http://www.starherald.com/articles/2010 ... 645442.txt
Game officers shoot mountain lion near Scottsbluff
By: MAUNETTE LOEKS, Staff Reporter
Published: Wednesday, October 20, 2010 12:41 AM CDT
Nebraska Game and Parks officials have confirmed that a mountain lion was shot northeast of Scottsbluff Monday night.
Sam Wilson, non-game mammal and furbearer program manager of the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, confirmed that conservation officers shot the mountain lion.
Scotts Bluff County Sheriff’s deputies responded to a farmstead three miles from Scottsbluff after a local resident reported sighting a mountain lion. The report came in shortly after 10 p.m.
Sheriff Jim Lawson said two teenage children jumping on a trampoline had spotted the cougar in a tree in the family’s yard after their dog began barking. They alerted their parents, who contacted the sheriff’s department.
The cougar, identified as a 67-pound young adult female, remained perched in the tree when Game and Parks officers responded, Wilson said. Responding Game and Parks officers determined that the lion posed a risk to human safety and she was killed.
Under Nebraska Game and Parks policy and state statute, mountain lions are a protected species and can only be shot if they pose a safety risk to humans or livestock. In most instances of mountain lion sightings, Nebraska Game and Parks Officials should be contacted.
“There are only a few scenarios where mountain lions can be killed,” Wilson said. “You should not approach wildlife, including mountain lions. If you or another person are at risk, the mountain lion is actively stalking, showing aggression or attacking, there is no reason to wait (to shoot a mountain lion). But, if it is in a tree in a front yard like in this case, it is best to call the Game and Parks Commission and they will investigate.”
Often times, after a mountain lion shooting, the public will ask why mountain lions are not tranquilized and moved to state lands. Wilson explained that 97 percent of Nebraska’s lands are privately owned and there are no public areas large enough to release mountain lions in the state. Other states with large forests or national parks, such as Wyoming and Colorado, have refused to allow Nebraska to release its mountain lions onto their lands.
“(Tranquilizing and moving mountain lions) is an excellent solution in states like Colorado and Wyoming. In Nebraska, we would be taking a mountain lion from one private landowner’s property to another private landowner’s property. … We would just be moving the problem around. We do not want the mountain lions to become habituated to people, where a person could be harmed in the future.
“These situations are extremely unfortunate,” Wilson said. “It is an unfortunate situation where a judgment has to be made onsite.”
cops shoot Nebraska lioness
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Re: cops shoot Nebraska lioness
guess they need to build a park system