JACKSON, Wyo. — Mountain lions have a relatively negative reputation with some in Jackson Hole, but considering coexistence with these important large carnivores might be critical for the integrity of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.
According to the Wyoming Game and Fish Department (WGFD), mountain lions can be found statewide but remain the most elusive of the large carnivores in Wyoming. They’re distinct because of their stalk and ambush predation strategy, with deer and elk as their primary food source.
Executive Director of The Cougar Fund Penelope Maldonado tells Buckrail that mountain lions, along with wolves, grizzly bears and black bears, are considered a keystone species.
“In short, mountain lions have a huge positive effect on habitat, herd health and provision of food for many birds and scavengers such as foxes, coyotes and even the smallest ground mammals,” Maldonado says.
According to Maldonado, after a successful hunt, mountain lions will consume the most nutritious parts of a carcass and hide the rest for later, providing leftovers for those other species. The breakdown of that cached carcass also puts nutrients back into the soil.
Mountain lions also assist in removing diseased animals from herds. Maldonado emphasizes that, due to the fact that they are an obligate carnivore with no alternative food sources available if their hunt is unsuccessful, mountain lions wait for the weakest or sickest members of a herd who are the easiest to take. Their role as a predator keeps herds moving to reduce over-foraging and breaks herds into smaller groups that have less of an impact on the environment, including such areas as stream erosion.
However, Maldonado says human development like commercial and residential buildings, roads, bike paths and fences are currently threats to both mountain lion populations and the prey populations they depend on for survival.
“But as we fragment and encroach on their territory and that of their food sources, we force them to be exposed to situations where they might end up somewhere deemed inappropriate for them.”
Executive Director of The Cougar Fund Penelope Maldonado
“Most predators do their best to try and avoid humans — this is especially true of lions,” Maldonado says. “They are largely solitary and really don’t want to be around us at all! But as we fragment and encroach on their territory and that of their food sources, we force them to be exposed to situations where they might end up somewhere deemed inappropriate for them.”
Human action against lions is a substantial anthropogenic cause of mortality. But Maldonado says there is no evidence that hunting makes communities safer.
While Maldonado acknowledges the cases where mountain lions have taken pets and livestock, she and the WGFD categorize these occurrences as “rare.”
People can help prevent the possibility of mountain lion disruption by ending deer or wildlife feedings in their backyards, sealing off the areas below decks, keeping sheds and garages closed, trimming foliage to reduce hiding spaces and always supervising pets outside. Maldonado stresses that night lighting and night penning work well to protect livestock, as does the use of trained guardian dogs.
Read about ways to stay safe while recreating in mountain lion country here.
While mountain lions are a resilient and adaptable species, they need continued interconnected habitat for their survival. Maldonado says protecting and even expanding habitat is the key to successful coexistence not just with mountain lions but the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem as a whole.
“We cannot pick and choose between the [species] we want or tolerate and those that we want to be more mindful of, if we seek to co-thrive,” Maldonado tells Buckrail.
