AZHunter,
I will agree that hunting out West is not the same as living out there. I am 35 years old. I started elk hunting at age 14. I have spent 2 weeks every year since chasing elk out West with the exception of a few years I was in college. I have been in several Western States from Southern Colorado to Northern Colorado to Idaho, Wyoming and Montana. I can tell you that I realize that the National Forests see plenty of recreational use from camping, hiking, biking, atvs, dirt biking and hunting. However the vast majority of those recreational activities (other than the hunting) occurs on designated trials and roads. Most of these trails are old jeep trails or horse trails. The majority of the recreational users don't go into the remote areas where the mountain lions spend most of their time. All of the mountain lion sign I have seen out West was in places I probably shouldn't have been in anyway. All were canyons that I had a hard time getting into and out of just carrying my bow. I will say that there are many remote areas that I would classify as uninhabited. I wouldn't consider an occasional ranch hand on horse back during the summer checking cattle or three-four months of hunting pressure inhabited. Especially when 95% of the hunters out West don't go into these remote canyons. Also the home range of mountain lions can be huge. So the odds of them coming in contact with someone is still very unlikely given the remote areas they spend most of their time, yet they still fear man due to the hunting pressure.
Please note the text I bolded below.
From Wikipedia:
Mountain Lions
"Estimates of territory sizes vary greatly." "In the United States, very large ranges have been reported in
Texas and the
Black Hills of the northern
Great Plains, in excess of 775 km2 (300 sq mi).
[39] Male ranges may include or overlap with those of females but, at least where studied, not with those of other males, which serves to reduce conflict between cougars. Ranges of females may overlap slightly with each other."
"Its most important prey species are various deer species, particularly in North America;
mule deer,
white-tailed deer,
elk, and even large
moose are taken by the cat.
Other species such as Bighorn Sheep, wild horses of Arizona, domestic horses, and domestic livestock such as cattle and sheep are also primary food bases in many areas."
You stated in your last post:
"I will, however, offer a counter point that shows the exact opposite. The Florida Panther (a subspecies of mt. lion) is Federally protected by the Endangered Species Act. Killing one will get you a $10,000 fine and/or some time in a Federal Prison, not to mention loss of all your hunting rights and ability to own any firearms. With those protections (since 1967), there have been absolutely no attacks on humans and its a similar situation as Iowa: very few (less than 30 now?) lions and a high interaction with people. They haven't been hunted in close to 50 years, so the ones left today have never known anything but Federal protection, yet they have a fear of humans and don't stalk or attack adults, kids, pets, etc. And I hope I demonstrated above that you dont need "
large uninhabited areas" to have a sustaining population of mt. lions."
I don't feel the Florida Panther example supports your point considering their habitat is largely areas of
uninhabited Florida Everglades much of that area is made up of
Everglades National park, Big Cyprus National Preserve, and Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge. Also because they are an endangered subspecies. The mountain lions out West are actually overpopulated in many areas which is why the young males are pushed out of their primary habitat and end up in areas they shouldn't be like close to towns and even Iowa.
Please note the text I bolded below.
From Wikipedia:
Florida Panther
"The
Florida panther is a highly threatened representative of
cougar (
Puma concolor) that
lives in the low tides, palm forests and swamps of southern Florida in the
United States."
"Males weigh about 169 pounds and
live within a range that includes the Big Cypress National Preserve, Everglades National Park, and the Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge.[4] This population, the only unequivocal cougar representative in the eastern United States, currently occupies only 5% of its historic range.
The number of living Florida panthers is estimated to be between 80 and 100.[5]"
"It was formerly considered
Critically Endangered by the
IUCN, but it has not been listed since 2008. Recovery efforts are currently underway in Florida to conserve the state's remaining population of native panthers.
This is a difficult task, as the panther requires contiguous areas of habitat —
each breeding unit, consisting of one male and two to five females, requires about 200 square miles (500 km2) of habitat.
[10] A population of 240 panthers would require 8,000 to 12,000 square miles (31,000 km2) of habitat and sufficient genetic diversity in order to avoid inbreeding as a result of small population size. The introduction of eight female cougars from a closely related Texas population has apparently been successful in mitigating inbreeding problems." "
The primary threats to the population as a whole include habitat loss, habitat degradation, and habitat fragmentation."
You stated in your last post: "I wouldn't shoot one on sight out of the shear possibility that it will becaus I know the odds are that it won't attack."
I agree but you live in a State with appropriate habitat for mountain lions.
You stated in your last post: "And to reiterate again, in no way am I advocating protecting them in Iowa or anywhere else."
I agree and will just add that there is absolutely no
BIOLOGICAL reason to protect mountain lions in Iowa.
