Premium ContentMouse over Home then click on Premium Content for information.A female mountain lion kitten caught in a foothold trap in northwest Nebraska was tranquilized and released by the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission.
After the release, the kitten followed the tracks of an adult mountain lion and another kitten that biologists believed to be the kitten's mother and sibling. The kitten weighed about 50 pounds and appeared to be healthy.
The episode occurred Friday in Dawes County.
The trap was legally set. The trapper called Game and Parks immediately after discovering the kitten cougar, as required by the agency.
High pelt prices for bobcats and an increased effort to trap them may have contributed to recent incidental captures of mountain lions in Dawes County, said Sam Wilson, Game and Parks' carnivore manager.
"The trapper did the right thing by calling," Wilson said. "In situations like this, where a mountain lion has not entered a town or come into conflict with people, we may attempt to release it if it can be done safely and the mountain lion is not injured."
Last month, a 120-pound female cougar was euthanized after it became entangled in a bobcat trap in Dawes County.
A conservation officer determined that the mountain lion wouldn't survive if it escaped with the trap and stakes attached to a leg. Two cubs found nearby were old enough to survive on their own.
Anyone with trail camera photographs or other evidence of mountain lions should contact the agency at 402-471-0641.
Contact the writer: 402-444-1127, david.hendee@owh.com
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