Montana has not had a mountain lion/human fatality in 100 years

Mountain lion sightings slightly increase

• Mountain lion sightings in the Libby-Troy region have increased a bit over the past month with wildlife officials fielding an above-average number of phone calls from residents. A few incidents involving pets under attack have occurred and lion removal situations have materialized.

 

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks officials said the mountain lions basically follow their food source into town. In most cases, that involves deer looking to feed on lush, green lawns.

"We have had more calls than usual. It's kind of cyclic … we're at one of those times when it's peaking," said Ron Howell, Libby game warden. "We're having a lot of sightings with young cats."

The juvenile mountain lions are establishing their ranges and that could bring them into or on the edge of town.

"We've had a few up in Flower Creek area, Parmenter Hill area and a few sightings around the Farm to Market area," Howell said. "The problem area is Flower Creek with those big drainages right there, they (lions) come down. They are mainly younger cats – mom's kicked them away and they're looking for their own territory."

It is not uncommon to see a mountain lion one day and then not again for some time.

"A female's home range is almost 75 square miles, up to 80 square miles," said Jim Williams, Montana FWP regional wildlife manager. "A male's range is about 250 square miles. You may see one in our area one week and then it moves on."

Phil Kilbreath, Troy game warden, said one mountain lion was removed this summer from the edge of town in Troy.

"When they become habituated to people that live near town or on the edge of town or in rural subdivisions, we generally try to move them," Kilbreath said. "Somebody who lives out in the sticks, that's different than in town."

The region's more rural residents learn how to live with mountain lions.

"Our policy is that we don't tolerate mountain lions in town – whether it's Libby or downtown Kalispell," Williams said. "The gray area is where people love to live in the trees. … Part of the benefit is you get to see wildlife and mountain lions are a part of that picture. They are a threat to your pets, especially small dogs and cats."

More mountain lion incidents have occurred in Libby as compared to Troy.

"A month ago, a lady's dog on the outskirts of town was attacked pretty good by a larger cat," Howell said. "It survived but went through a couple hours of surgery."

Williams said Libby has some of the top houndsmen in Montana and they have helped control lions.

"We've run hounds with the help of great local houndsmen," Howell said. "We've run a few cats to change their way of thinking and go back into the hills. But there are a lot of urban deer and they know where to go for a meal."

Grass attracts deer, which has good fawn crop numbers this year.

"There are lots of green lawns and not very many predators (in town) and lots of people put food out in town," Kilbreath said. "If deer come into town to eat, the mountain lions are soon to follow."

It is illegal to feed game animals, which includes deer, but not turkeys and other birds.

"We have spots around Libby where we get calls of people feeding deer, especially in the winter," Howell said. "It's definitely illegal to feed deer."

Again, folks are advised to keep an eye on pets because they could become a mountain lion's dinner.

"Deer-sized animals, that's what they eat," Williams said. "They are a threat to your pets. They will eat a cat and they will eat a dog that doesn't bark. Keep your dog in at dawn and dusk."

As for being a threat to humans, well, those situations are extremely rare.

"Individual lions become less fearful of people and it's very common to see lions at dawn and dusk," Williams said. "In the middle of the day, human interaction is extremely rare in Montana. There has been one mortality in the last 100 years."