Another mountain lion sighting confirmed at Peck Ranch

Among the many interesting things to be experienced when hunting or hiking in our state, Missourians can now include the chance of seeing a mountain lion.

Officially listed as extirpated in Missouri (The last known native specimen was killed in the Bootheel in 1927.), the number of verified sightings has been increasing since the first confirmed one in 1994. There have been a total of 39 verified accounts (mainly tracks and trail cam photos) with 11 of them occurring in 2012 alone.

The Missouri Department of Conservation says that it has never stocked or released mountain lions in Missouri, and it has no plans to do so. It has, however, established the Mountain Lion Response Team to investigate reports of the cats in the state.

The nearest known breeding populations of mountain lions are in Wyoming, Colorado, North Dakota, South Dakota and Texas. As these populations grow, young cats, mainly males, seek new territory. Confirmed reports of mountain lions have increased in several states near Missouri, and now they are here. The majority of Missouri cats whose sex is known have been male and, as of now, Missouri is not known to have a breeding population.

Mountain lions, also known as cougars, catamounts, pumas, panthers, painters, mountain screamers, and several other names, are normally very shy and avoid human interaction. Even people who live in areas with known populations of the big cats rarely see them.

If you do see a cougar, or find evidence of one, the MDC wants to know. You are asked to contact the Mountain Lion Response Team by email at mountain.lion@mdc.mo.gov.

The Missouri Department of Conservation stresses that your danger of mountain attack is small. According to the MDC, "You, your pets, or your livestock are at much greater risk from automobiles, stray dogs, and lightning strikes than from mountain lions."

Mountain lions are protected in Missouri. However, Missouri law makes exceptions allowing people to defend themselves and their livestock.