Mountain lions (also called pumas and cougars in different parts of the world) can be extremely difficult to catch on camera… but these two just happened to be in the right place at the right time.
As the story goes, a man and his dog were driving near their home in Alberta, Canada when the driver slowed down his car to take in the sight of something that was moving mighty fast through the snowy landscape ahead. He was able to get his phone out just in time to capture a sizable cougar dashing through the snow, jumping over a roadside fence, and then sprinting into a nearby wooded area.
I’m no expert in mountain lion movement, but it certainly looked like it was in hot pursuit of something.
It’s also important to note that only 7,000 to 10,000 cougars are estimated to be living in Canada. Considering the mountain lion population in the United States is believed to be around 20,000 to 40,000, it makes the sighting that was captured on camera by one of American’s northern neighbors that much more impressive.
And like I said, the big cat was likely either running after potential prey, or doing its best to maintain pace with another cougar that it may have been interested in mating with. Breeding time for mountain lions generally runs from December through March, so this wild feline may have been trying to get a head start on the holiday season… if you catch my drift.
The video of the majestic cougar running and jumping through the snow, which was posted by someone named Tina Marie Hayes just two days ago, already has over 100,000 likes. She described the video (and provided additional info) with this caption:
“My husband and his (dog) Hunter saw this yesterday as they were driving down the back road near our place on 492. Be safe near Alsike area, as our other neighbor had a cat and three kittens on his property right north of us walking distance last month! Cougars are out!”
Keep your head on a swivel in the Alsike area.
If what she says is true, the mountain lion population in their neighborhood is already impressive – and growing. Mountain lions are notoriously solitary animals, however there are times when you can spot more than one together. On the rare occasion that may have been playing out in the video above, they’re a courting pair… meaning they’re about to mate.
The other instance would be a mother with her young, like what the Tina Marie Hayes said is happening with her neighbors in Canada. Mountain lions will generally have about three to four kittens per litter, but only half will make it past their first year. The kittens stay with mom for about 18 to 24 months on average, and during that time you can usually find them near mom. Although, once they get closer to two years old, they don’t exactly look like kittens anymore.
They start to look more like the one in the footage below, which can cover a lot of distance – and jump over 20 feet vertically and 40 feet horizontally with a single leap.
