Illegally poached mountain lion found in Taylor Canyon

Friday, Nov. 21 Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) responded to a call in Taylor Canyon when a report came in of a deceased mountain lion. Although the carcass was found at the group campsites at Gunnison City Mountain Park, CPW was able to deduce that the lion had been killed elsewhere and was then moved and dumped at this location.

The female lion had been shot through the chest and its carcass was fresh when CPW first examined it at the scene, so CPW officers could tell that the event had taken place recently. The animal was killed outside of the legal hunting season in Colorado, which officially commenced three days later on Nov. 24, making this an incident of illegal poaching.

“The wildlife belongs to all of us,” CPW Public Investigation Officer John Livingston said. “Part of what makes living in Colorado so special is our wildlife. I think that’s why a lot of us value living here. When somebody illegally takes one of those animals from us, it doesn’t just take it away from one person, it’s taken away from the entire state.”

This specific lion had previously been collared by CPW as a part of a study on mountain lion density in the Gunnison Basin.

“Our state laws require hunters to prepare the meat for human consumption,” Livingston said. “That’s a part of mountain lion hunting in Colorado. People have to harvest the animal and then put the meat to use. In this case the entire carcass was just dumped with nothing taken from it, which we call ‘wanton waste.’”

Alongside the charge of wanton waste, this poaching incident is also an example of “illegal take” — a charge that involves killing an animal without the proper licensure or authorization.

“Illegal take can happen in a lot of different ways,” Livingston said. In this case it was egregiously taking an animal out of season.”

Livingston explained that an in-depth CPW investigation into the incident is now underway, including examining the carcass for any details that may lead to further insight on why and when this event occurred, including a necropsy on that animal, which will help determine an estimated time of death.

“Hunting is highly regulated in Colorado, legally and ethically,” Livingston said. “We follow the North American model of conservation in Colorado where hunting is a tool for population management. Unregulated hunting led to massive declines in wildlife populations before [this] model of wildlife conservation was adopted in our country. Since it has been adopted, populations have really rebounded.”

While poaching any kind of animal out of season or without proper licensure is strictly forbidden, Livingston clarified that if an attack occurs, it is legal to kill a mountain lion in self-defense or if the animal is actively attacking livestock. However, he reiterated that any animal killed in any manner of self-defense must be immediately reported to the closest CPW office.

“Poachers give a stain on hunters and what legal hunters are out there doing,” Livingston said. “It makes it even more important for people like this to get caught or for people to help provide information that can lead to a conviction or an arrest so that we don’t have folks out there getting away with things [like this].”

Livingston encourages anyone visiting or residing in the Gunnison Basin to educate themselves on how to live with wildlife, especially if you are new to the area or unfamiliar with strategies to coexist effectively with certain species. The CPW’s website contains information about living with mountain lions, bears and other wildlife and both CPW officers and local law enforcement are available to respond to situations where a predatory animal seems threatening. They can also provide tips on how to scare off an animal, securing yards, clearing brush to reduce hiding spots, installing motion detection lights and how to keep pets and livestock safe.

“I think that understanding the animal’s behavior is really key,” Livingston said. “What mountain lions will do when they eat is they’ll get a fresh kill, they’ll eat some and then they will do what’s called ‘caching’ where they will drag the animal into a ditch or some shrubs, try to cover it up and will come back and eat it for multiple days until it’s gone. If you see a mountain lion, they’re typically not really looking to get you. They are ambush predators that attack in stealth, so their prey most often won’t see it coming. If the animal is making its presence known or backing you off a trail, it’s likely that it’s got kittens up the road or a fresh kill it’s looking to protect. It’s important for people to understand how they operate and what they are seeing.”

CPW encourages anyone with information regarding this event or the parties responsible for the killing of this mountain lion to come forward.

“We are looking for leads or information anyone might have that could assist us with this investigation,” CPW District Wildlife Manager Codi Prior said in a press release.

Call the CPW Gunnison wildlife office at 970-641-7060 or contact Prior directly via phone at 970-641-7075 or via email at codi.prior@state.co.us.

CPW has a program called Operation Game Thief that pays rewards to citizens who turn in poachers. A citizens committee rewards funds maintained by private contributions to individuals who assist in resolving poaching cases. Rewards approved by the board may total up to $1,000.

If you wish to leave an anonymous tip, you may do so by contacting Operation Game Thief at 877-265-6648 or by emailing game.thief@state.co.us.

“I would like to give credit to a lot of the folks who live in our mountain communities and places like the Gunnison Basin. They’ve been incredible stewards of the wildlife and [natural] resources for a long time and have done a really good job. We don’t typically run into many cases like this in the Gunnison Basin, so when you do encounter one, it is a little alarming and we just want to do the best we can to solve a case like that.”

(Gia Wright can be contacted at 970-641-1414 or jwright@orourkemediagroup.com.)