Pacific Southwest

Title: Mountain lions: preliminary findings on home-range use and density, central Sierra Nevada

Author: Neal, Donald L.; Steger, George N.; Bertram, Ronald C.

Date: 1987

Source: Res. Note PSW-RN-392. Berkeley, CA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Forest and Range Experiment Station. 6 p.

Station ID: RN-PSW-392

Description: Between August 1983 and December 1985, 19 mountain lions were captured, radio equipped, and monitored daily within a portion of the North Kings deer herd range on the west slope of the central Sierra Nevada in California. The density of adult mountain lions was estimated to be one per 33.3 km²; that of adults and kittens together was estimated to be one per 20.9 km². Home-ranges averaged 265 km² for adult females and 350 km² for adult males. Home range overlap was high among females, among males, and between males and females. Some mountain lions migrated elevationally with the deer, but others remained at low elevations throughout the year. The preliminary results of this study suggest that mountain lions could be limiting the North Kings deer herd.

Keywords: mountain lion, Felis concolor, predators, home range, population density, Sierra Nevada

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Citation

Neal, Donald L.; Steger, George N.; Bertram, Ronald C.  1987.  Mountain lions: preliminary findings on home-range use and density, central Sierra Nevada.   Res. Note PSW-RN-392. Berkeley, CA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Forest and Range Experiment Station. 6 p..