Several Mountain Lions Have Been Spotted Wandering Through Boulder Recently
OutdoorHub Editor: Keenan Crow 04.20.20
While residents of Colorado have been cooped up inside their homes because of the coronavirus outbreak and record-breaking snow storms, several mountain lions have been seen prowling around the Boulder area recently.
Facebook user David Gross posted video late last week, showing two mountain lions strolling down the snowy streets of a neighborhood. And this isn’t the only lion sighting reported in Boulder lately..
If that’s not enough, photos of three mountain lions sauntering through the north Boulder area have also been going around social media lately, with Boulder police confirming they have also received calls about the animals.
Short straw gets to go tell the mountain lions they are not social distancing properly… Taken by reader KB in north #Boulder over the weekend pic.twitter.com/dcl1XzcdJY
— Mitchell Byars (@mitchellbyars) March 23, 2020
From a herd of goats taking over a Welsh town, to large predator cats walking down the streets, it certainly seems like wildlife is expanding their territories while we’re all sequestered inside our homes. Though according to Tyler Asnicar, CPW district wildlife manager for north Boulder County, that idea is still up for debate.
“Particularly in Boulder, it’s not uncommon to see mountain lions,” he said. Asnicar added that the animals probably spend a lot more time in and around town than most would care to think about, citing a study conducted by Mat Alldredge of CPW.
“So I think it’s just more of a function of people are at home to see them out and about, versus – prior to the COVID stuff – people may have been at work and busy otherwise,” he said.
Colorado Parks and Wildlife spokesperson, Jason Clay, agreed that sightings during this time of year is normal. Actually, he says the number has been lower this year.
“The last I heard is that sightings have gone down, and mountain lion activity at this time of year is usual,” said Clay. “As April progresses into May, sightings will go down. We typically see a drop-off in lion sightings in rural areas for May and June.”