country1

The mountain lion population is at an all time high,and even the wildlife officials agree this is true. There have been confirmed sightings in the U.S.from the west coast to the east coast and from the U.S./Canadian line to southern parts of the country. Even areaswithout urban sprawl havewitnessed lion encouters. Many very rural areas that have not had mountain lions now have them.Where I am from (very rural area)itis notuncommon to hear another confirmed sighting of a mountain lionin town. It is the same for other small towns in the area. The wildlife officalsalways say our area in not cat habitat, and the mountain lions that are spotted are just transient malesmoving through the area. They don't have much to say when afemale mountain lion is killed or there are pictures/video of mountain lioncubs.Roscoe Villageof Chicago hasexisted fora long time, but two or three years ago they had a mountain lion running around that neighborhood. It was finally shot and killed by the Chicago PD.

It is alarming how many lions have been shot in ND, SD, NE, etc.that were veryclose to schools or recreation paths (sometimes it was just feet away from a recreation path or across the street from the playground of an elementary school). Some werein a tree and others were hiding in tallgrass, bushes or some other cover. They have even found them in drainage ditches andculverts. I knowmore than one farmer whoexperienced a close encounter with a mountain lion intheir farm yard. I know of one hunter who shotoneless ten feetfrom him (the mountain lion was behind him). I know of other hunters who have shot a mountain lion within a few feet of them(some in front of them and some behind them). There have been confirmed cases where a deerhunter was being hunted by a mountain lion. This is one of the reasons why I strongly feel that WI and IL need to have a concealed carry law.Even without a concealed carry law, they should at leastallow bow hunters and rifle/shotgun/ml huntersto pack a loaded sidearm while afield. This should also include state andfederal lands. The wildlife officials where I am from have been quoted that it is only a matter of time before there is an attack by a mountian lion- and this is not an area with urban sprawl. IMO, the same can be said regarding the wolves.