Mountain Lion season in Iowa!

Jason Kendall · May 23, 2013, 09:13:00 PM

This picture was taken by my cousin yesterday right across the road from my deer woods and less than a mile from West Des Moines. Just to the right of them is my Mom's back yard. I will be leaving my stand a little before dark this coming fall :D

The DNR have confirmed the sighting and there will be a story on KCCI news tonight. I am a midwest hunter so I am not quite sure how I feel about big cats in my deer woods but I guess they were there first. I hope to see them myself this weekend even though I know it's not likely.

BUCKY · May 23, 2013, 09:24:00 PM

And I worry about bears here in N.J.!

arrowflipper · May 23, 2013, 09:25:00 PM

Jason that's awesome! I can't imagine sitting beside a tree and have a big cat like that to let out a loud growl. Especially behind me.No doubt i'd leave before dark!

BuckeyeGuy · May 23, 2013, 09:31:00 PM

Very cool and I GUARANTEE you the hair on the back of your neck will stand up if a critter jumps in the brush on your way out in the dark after seeing that. Cool indeed!

Izzy · May 23, 2013, 09:44:00 PM

That hair raising on the back of your neck makes hunting real and all the more savory in my mind.

Cyclic-Rivers · May 23, 2013, 09:47:00 PM

Not mountain lions. Must have been bobcats lol. I've heard that one before. At least they will verify the sightings.

Gary Rieck · May 23, 2013, 09:49:00 PM

Why wouldn't they be there, lot of deer to eat in West Des Moines (plus cats, dogs, raccoons etc.). I'll have to let my son know to keep his camera handy.

tarponnut · May 23, 2013, 09:51:00 PM

I used to teach school in Greenfield, Iowa and one was hit by a car out there. There's definitely plenty of food out there for them.

Jason Kendall · May 23, 2013, 10:00:00 PM

I remember the Greenfield cat story, that was back when they didnt want to admit they were in IA.

BUCKY · May 23, 2013, 10:08:00 PM

They are in N.J. but the "experts" say no. They don't want us to know. They are also in PA as my friend got one on trail cam. He took it to the game wardens and they told him they knew it but keep it quiet.

RUSTY1 · May 23, 2013, 10:11:00 PM

When was probably 16 or so (29 yrs. ago, yikes!!) I was in my mom's car and we were coming down our driveway and we saw one bounding away when our headlights hit it. That was in Sherrill, Ia. right outside of Dubuque!

May 23, 2013, 10:18:00 PM

looks like your gonna have more than just two... :D

kennym · May 23, 2013, 10:37:00 PM

Young males passing thru is what they tell us in MO :D

When I was a young male, I wanted to stay where the young females were tho.........

89redtruck · May 23, 2013, 11:42:00 PM

Saw two together in Arkansas 40 years ago. They walked within 30 yds of me, while I was on the ground. They did see me and in no big hurry turned a right angle into a slight recess and were gone. Six months later I got a call from AR G&F and they wanted to know if they looked healthy & what I thought they weighed. I said I had no idea how to guess the weight of a mountain lion. I told them both appeared grown but one was about 1/3 smaller than the other. The G&F acknowledged that there were some in the state. I don't know what they would say today.

Lefty · May 23, 2013, 11:52:00 PM

That is really cool!

Jason Kendall · May 24, 2013, 07:18:00 AM

I talked to my mom last night and the news said they were probably just stray cats! The DNR wouldnt tell the media about the tracks they seen or the picture, why?

I also found out my aunt who lives a 1/2 mile on the other side of my mom was told by a biker last weekend to be careful in her garden because he was pretty sure he saw a lion down the trail, she told my mom she thought he was nuts at the time! The bike trail is right behind the cats in the picture.

Cyclic-Rivers · May 24, 2013, 07:28:00 AM

I do not understand why The DNR always tries to deny or down play sightings. If they are trying to prevent widespread panic, They should inform people, not lie to them. It does nothing to promote trust.

My guess is either they are up to no good or are trying to avoid all the annoying, cat ate my dog phone calls.

gringol · May 24, 2013, 07:40:00 AM

We get some misinformation about panthers from the fwc down here as well. They insist that there are no panthers in FL outside the very southwestern tip of the peninsula, but I have seen trail camera pics of them in the panhandle. Supposedly young males will travel as much as 1,000 mi in a year. Dont know why the gov doesn't want to admit that lions are making a pretty strong comeback...

Cobie33 · May 24, 2013, 07:47:00 AM

Where I live, I have personally seen one, as have several other residents living in my township over the last 8 years.

A mountain lion was killed a few years ago about 9 miles from my house. A coworker went and viewed the cat the next morning. The DNR agent was just leaving the house when my friend arrived. They discussed the age, sex, weight, etc.

On the noon news on KCRG TV-9 they described the cat as a female, which was what the DNR agent told my friend. It was told the same way that evening on the 5o'clock news. Magically the next day there was a retraction stating that cat was a young male that was just passing through the state, not a female. Heaven forbid if we would think they may be breeding in our state of Iowa, how could they? We have all the necessary food, water and shelter for them to proliferate.

In 2002 I found what I believe to be a mountain lion signpost in the Iowa River Corridor. It looked just like two others I have seen in Wyoming and the Black Hills of South Dakota.

Personally I am glad they are here and look forward to any encounter I could have.

JimB · May 24, 2013, 09:55:00 AM

With a picture like that,it is a very simple matter to have someone go stand right where the cats were and take the same picture from the same position,with the same camera.That completely rules out any conjecture about the size of the cats.

Do you have any pictures of the tracks?