Proceedings of the Seventh Mountain Lion Workshop

82 CRYPTIC COUGARS · Tischendorf
North America today. Across much
of the Great Plains, midwestern, and
eastern portions of the continent the
evidence suggests that in low
densities it does.
3. Using the model of the JAGCT, a
diverse but integrated Conservation
Team should be formed as soon as
possible to promulgate appropriate
changes to the ESA (including even
possible delisting) and to critically
evaluate the long dormant recovery
plan for cougars in the East, which
requires updating to reflect recent
knowledge related to the puma east of
the Rocky Mountains (Tischendorf
1996b, Cardoza and Langlois 2002).
4. As mankind enters this new
millennium, return of the puma to its
former range in the Great Plains,
Midwest, and East provides an
opportunity for wildlife professionals
with limited firsthand experience with
large carnivores to demonstrate their
expertise in scientifically and
sociologically managing this
relatively secretive predator on the
many-faceted modern ecological
interface of private and public lands,
politics, and public opinion.
In today’s anthropocentric world, the
puma, as is the case for large carnivores
everywhere, is unfortunately a victim of its
own three “E’s” - its evolution, its ecology,
and its ethology. Widely ranging, oblivious
to human-delineated boundaries, a large and
potentially dangerous predator that preys
effectively and efficiently on ungulates both
wild and domestic, the puma is an
irrefutable, anachronistic, and controversial
symbol of our primeval wild.
In the end, the message that emerges
today for the puma in the East is this: even
at its highest densities, few people will ever
see a living, wild puma. Certainly we can
PROCEEDINGS OF THE SEVENTH MOUNTAIN LION WORKSHOP
live without this great cat. Even more
certainly, it can live without us. Enmeshed
in controversy, entrenched in folklore,
history, and legend, endangered across a
huge portion of its historic range, the largely
secretive puma presents us with the great
challenge of, and the magnificent
opportunity for, harmonious coexistence.
Hopefully mankind will rise to this rare
occasion to ensure that the puma is again a
celebrated and wisely managed part of our
Great Plains, midwestern, and eastern
wildlife heritage.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This paper is dedicated to the memory of
Frank C. Craighead, Jr., of Moose,
Wyoming, whose life and career were an
inspiration to a generation of wildlife
biologists. Kerry Murphy and Randy
Matchett served knowledgeably and capably
as manuscript referees. A special thank you
is extended to the Wyoming Game and Fish
Department, coordinator and host for this
Mountain Lion Workshop.
LITERATURE CITED
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Bruce Wright and the eastern panther.
Privately published, Fredericton, New
Brunswick. 145 pages.
ALVAREZ, K. 1993. Twilight of the panther
- biology, bureaucracy, and failure in an
endangered species program. Myakka
River Publishing, Sarasota, FL. 501
pages.
ANDERSON, A. E. 1983. A critical review of
literature on puma (Felis concolor).
Colorado Division of Wildlife, Denver.
91 pages.
ANONYMOUS. 1948. Mountain lion killed
in St. Clair County. Alabama
Conservationist. April issue. Page 11.
ANONYMOUS. 2002. Cougar killed in
Minnesota. Page 4 in Eastern Cougar