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Cougars and Bobcats and Bears, Oh My!

Wildlife has sure been in the news lately! From bears in trees in northeast Portland, to cougars spotted at Jackson Bottom, and euthanized in east Portland, our ever-present coyote population, to bobcats prowling our neighborhoods in search of fresh chicken, it seems like an invasion of top predators.

Human reaction to these incidents ranges from fear to outrage. And of course, there’s the question of “Why now?” What has changed to bring these normally “shy” critters into our yards? There are no definitive answers, and the truth is probably a combination of factors.

Puma concolor, image from Wikimedia by Art G.

Certainly, preserving wildlife habitat corridors has contributed. However, coyotes show up in city centers far away from any habitat – did you hear about the coyote that got on an elevator in downtown Seattle? Some lay the blame for the cougar increase to the ban on dog hunting. But that doesn’t explain the bears and bobcats.

And the march of development across ever-greater patches of land crowds these top predators and puts pressure on them to find new food sources. It could be that evolution is breeding wild animals with less fear of humans. It doesn’t take very many generations of selection to bring about such changes. Some Russians bred successive generations of foxes to be tame, and after only about ten generations, they had foxes with curly tails, floppy ears, and very tame and docile behavior.

What’s to be done? The best advice for the safety of your kids and pets is simple prudence. Keep pet food in a protected place where wild animals can’t get to it. Seal garbage cans to deter scavenging. Make sure your chickens and other vulnerable animals are behind predator-proof fencing.

As to the controversy around the euthanizing of the cougar, it’s quite clear that was the only choice. Cougars need very large territories for their hunting grounds. They protect their territory from others of their species, so dumping an unwanted cougar “away from the city,” as some people suggested, is NOT a humane solution. Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife has specific criteria for when an animal must be euthanized, including “Loss of wariness of humans, displayed through repeated sightings of the animal during the day near a permanent structure, permanent corral or mobile dwelling used by humans at an agricultural, timber management, ranching or construction site.

The same is true for most wild animals. Trapping a skunk, raccoon, or other “pest” and dropping it off in an unfamiliar territory, aside from being a tricky and dangerous undertaking, is probably a waste of energy. The animal will be hugely traumatized, and most likely won’t survive in its new “home.” If you prefer the sentimental approach, know that you’re doing it for yourself and not for the animal.

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