyoming.

It all came from the unsubstantiated notion that it would bring back mule deer.

If passed, there would be no hunting zones and geographic boundaries for cougars.

It would remove statewide and local mortality limits, and would allow unrestricted killing of cougars.
It would authorize cougar trapping and snaring, practices that are neither selective nor humane.
It was slated to cut off an existing revenue stream from the Wyoming Game & Fish Department and pass on the ability to freely hunt cougars with other game licenses, such as antelope, deer, or elk.
A specific and regulated cougar license would no longer be needed!

Experts used targeted social media outreach to help spread information: the calm and experienced presence in the Capitol of Director Corey Rutledge provided the human factor in talking to politicians; while our working group partners provided insight and support.

Press releases were sent out and Corey was the absolute showstopper point of contact for interviews and follow up.

After HB0286 was introduced to the floor of the House of Representatives, everyone had to wait on pins and needles for what might come next. A long week went by, we kept our supporters and those Wyoming residents who were anxious to talk to their representatives in the loop with every day that passed.

Finally, the bill was assigned to a committee, but would it be heard? would it remain in the chairman’s drawer and time out? or would it be discussed and opposed, or pass and go back to the chamber for a vote? It was hard to tell.

February 4th. 2025: The day came, the Travel, Recreation, and Wildlife Committee hearing was scheduled and commenced.

(February 4th reminded us that it is just ten days short of twenty six years, when on St. Valentine’s Day 1999 the idea for The Cougar Fund was born. A similar awakening to the plight of cougars took place on the National Elk Refuge, just outside the town of Jackson Wyoming. Co-Founders Cara Blessley-Lowe and Thomas D Mangelsen were privileged to see into the life of Spirit and they realized the terrible and unacceptable risk that hunting posed to mothers and kittens. They became passionate advocates for cougars)

Director Cara was already signed up for her ZOOM testimony and Corey was in a front row seat to be the voice of The Cougar Fund in person.

State Capitol. Cheyenne, Wyoming

Rarely do so many diverse stake-holders share one voice either for or against something. This was one of those rare times. Advocates with the same compassionate values as The Cougar Fund spoke out. Hunters, houndsmen, Wyoming Game and Fish Department, and mule deer specific groups testified. The resistance to HB0286 was united. the Chairman was efficient, he kept testimony brief and on point.

HB0286 died for want of a motion to even be considered.

The bill also failed for reasons other than the diversity of opposition. The Cougar Fund believes that HB0286 failed because a story could be told. A Story about the lives, the hardships and the value of lions in the wild, and why they need protection. Stories come so easily to our founders, either in beautifully crafted words or in breathtaking images. Today advocacy has the advantage of being able to communicate rapidly through technology which can mobilize people quickly and effectively. They can respond just as fast. Our hearts are full of thanks that they did.

This is a success story, that many groups are sharing in. Thank you for supporting The Cougar Fund’s efforts. Hard work is always done by more people than you can imagine. Please always remember that we could do none of it without you.

Wild Nature Media

The importance of Mountain Lions in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.

June 6, 2024/in Uncategorized, Cougar News, News, Blog, Links, Wyoming news, WYOMING, IDAHO

This article https://buckrail.com/why-coexistence-with-mountain-lions-matters/ is a journalistic exploration into the VALUE of mountain lions on the landscape. The article also identifies how we can reduce our negative impact on them. To co-thrive with lions, bears, and wolves, we must change the interpretation of their presence from public distrust and lack of knowledge to appreciation and respect.

Many apex predators are also keystone species, they are not pests and vermin. They are animals with a key role to play in sustaining the environment for the benefit of all inhabitants.

The big picture for The Cougar fund is for humanity to segue from an attitude of utilitarianism to one of a duty of care for the animals themselves. Utilitarianism comes from the perspective of wildlife being present for human ‘use’. They are then managed for sport or for the over exaggerated threat to livestock growing, or even to reduce competition for prey resources that humans view as a ‘right’.

Predation is hunting and hunting is predation. These are not two different concepts. The ecological contributions made by puma con color far outweigh the attitude of ‘ownership’ of wildlife that is prevalent in states’ policy making.

Credit for photo, Wild Nature Media with thanks to David Neils.

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