Mountain Lion

Peggy Larson

With a small head, muscular body, powerful shoulders, strong legs, large paws, and log tail, the mountain lion is a consummate predator, stalking and ambushing prey. Deer are their favored food and where you find mountain lions, you'll usually find deer.

Historically, mountain lions ranged in the US from the Pacific to the Atlantic, and in the Western Hemisphere from Canada to the tip of South America. Many early settlers considered them vermin and their numbers and range were reduced.

Today in most states, including Arizona, mountain lions are classified as a game species; in California they are completely protected. Increasingly, mountain lions are being valued for the wildness and wilderness they so nobly represent. The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum is pround to feature a mountain lion as its icon.