| MOUNTAIN LION - THE GHOST OF THE
FOREST by Chris
Vargas,
Warrior's Society Most mountain lion attacks happen with stealthy surprise. The mountain lion did not get a reputation as "The Ghost of the Forest" from Native Americans by accident. They are skilled predators and well suited for deadly attacks that seem to come from nowhere. Yes, there usually are sightings before an attack, but when the lion actually attacks it does so by surprise, by ambush coming from behind its prey. If you are by yourself, and a 100 - 150 pound lion leaps and attacks you from behind, wrapping its claws around you and biting into your neck in an attempt to severe your spinal cord - you will have the wind knocked out of you, pounded into the ground, and be confused if not unconscious. I doubt you will have much time to react. Do I blame the lion for doing what our creator intended him to do - be a skilled and deadly hunter? NO. The "Ghost of the Forest" holds an important place in my heart for many reasons. I have only spotted one mountain lion in my travels in the Cleveland National Forest and it was from a vantage point about 1/8 of a mile away. He was a majestic creature. In my own Vision Quest the mountain lion was my spiritual guide. But because I have an affinity for this creature does not mean I do not believe they need to be managed for both their sake and ours. Amidst the panic we need to evaluate how to prevent such attacks in the future. The question that needs to be asked is this: what unforeseen consequences have we created in our rush to create interconnected habitats and in stopping past mountain lion management practices? We want to build reserves and wildlife corridors around communities. These corridors are intended for mountain lions to traverse interconnected habitats. This will bring them into increasing contact with humans and acclimate them to our presence, causing them to lose fear. Over the last few years the Warrior's Society has had numerous reports of lion sightings in Wilderness Parks adjacent to the communities of Laguna, Laguna Niguel, Mission Viejo, Foothill Ranch, etc. Aliso Woods was temporarily closed late last week because of reported sightings and Whiting Ranch, where the attack happened, remains closed. Mountain lions tend to be more wary of humans in areas where lion hunting is permitted. Wildlife managers are able to monitor, track and keep lion populations in check and in balance with natural food sources and existing habitat when regulated hunting is used as a scientific management tool. When Californians were influenced by an emotional media campaign and voted to close lion hunting seasons, wildlife biologists predicted an increase in serious confrontations between mountain lions and people. Sadly but not surprisingly, the predictions were correct. Mountain lions are always potentially dangerous and unpredictable but are seen by the environmental movement as necessary "natural" predators to control deer populations. However, the frequency and likelihood of confrontations between lions and humans can be reduced if lion populations are controlled and other methods are used to control deer populations. When professional wildlife managers are allowed to use all available tools other methods of management can be used to control deer. For example, in some urban areas where expanding deer numbers have caused increased vehicle accidents and other problems, archery hunting seasons have helped to bring the deer population under control in the absence of predators such as lions. Since we made the emotional decision not to control cougar populations, and we want them to traverse in close proximity to our communities, we will have to live with the reality that pets - and people, including children, will be subject to more attacks in the future. The environmental movement is pushing to return large predators, such as the Grizzly Bear, to what was once its former range. I am curious as to what methods of management they hope to apply to the same type of interaction we are experiencing with mountain lions. A recent article in the Los Angeles Times titled "Election Becomes a Fight Over Sierra Club's Future" reported on how animal rights activists are trying to gain control of the organizations board. The environmental movement has increasingly embraced the extreme animal rights agenda (in contrast to animal welfare) and in the process has moved to marginalize the safety and needs of people with an approach bordering on malice. This courting of animal rights organizations to solidify political strength has resulting in disastrous results. To quote from the article regarding humans and animals: "Moreover, club officials argue that members of the two insurgent groups share fundamentally anti-human views, in their opposition to immigration and in their belief that people should take a backseat to other species." When animal rights activists succeed in controlling the board of the Sierra Club, it will complete the Sierra Club's ongoing transformation from what was once a mainstream and well respected conservation organization to a militant ad agency with a $100 million a year budget devoted to telling us that the life of a child is considered on par with the life of a rat. Credible science and professional natural resource management is no longer a foundation for the Sierra Club and other so-called mainstream environmental organizations; they have embraced a consensus based pseudo-science that has as its goal a focus on successful fund raising and changing public policy to suit their emotional and almost religious beliefs of how nature should be - rather than encouraging scientific debate and science based management. People are an integral part of nature with the ability to do great harm to natural habitat or to enhance the future of wildlife living adjacent to urban areas. It is up to us whether we will decide to place our mutual future with wildlife in the hands of professional resource managers and biologists, or continue to follow a radical agenda which fails to address the conflicts that occur in the urban/reserve open space interface. This is the question we should all be asking. |