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Mountian Lion kills biker.

4K views 91 replies 33 participants last post by  emdeengee 
#1 ·
A lion killed one biker and injured another in Washington a few days ago. When you stop hunting you move down a few notches on the food chain. Lions who have never been hunted view humans as prey.

Muleskinner2
 
#3 ·
I would have to say tho if I was a lion I wouldn't go after mountain bikers. they mite tend to be tuff and stringy.
I used to hunt cats while working on ranches in Colorado when they became problematic. A friend had some lion dogs, and when calves or lambs were at stake, we'd go after them. Same for coyotes and wolves.


Oooooh, I tot I taw a mountain biker !!
Yum, I LOVE chewy mountain bikers !
 
#9 ·
I live in lion country as well. One morning last winter I went out early to feed the horses, found a set of fresh tracks between the house and where my dogs are tied. That lion was either lost or just shopping, but he wasn't scared of me or the dogs.

Muleskinner2
 
#11 ·
How can you know he was not scared of you from just seeing tracks? Sorry that explanation does not cut it. At least one study shows mountain lions running from human voices.

We have personal experience with a mountain lion attack right here on our property with feet of our front door
 
#18 ·
The cougar that attacked your dog was hurt and very underweight wasn't it?
 
#28 ·
The lion in question was 100lbs and 3 years old, heres a 4 year old that weighs 120lbs so they are comparable. I shot him from 7 feet away and it never tried to attack me. Most lion attacks on humans occur when the lion is waiting for a deer to come past a trail when a jogger or mountain bike zoom buy and the lion attacks thinking its a deer.

 
#39 ·
Most lion attacks on humans occur when the lion is waiting for a deer to come past a trail when a jogger or mountain bike zoom buy and the lion attacks thinking its a deer.
Perhaps, but not in this case. The bikers had multiple encounters with the cougar during their ride going as far as using their bikes as defensive weapons. The cougar was also approximate 40 -50 lbs underweight for his age in comparison with typical cougars of the area .
 
#30 ·
Mountain Lions seldom kill a human, that does not mean they are afraid of them. They often follow and watch hikers, campers and even hunters. They drink from the same water tank that my horses do, one hundred yards from the house. Sometimes scent marking the corner posts of the corral. We live together here.

I don't have hounds any more, but I used to hunt lions for ranchers who were loosing cattle. I have seen a lion stand off five mounted cowboys guarding a freshly killed calf. That calf weighted about five hundred pounds. The lion had killed the calf in the open then drug the body about thirty yards into the brush. I estimated the lion weighed one hundred pounds. Nobody in the group had a gun. One of the cowboys, a vaquero from the Sierra Madre in Mexico chased the lion off by throwing rocks at it. The lion did not leave, but stayed back in the brush snarling and hissing at them.

Some people claim that a lion can tell if you are armed or not. I don't know if this is true, I have never set down and talked to a lion. I have ridden up on lions in the brush, had them stare at me then slowly walk away. I have known people who have spent their whole life in lion country and never seen one.

I like lions, they just want to go about their business and be left alone. They don't know the difference between wild game and livestock. If you were a lion out hunting for your dinner, would you jump that tough old mule deer buck, or that fat calf? They are not endangered, they are thriving. There are probably more lions now than there have ever been.

Muleskinner2
 
#32 ·
Have to say, this cougar killing a human, will not earn them any brownie points. Been a long while in WA, that a cougar (what we call them up here) has chowed down and killed a human. We had one in our hood last year (several confirmed sightings), but haven't seen it around, as of late. Too many dogs in hood I suspect. Cougars are sneaky buggers. I've only seen one, checking me out while I walked down a mountain road in Alberta. It followed me from a distance. I think it knew I was watching it. Once their cover is blown, it seems to me they are less likely to attack. Of course, if they are emaciated (hungry), all bets are off.
Folks are more nervous about a cougar than a bear. Rather ironic, since bears do most of the human killing around here. I tend to agree, as bears are not very stealthy. I hear them bashing through the bush quite often. And they are easy to see.
Without cougars, the deer population would explode. We have enough deer as it is. One of the things we have to put up with, I suppose, living in areas with plenty of game. Now, we have a wolf pack in our hood (made the news because it harassed a person walking their dogs).
It would be nice not having to worry about be being 'bear aware' or 'cougar aware' when hiking in the mountains, but it seems we have this notion we can co-exist (what does that really mean?). A bit of a lottery to me. I avoid solo jaunts in mountains or forested paths out my back door (especially dawn or dusk), or if I do, it is on a dirt bike, one that makes lots of noise, and has a good horn...lol. A bear popped out of the bush while I was dirt biking in hills two summers ago...I would have run right into him, had he not turned tail and bolted. I had to slow down or I'd catch up to him...seems he found the old forestry road more to his liking. Took him a bit to figure out he could avoid the noisy machine with a human on it, by veering back into bush. I was thinking of stopping and turning around, but I was a bit discombobulated by almost running into a bear...by the time I collected myself, he was gone.
 
#47 ·
Have to say, this cougar killing a human, will not earn them any brownie points. Been a long while in WA, that a cougar (what we call them up here) has chowed down and killed a human. We had one in our hood last year (several confirmed sightings), but haven't seen it around, as of late. Too many dogs in hood I suspect. Cougars are sneaky buggers. I've only seen one, checking me out while I walked down a mountain road in Alberta. It followed me from a distance. I think it knew I was watching it. Once their cover is blown, it seems to me they are less likely to attack. Of course, if they are emaciated (hungry), all bets are off.
Folks are more nervous about a cougar than a bear. Rather ironic, since bears do most of the human killing around here. I tend to agree, as bears are not very stealthy. I hear them bashing through the bush quite often. And they are easy to see.
Without cougars, the deer population would explode. We have enough deer as it is. One of the things we have to put up with, I suppose, living in areas with plenty of game. Now, we have a wolf pack in our hood (made the news because it harassed a person walking their dogs).
It would be nice not having to worry about be being 'bear aware' or 'cougar aware' when hiking in the mountains, but it seems we have this notion we can co-exist (what does that really mean?). A bit of a lottery to me. I avoid solo jaunts in mountains or forested paths out my back door (especially dawn or dusk), or if I do, it is on a dirt bike, one that makes lots of noise, and has a good horn...lol. A bear popped out of the bush while I was dirt biking in hills two summers ago...I would have run right into him, had he not turned tail and bolted. I had to slow down or I'd catch up to him...seems he found the old forestry road more to his liking. Took him a bit to figure out he could avoid the noisy machine with a human on it, by veering back into bush. I was thinking of stopping and turning around, but I was a bit discombobulated by almost running into a bear...by the time I collected myself, he was gone.
Bear can be very stealthy, when they stalk you they can walk through a pile of dead leaves and dry sticks without making a sound. I know because I have called up over a dozen with predator calls through the years. Have had them within feet. Great fun. Turning over rocks looking for grubs, yes, they are noisy, but if they don't want to be heard you won't hear them. Big padded foot, good for sneaking. And of course, when the wind shifts and a bear that thought you were an injured deer fawn suddenly gets a whiff of human scent, they are quite noisy while leaving the country, prone to breaking down small trees that get in their way.

Have actually had a bear make physical contact, he bailed a tree that the dogs had him up, and I happened to be standing in the only available path through the rocks. It was a fun ride, but a short one. Bear knocking you down and trampling you is not so bad. Having a pack of bear hounds follow a trail that happens to be laid on your body is much worse. Those darn stragglers, every time you stand up here comes another one. My advice to anyone that finds themselves in that situation is to just stay down until all the dogs get the trail sorted out. Assume fetal position with fingers in ears.
 
#35 ·
I have lions on my back 40. It is like a jungle in that area with deer trails in and out. All the animal/s use the trails. I always carry a gun in that area and make a bit of noise to let all know I am making a visit. My main creek runs in the middle of that area and most of the animals use the creek. Most of the animals hide except the deer and some other small animals that are used to me passing. The lions take a deer most winters. Interesting is they strip all the hair off the deer where they kill it before dragging it back to their den.
 
#37 ·
I've seen bobcats go after grown white tail deer. I have zero doubt that while a mountain lion might be less likely to go after an adult human than it would be a human child that even a grown female would be easily be considered prey and many men as well.
 
#54 ·
Except for trophy animals harvested in the prime of their life, most lions will experience illness, injury, or extreme hunger at some point in their lives. Most will experience it multiple times. One of the biggest causes of human conflict with bears or lions is young that are on their own for the first time. Having mom around to help keep the belly from growling goes a long way toward staying out of questionable situations near human habitation. Too many generations of these young freeloaders, that don't learn manners from people that have a clue about what it means to live around wild animals, and you have an altered population of dependent animals, that get way too cheeky with humans.
 
#57 ·
I have seen one in North Central Texas. Lake Whitney to be precise. Also had one spotted stealing dogs out of yards about 5 miles from me. Been spotted and heard for years.
 
#58 ·
We used to live in BC so were well aware of cougars. Mountain lions have just started to move into the Yukon - climate change makes it more inviting. We do have about 7000 grizzlies. No one here goes anywhere (hiking, walking the dog, riding, fishing, camping etc) without bear spray or if into the wilderness, guns. A simple precaution because you can run into animals anywhere here - including just on the trail behind our house or in the neighbours driveway because they do not know the rules about storing garbage.

The death of this man is a very sad tragedy. If the cougar was emaciated (probably ill) then it was desperate. Apparently the last cougar attack death in that area was 94 years ago. More likely to be killed by your spouse than a cougar. A list of the cougar attacks leading to death is available on line and most attacks show that cougars generally attack children (or those defending children) so attacking an adult (especially a large adult or more than one) is definitely not usual.
 
#60 ·
It doesn't have to be distemper. It is quite common for young cats around two years old to be kicked out of mother's care prior to her having a new litter. They either learn to hunt and find a homerange not occupied, or they starve, or get killed. Not uncommon for young lions to be in very poor condition before they get it together and figure out how to capitalize on deer fawns and baby rabbits.
 
#75 ·
National Park Rangers do everything they can to prevent attacks, but stupid is still free is legal.
Campgrounds such as Yellowstone, Yosemite, Smoky Mountains etc have rules in place. Don't approach wild animals, don't feed them, don't leave your campground food out. I've seen people ticketed by rangers for leaving dinner on the picnic table overnight. They don't seem to understand their carelessness may cost the life of a wild animal that has to be put down.
The more the population expands and grows, the less habitat a mountain lion, cougar, bear, etc have.
 
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