Letter writer Todd Stephens is correct in his assertions that the “Eastern puma” is on the endangered species list. This cat is found in south Florida, not in Georgia.
But to a layperson who knows nothing about cougars, except for what he has heard about them - that they are flesh eaters and have attacked and killed humans – seeing one in close proximity probably would prompt killing it.
The mountain lions of the western states have begun to be emboldened as the suburbs expand into their hunting grounds. They now stalk and hunt prey during the daylight hours.
In Boulder, Colorado, it is common to see a cougar in back yards that face open spaces and at the foothills of the mountains. They are drawn by numerous deer and dogs and cats. Lone hikers and joggers have been stalked and killed.
At the beginning of trail heads are signs warning hikes of the presence of lions and advice on what to do to avoid a confrontation.
When lions are sighted in a neighborhood, parents keep their young children indoors. A wildlife officer will shoot a tranquilizer dart in it, cage it and take it to a more remote area in the mountains. Killing one is a last resort.
Knowing what I know about mountain lions, I don’t think that I would take the chance that it might not attack me. If I was adequately armed, I think I would kill it, too.
Bill Neil
124 Foxdale Drive
(former Boulder resident)
Cougars are tought what to eat by thier mamas- if mama doesn't eat people, babies don't learn to eat people. Attatcks are awful, no argument here, but so very rare, and due mostly to human encroachment, not cougar meanness.
I believe the hunter either shot out of panic, or in order to have an unusual trophy. Either way, it's at leas unfortunate, and if the cat turns out to be one of the extraordinarily rare eastern pumas, then it is a tradgedy as well.