Holy Bizarre-oh

Can Somebody Call a Wildlife Biologist AND an Electrician?

By Courtney Lowery, 11-04-05

Our friend Bridget Cavanaugh took this photo today at the end of her driveway, just less than a mile outside of Bozeman's city limits. Here's how this mountain lion and this housecat ended up dead, side by side:

Bridget says the lion chased the kitty up an electrical pole and the kitty hit the top wire as the big cat grabbed its back leg (note that the kitty's back leg is cut open), then the big cat hit the second wire. The lion and the kitty were electrocuted and died, dropping to the ground right below the wires. (Bridget knows which cat hit which line because there's still fur on both wires). Fish, Wildlife and Parks picked up the cats this afternoon.

It's an odd story, but also a frightening one for Bridget who has little children. She writes: "It’s to us chilling because our kids play just down the dirt road. We had no idea this mountain lion was living in our pastures, eating young deer and climbing electrical poles to eat the neighbor’s cat." [End of article]

What an amazing story of odd fate...

sad day for felinity

you have been Boing Boinged

How can you live in Montana and not be aware of the fact that Mountain Lions are probably in your vicinity?

I have news for the Lady, there are Grizzlies as well, and more in likely closer than you think.

In reply to D. Dust, I've course I'm aware that Mountain Lions are in the vacinity, and with bear, elk, deer and coyotes continually migrating through our property on the edge of town, we are always on the look-out for scat, carcasses, evidence that wildlife are enjoying what's left of their habitat here too. But today, I've spoken with many long-time Montana natives about cat sitings. Even the FWP were a bit shocked (no pun intended) and none can imagine a nocturnal hunter preying on domestic pets at broad daylight along side a residential road next to the school bus stop.

If you have more helpful news for me, for example, what the heck it means to be Boing Boinged (see 55seddel comment), then I'm all ears.

boingboinged means you've been linked from boingboing.net. this can be a problem if your server isn't robust.
mrc.

Boing Boinged- Check out boingboing.net cause this has made it there. Congrats!

Well, Bridget, you will find that as humans continue to encroach on the habitats of predators, they will be forced to hunt for food in ways they nor us are accustomed. You say 'none can imagine' but there it is. It happened. I guess you don't know as much as you think you do.

you've also been farked now.
how big is that mountain lion? i can't tell if it's just the perspective or if he's really scrawny. i've heard some pretty scary stories about mountain lions preying on people in the past, so this might actually be the best possible outcome (kitty excluded) if this puma was really desperate and in the area

in case you're wondering "farked" means that http://www.fark.com has linked to you.

you've also been fazed.

that means you've been linked from Fazed.net which is much > than either of those other two sites.

Indeed, Fazed is to Boing Boing & Fark as Electricity is to Mountain Lion & Housecat.

[pwn3d]

So this is what happens when someone rubs one out using 2 hands...

Dan... you're an ass

Having grown up in Montana, I'll vouch for the surpise that occurs when run-in's w/ the wildlife you're looking out for actually does happen.
And being a city-dweller now, I can vouch for the frequency of smug, condescending remarks usually coming from small minds who are sadly mistaken in thinking that they're the only ones who know the obvious.
I'm with TDP...Dan, you came across there as a real ass.

Sorry, but Dan's right. He may have said it in nicer terms, but he's spot-on, nonetheless. It is always amazing to me, too, how the folks out in the sticks are surprised that, hey, there's animals out here! And when we colonize their territory, they act unpredictably & violently! The "small minds", Mary, are the ones that don't think their actions have reprecussions.

It *does* look like the cougar is somewhat scrawny. I'll bet it was a young animal, without a territory of its own, looking for some way to eke out a living without a human-free area to move into.

Thats why I choose to not live in the woods with hicks!

Hey Dan & D & Dust et. al. whomever you are, it's quite silly of you to be making sweeping moral judgements and criticisms about a person based on virtually no information whatsoever. I know Bridget pretty well and I'm confident she knows a hell of lot more than any of you about wildlife & living in a rural environment etc. Furthermore, she was sharing this interesting story with the community for your interest, not to invite gratuitious personal attacks. Jeez. On top of all that, not even a real name on these rude statements? C'mon. Give us all a break.

Fark > Fazed

After re-reading the story the morning after, I admit, my "oh-golly-gee" quotes did make me come across as a bit of a nave. As a Mom, my mind spent the afternoon pre-occupied about what could have happened, not how I came across in my disbelief and denial that we do live among predators of all kinds. Perhaps I earned some snarks. But I do know this, when I read about Cat 5 hurricanes destroying lives in urbanized flood plains, terrorist attacks in Paris or mudslides in California, I do not get out my late-night gavel and pass judgement about who they are, where they live, why thy live there and how they respond to potentially life-threatening events. Instead I read with interest and compassion, like most of you. Overall, I'm facinated by this dialouge and our chasms of misunderstanding for one another. Thanks New West for the forum that serves as mirror of our society in general.

I don't see where I made any "sweeping moral judgements", nor any "gratuitous personal attacks". As far as I can tell, there were no "criticisms" of the original writer, only a bit of incredulity that someone could be surprised by this.

Methinks Weber is a bit touchy about this subject. I don't think anyone here said people living outside of urban areas is a *bad* thing (I know *I* didn't), but I *did* say that I'm amused by people out in the 'burbs and boonies being surprised by these types of encounters. When you move into a new area, you shouldn't be surprised if the previous area residents don't suddenly disappear -- human and animal residents. Why "good" "bad" and "morality" have crept into this discussion, I don't know.

Fact is, this is happening all over the world as humans move into areas that up until recently were mostly uninhabited or "wild". This is also being caused by humans limiting the "virgin" areas available to wild animals -- if animals have nowhere to run, they can either die or share the turf with the new arrivals... Alaska, Brazil, California, western China...

The only "rude statement" *I* see is J. Weber assuming what I do and do not know... I think, Weber, you might want to ponder the old saw about what happens "when you assume"... As you pointed out, you don't know me, and you certainly don't know what kind of knowledge I possess.

Jerk.

Bridget, did you really just compare yourself to the victims of terrorist attacks and natural disasters? How pretentious.

I guess I'll take the middle ground... it is a scary thing to know that there are predators down the street, but not something one should be surprised at. There... now everyone has an argument that they can relate to! =) We have the scary predator argument and the not surprised argument all in one nice neat little package.

Hey, Jason, Montanans know about terrorism, they sent Dick Cheney to Congress. Note, I'm from Texas, so we gave the world George W, DeLay, etc. instead of driving a stake thru their hearts & burying them at a crossroads.
Montanans, if you're worried about grizzlies, cougars, etc., carry a blow torch & lighter with you at all times.
Oh, Jason, if you're trying to be the snark king just @#$% yourself up the @#$ and then suck out the @#$.

Dan is still an ass.

By his logic, city dwellers who are victims of violent crimes should never be surprised that criminals live in their midst. And yes, I live in a big city.

Reporter: We are on the scene of a horrible triple homicide. Um, nothing new here. Oh well. Now back to the studio.

d - i'm expressing my incredulity that you don't realize that Dan is an *ss, must be that small mind of yours you spoke about.

i didn't get the "big city edition" of the maps that lay out where humans are encroaching and the colonization zones. i kind of thought that humans were part of "nature" as well; aren't cities the real colonization zones reserved for those who have left their natural habitat and set up stumps to preach from?

i'm sure that bridget is aware there are predators living around her. i think her comment was similar to the standard "ignorant" city dweller who expresses surprise when it turns out that the person in the apartment nextdoor is a mass murdered, rapist, drug dealer...i.e. predator. i don't think many people sit around picking their nose wondering about the ignorance of the innocent next door neighbor.

it's a real jungle out there....

And i dont like gay people!

If you buy a ticket you have to take the ride. Wildlife country = suburban problems.

paulooin: As I said before, Dan could've probably been more kind in how he phrased his statements. He's still right. And, yeah, city folks who are surprised that there's violence and crime in their midst would have to be awfully stupid. Facts of life. Common knowledge. Reasonable & logical conclusions, and all that.

R, I'd have to say you're more of an ass than Dan, but *that* would be a judgement and a "personal attack". Anyone can look at a map and see population sizes ("see, the littler dots mean LESS people, while the BIGGER dots mean more people..."), and if you see a house surrounded by acres of woodland or scrub with nary a person around, it doesn't take much brain power (even you could probably manage) to figure that humans are new to the scene and/or probably not in the majority. Your strawman about the "'ignorant' city dweller" makes no sense to me, as that hypothetical individual would be equally deserving of incredulity. Where I'm from, you're expected to keep your head up and have some recognition of your surroundings, whether you're in Wyoming or Watts...

Cities/villages/towns have been around longer than subdivisions, longer than the US of A, longer than electrical wires, and longer than maps. Hopefully, they'll outlast the provincialism that we're witnessing here ("set up stumps to preach from" my ass). Well, when gas hits $6 a gallon, we'll see how many of these folks are still anxious to live the rural "good life". *yawn*

As we sit back and watch the effects of urban sprawl, wondering, "How the hell did this happen? All we did was tear down some habitat, shove out a few raccoons and bears, and now they're going through our garbage, mountain lions attacking dogs and cats, is there no sanity?!"

First point, mountain lions will eat young deer. It's a known fact.

Second, if the cat had been kept indoors like it should be rather then let it wander around outside to get hit by a car or violate someone elses lawn, this wouldn't have happened.

Frankly, with all the overbreeding of cats and dogs purely for humans entertainment, I feel more sorry for the mountain lion.

"But I do know this, when I read about Cat 5 hurricanes destroying lives in urbanized flood plains, terrorist attacks in Paris or mudslides in California, I do not get out my late-night gavel and pass judgement about who they are, where they live, why thy live there and how they respond to potentially life-threatening events. Instead I read with interest and compassion, like most of you. Overall, I'm facinated by this dialouge and our chasms of misunderstanding for one another."

Jackpot... I love this quote. Not only do you compare your situation (living in an area that has invaded a species habitat) to people struck by unforeseeable events like Katrina or earthquakes. The last sentence is smarmy. Fascinated by this "diolouge". "chasms of misunderstanding". In other words, you just said "i'm bemused by the fact of how wrong you all are", but in newspeak form.

wow! what a story!

I came here through fazed, and I have to agree, fark > fazed.

I like the big cats better than the little domesticated ones, too bad his lunch had to be so silly and go for the power lines.

Wow fun too see what happens when the internet "leet" barrage like gangbusters into the otherwise normally sedate " voice of the ROcky Mountains" via Fazed > Fark , and Boing Boing. Sadly we are rude and full of ourselves I see. Well this will teach them to have such a streamline easy comment posting protoc. Anywho

To the topic at hand: Neat story a big cat and a little cat died like squirrels.

Yes even here in an urban environment we have power failures every year due to squirrels caught in the power lines.

As to the whole debate over suprise over forseeable events. I would say that lots of people can/could forsee that there will/would be catastrophic hurricanes along the gulf coast. I think expressing surprise when things that are rather unlikely happen to YOU is a very normal pheonomenoa. Criticising people for this incredulity is ignorant and typifies people that haven't had a lot of diverse experiences in their personal lives.

It's odd to see the internet mob squad intrude on what is normally a very laid back and local website. Be more polite you asshats.

d - re: small dots and big dots...all true, but small dots don't translate into lesser intelligence--which your original (and follow on) statements implied: "I'm amused by people out in the 'burbs and boonies being surprised by these types of encounters".

i guess then i'm amused by people who choose to live in centers of mass humanity, and then are surprised by the predators they encounter...probably at a higher rate of encounter than the poor boonie-dweller. i don't think it takes much brainpower to realize that it is more dangerous to live in areas full of human predators than a rural area of natural predators.

the only useful thing you've said is that you should keep your head about you no matter where you live. the sad part is that natural predators are only reacting to environmental pressures, while the human variety have chosen to be predators.

i'd add that we shouldn't be so quick to criticize our respective neighbors when they simply admit to being surprised by the events around them. smugness doesn't look good on anyone.

i say 'shopped...

Cool story and awesome picture. I have cats as pets and have dealt with cougars in the wild before, generally in the Guadalupe Mountains (I'm from Texas).
It's too bad that most of the people who have visited this article already lack the capacity to appreciate what an amazing circumstance it is without making some kind of personal, critical comment of their own.
Bridget, some tips:
If you're ever outside with your kids and a cougar comes around, put a child up on your shoulders and look as large and 'scary' as possible. Shouting may help. Throwing things or otherwise provoking the cat is unadvisable; if you can intimidate it he will simply leave.

IN DEFENSE OF BRIDGET:
I've lived in central Washington State for over 8 years (and all over the west before that). We have recently been having more mountain lion sitings in our area, in locations that have been farmed for over 100 years (so this is not an instance of human encroachment). The big game (mostly elk) are also spending much more time now in local hayfields and pastures than anyone can remember. The current theory (held by knowledgeable wildlife experts) is that this change may have to do with logging, and with more hunting pressure in the mountains, with the result of elk/deer being forced out of usual habitats. Predators follow game.

I also have a young child, and the thought that a big predatory animal could be lurking nearby is very unsettling. My hunch is that several of you mean guys who are picking on Bridget don't understand what this feels like.

Fazed > Fark.

"I came here through fazed, and I have to agree, fark > fazed."

"Fark > Fazed"

"Indeed, Fazed is to Boing Boing & Fark as Electricity is to Mountain Lion & Housecat."

ding ding ding, we have a winnar!11!!11!!

paulooin, you can not draw a parallel between violent criminals and wildlife. Criminals are not minding their own business. Criminals are not acting outside their natural behaviour. CRIMINALS ARE NOT INNOCENT ANIMALS.

On the other hand, mountain lions are not malcontents filled with malice. They are creatures that are living their lives the way they have for hundreds of thousands of years. We are the ones that are encroaching on their homeland. We can't simply expect to displace them without any encounters.

Animals live in the wild. That's how nature designed them. When you find them in the wild, it's not shocking. However, if a mountain lion jumped through the window of a school bus and slaughtered all of the children, THEN you can be shocked. THAT is a better criminal to animal analogy.

Crap... "Criminals ARE acting outside their natural behaviour."

Does anyone else think that the cat and mountain lion should be repositioned, side by side, complete with post-coital cigarettes and empty bottles of vin rouge?

I have no beef with BoingBoing, but I do know Fark is for little kids. "OH FARK IS SO GREAT; TOO BAD I CAN'T SAY BAD WORDS OR I'LL GET IN TROUBLE!"

If you want to hear a bunch of pathetic butt pirates give their unsolicited, baseless opinions as if someone cares, go to Fark. If you want to be totally completely awesome, go to Fazed.

HAHAHA you are all retarded for debating such insignificant crap over this article....especially you Dan, you of all people should know better. Shame on you...shame on all of you hahahahahaha

I live in Bozeman, it is pretty shocking to find a cougar that close to the city. Doesn't happen often. Jason: 1 mile out of Bozeman City limits is not the wild. If a cougar showed up in Downtown L.A., you wouldn't say "What do you expect? You just put this city in their habitat, don't act so surprised." Granted a cougar in L.A. would be much more rare, but the fact is it just doesn't happen often here.

Bridget, kudos on your thoughtful, reflective responses to these cretins. Don't cast any more pearls before the swine. Anybody who lives in the country knows what you meant when you expressed surprise. Mountain lions and other wild cats are famously reclusive, so it IS STILL surprising to see one hunting in the daytime in close proximity to humans (that's why it is news, Dan), even in the very famous and vast sprawl of Bozeman!

For my part, I am endlessly entertained by city-folk who caution me about coyotes. I remind them that I am considerably larger than a rabbit or vole, and thus not terribly concerned. I'll risk my kids among the trees versus the traffic ANY DAY!

Got to love some of the people directed here from Fark, Faze (never heard of it), and Boing-Boing, rooting for mountain lions to kill people, presumably children waiting on the sidewalk for the school bus. Makes you wonder if they are as big as jerks in person as they are online.

Cool! This story rules! Wish it could have been George Bush and Robart Mugabe up that pole....yeah

Very intersting story. I'd kinda like to know what the measurements and weight of the big cat is the F.W.P. takes. A followup to this story would be good...

¡This is a preety small puma!.

I <3 you Megadoom.

Fazed>fark + boinboing x1000.

I love the mindless bickering between well-spoken pretentious assholes and overly defensive townspeople from this small web community that have never felt the flames of the hateful internet underground. Arguing on the internet is like running in the Special Olympics. Even if you win, you're still a fucking retard.

Best suggestion I've heard so far..

"Does anyone else think that the cat and mountain lion should be repositioned, side by side, complete with post-coital cigarettes and empty bottles of vin rouge?"