Each Friday, I make every effort to participate in Dr. Michelle LaRue‘s world renowned Twitter game Cougar or Not. The principle of the game is simple: Dr. LaRue posts a photo of… well, an animal at least, and participants are invited to state whether they think it’s a cougar – or not – and if they so chose, explain why they think this.
Of course, not everyone is an expert at identifying Cougars. Indeed, they can be extremely tricky to positively distinguish from a number of other creatures when seen from a distance, in poor light, or only for a brief moment.
As luck would have it, a copy of Jonathan A. Jenks’ new Mountain Lions of the Black Hills; History and Ecology reached my desk the same day as this image was posted to Cougar or Not. (I’m pretty sure that it is.)
I can’t say that reading Professor Jenks’ book will improve your Cougar or Not skills, but it will present you with a wealth of information regarding the dynamics of the diet, nutrition, diseases, behavior, genetics, prey base, and a number of other important topics pertaining to these much misunderstood and increasingly imperiled animals.
