Mountain Lions: Are they in Northern New England?
By Margaret Gillespie
You are stopping by the country store in a small New Hampshire town for a
few essentials and overhear an animated conversation about a large cat with a
long tail that was seen at first light, skirting a local backyard. The group finally
arrives at the consensus that the creature had to be a mountain lion! You are
left pondering, “But, are there mountain lions in New Hampshire?
Writers are encouraged to approach topics they know best from experience so
that is where I am going to start. In January 2003, two eight-week old mountain
lion kittens arrived at the Squam Lakes Natural Science Center from Montana
to be the focal point of a new exhibit. The male and female littermates had
been orphaned in a mountainous region, and previously cared for through
Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks in Helena. When we first set eyes on them,
we marveled at their spotted camouflage coats and sky-blue eyes. These spots
help conceal young as they cavort around the den entrance but fade to tawny
brown by six months, while eye color changes to dusky hazel. Eyesight
develops so that their night vision is six times better than a human’s and
although mountain lions also hunt by day, they have poor color vision.
Despite being housecat size on arrival, these kittens had huge unwieldy paws
and claws to match, designed to help them eventually catch prey and make
them adept climbers. Perhaps the most surprising aspect of the new arrivals
came as I entered to feed them on one of the first days. The female opened her
mouth as if to meow but a chirping whistle came out – this is how the young
communicate their location to the mother.
As the young mountain lions grew in leaps and bounds, so did their
coordination and development of skills essential to survival as adults.
Ambushing, stalking and pouncing, using each other as prey, became daily
games. Ultimately these long-bodied muscular young animals transform into
athletic Olympians of the natural world – able to jump a length of 30 feet and a
height of 18 feet and run at a speed of 45 mph over short distances! Some of
what gives them the edge over humans is an amazing skeletal structure.
Instead of vertebrae being held together by ligaments, cats’ vertebrae are
connected with muscles, giving them a flexible spine that can arch, twist,
lengthen and shorten. With a vestigial collarbone, mountain lions have their
front legs attached directly to the shoulder blades, giving them the ability to
turn quickly as they follow prey. If these characteristics remind you of Africa’s
cheetahs, your connection is right. Mountain lions are the closest living
relatives of cheetahs!
In April, the two had their first outdoor
experience in their new enclosure.
Cautious but curious and now looking
like miniature adults, they explored the
rocks, logs and stream. In the wild, they
would stay with their mother for close
to two years, refining their hunting
and survival skills. As adults, male
mountain lions weigh between 145 and 165 pounds on average while females
are about 75 to 100 pounds. Ranging over territories from 8 to 500 square
miles, these cats seek habitat in wilderness areas with cover to hide them and
ungulates like deer or elk to provide the major food source. For catching large
prey, they stalk and then leap to the back of the prey, breaking its neck by
biting at the base of the skull. Hare, porcupines, raccoons, squirrels, rabbits,
beaver and muskrats also are part of their diet.
Let’s get back to that persistent question – can you see a mountain lion in
New Hampshire? Mountain lions are found in 12 western states and the
southern tip of Florida. There have been random official reports of these cats
in New England states surrounding New Hampshire and DNA testing on scat
found in 2002 in NH’s Ossipee Mountains was confirmed to be from a
mountain lion. However, answers do not come easily; it is unclear whether the
NH animal was originally a captive, released into the wild.
The mystical mountain lion remains elusive, but not at the Squam Lakes
Natural Science Center! For a sure bet, come and visit our new Mountain Lion
Exhibit, constructed with appreciation to its donors, the Lehner and Kingsbury
families, the Meredith Village Savings Bank Community Fund, the Parker
Nelson Foundation, the McIninch Foundation and the Davis Conservation
Foundation. The mountain lions are here. Come see how they’ve grown!
About the author:
Author Margaret Gillespie is a Naturalist at the Squam Lakes Natural Science
Center, Holderness, NH, a private, nonprofit organization opening a window
to the natural world. For more information visit their website or call (603) 968-
7194; Email: info@nhnature.org.
By Margaret Gillespie
You are stopping by the country store in a small New Hampshire town for a
few essentials and overhear an animated conversation about a large cat with a
long tail that was seen at first light, skirting a local backyard. The group finally
arrives at the consensus that the creature had to be a mountain lion! You are
left pondering, “But, are there mountain lions in New Hampshire?
Writers are encouraged to approach topics they know best from experience so
that is where I am going to start. In January 2003, two eight-week old mountain
lion kittens arrived at the Squam Lakes Natural Science Center from Montana
to be the focal point of a new exhibit. The male and female littermates had
been orphaned in a mountainous region, and previously cared for through
Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks in Helena. When we first set eyes on them,
we marveled at their spotted camouflage coats and sky-blue eyes. These spots
help conceal young as they cavort around the den entrance but fade to tawny
brown by six months, while eye color changes to dusky hazel. Eyesight
develops so that their night vision is six times better than a human’s and
although mountain lions also hunt by day, they have poor color vision.
Despite being housecat size on arrival, these kittens had huge unwieldy paws
and claws to match, designed to help them eventually catch prey and make
them adept climbers. Perhaps the most surprising aspect of the new arrivals
came as I entered to feed them on one of the first days. The female opened her
mouth as if to meow but a chirping whistle came out – this is how the young
communicate their location to the mother.
As the young mountain lions grew in leaps and bounds, so did their
coordination and development of skills essential to survival as adults.
Ambushing, stalking and pouncing, using each other as prey, became daily
games. Ultimately these long-bodied muscular young animals transform into
athletic Olympians of the natural world – able to jump a length of 30 feet and a
height of 18 feet and run at a speed of 45 mph over short distances! Some of
what gives them the edge over humans is an amazing skeletal structure.
Instead of vertebrae being held together by ligaments, cats’ vertebrae are
connected with muscles, giving them a flexible spine that can arch, twist,
lengthen and shorten. With a vestigial collarbone, mountain lions have their
front legs attached directly to the shoulder blades, giving them the ability to
turn quickly as they follow prey. If these characteristics remind you of Africa’s
cheetahs, your connection is right. Mountain lions are the closest living
relatives of cheetahs!
In April, the two had their first outdoor
experience in their new enclosure.
Cautious but curious and now looking
like miniature adults, they explored the
rocks, logs and stream. In the wild, they
would stay with their mother for close
to two years, refining their hunting
and survival skills. As adults, male
mountain lions weigh between 145 and 165 pounds on average while females
are about 75 to 100 pounds. Ranging over territories from 8 to 500 square
miles, these cats seek habitat in wilderness areas with cover to hide them and
ungulates like deer or elk to provide the major food source. For catching large
prey, they stalk and then leap to the back of the prey, breaking its neck by
biting at the base of the skull. Hare, porcupines, raccoons, squirrels, rabbits,
beaver and muskrats also are part of their diet.
Let’s get back to that persistent question – can you see a mountain lion in
New Hampshire? Mountain lions are found in 12 western states and the
southern tip of Florida. There have been random official reports of these cats
in New England states surrounding New Hampshire and DNA testing on scat
found in 2002 in NH’s Ossipee Mountains was confirmed to be from a
mountain lion. However, answers do not come easily; it is unclear whether the
NH animal was originally a captive, released into the wild.
The mystical mountain lion remains elusive, but not at the Squam Lakes
Natural Science Center! For a sure bet, come and visit our new Mountain Lion
Exhibit, constructed with appreciation to its donors, the Lehner and Kingsbury
families, the Meredith Village Savings Bank Community Fund, the Parker
Nelson Foundation, the McIninch Foundation and the Davis Conservation
Foundation. The mountain lions are here. Come see how they’ve grown!
About the author:
Author Margaret Gillespie is a Naturalist at the Squam Lakes Natural Science
Center, Holderness, NH, a private, nonprofit organization opening a window
to the natural world. For more information visit their website or call (603) 968-
7194; Email: info@nhnature.org.
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