Cougar Management Project
WAC has funded this project 100% and it is now complete.
Prior to human settlement, cougars (Puma concolor), ranged throughout North and South America (Young and Goldman, 1946). As land development of North America began, conflict between cougars and humans was inevitable. Reducing these conflicts meant reducing the number of cougars. Bounty payments were offered as incentives for the destruction of cougars, as well as other predators. During the bounty period, cougars were considered vermin. Dislike of cougars was in response to the perceived threat they posed to livestock and human life. In a report on bounty hunting published by the California Fish and Game Department in 1921, J. S. Hunter wrote, "The one predatory animal for which practically no good can be said is the mountain lion." In 1922 Jay Bruce, a state mountain lion hunter for California wrote, "In fact, no animal in California is entirely exempt from the [mountain lion's] bloodthirsty instincts." Management during this time was, in effect, a widespread effort aimed at reducing cougar populations.
By the 1960's, attitudes towards cougars had changed significantly. Since cougar populations had been greatly reduced by this time, the remaining bounties were paid primarily for the removal of cougars known to prey on livestock. There was also an increasing interest in hunting cougars for sport. At the same time, there was a growing public appreciation and concern for the welfare of cougars, as well as many other large carnivores (Nowak 1976). Interests in both sport hunting and conservation prompted changes in management. In 1965, the western states began reclassifying the cougar as a game species. This change in legal status reflected the changing sentiments, but more importantly, it represented the first form of legal protection for the cougar.
The understanding of cougar population dynamics is still in its infancy. The impact of removing a large number of individuals from the population has yet to be determined. Therefore, it is imperative that management strategies regarding the harvesting of cougars be evaluated. The compellation and multi-state analysis of these data may be critical to aid in evaluating the impact management has on the demographic structure of cougar populations.
The proposed study has four main objectives. 1) Descriptive summary of cougar management and management strategies in the twelve western states. 2) Quantitative summary of the harvest (including bounty, hunting and depredation) and composition (total number, sex and age information when available) produced in each of the twelve western states. 3) Quantitative analysis of the harvest and management strategies for each state. 4) Quantitative analysis between the harvests and management strategies in the twelve states.
Total Budget (1 year): US$ 4,820
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