Proceedings of the Ninth Mountain Lion Workshop - Carnivore ...

A New Paradigm for Partnerships in Cougar Research and
Management
Laura Bowers Foreman, Project CAT, Nature Writer and Science Journalist 1105
Greenwood Blvd, SW, Issaquah, WA, 98027, USA laura.foreman@gmail.com
Each biologist must remember the moment when they first knew they wanted to work
with wildlife. For many, it was a book or an article they read or a movie they saw. As a
ten-year-old girl, the movie, Born Free, provided me with the inspiration to work with
African lions. Then in 1969, Maurice Hornocker’s article in National Geographic,
Stalking the Mountain Lion – To Save Him, was the catalyst that eventually led to my
work with America’s lions and to a forestry major in college. Those stories were never
forgotten and that copy of Nation Geographic was kept. It took many years, but the
dream of that young girl became a reality.
This is the power of story. Through stories, we define ourselves and through stories, we
make sense of the world.
Each researcher in the field has the power to create a similar impact. Here is a powerful
paradigm: the partnership between writers and biologists. Each biologist has the
opportunity to help create the story they want the public to hear. Some may want to write
their own stories, such as Maurice Hornocker, biologist, Farley Mowat, who wrote Never
Cry Wolf, and hunter-turned-conservationist, Jim Corbett, who wrote Temple Tiger and
Jungle Lore. Others may want to collaborate with writers to get their story to an
audience beyond their peers working in the field.
Too often, there has been an unspoken but uneasy relationship between scientists and
nature writers. How many have read Sy Montgomery’s Spell of the Tiger or David
Quammen’s Monster of God? Writers like Brenda Peterson, Sy Montgomery, Barry
Lopez, and David Quammen have, through their writing, provided a template of what this
partnership can look like. Public opinion is what drives public policy towards top
predators and too often science has been abandoned in the wake of the sensationalized
press. By collaborating with writers, scientists can get their story into the public
discussion.
Field biologists Gary Koehler and the late Rocky Spencer understood the importance of
working with writers. After reading my essay in Earthlight Magazine in which I told
the story of teaching my children to live in cougar country, the biologists agreed to let me
observe and write about their work. As a result of their efforts and willingness to work
with writers and reporters, a number of stories about CAT have been published. Articles
about Project CAT have appeared locally, regionally and nationally and in each, the
project is presented from different perspectives.
On New Year’s Day, 2004, the Yakima Herald printed a front-page story, beginning
with the genesis of Project CAT:
Proceedings of the Ninth Mountain Lion Workshop
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