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List of fatal cougar attacks in North America

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"Cougar in area" caution sign, British Columbia, Canada

This is a list of known or suspected fatal cougar attacks that occurred in North America by decade in chronological order. The cougar is also commonly known as mountain lion, puma, mountain cat, catamount, or panther. The sub-population in Florida is known as the Florida panther.

Over 130 attacks have been documented in [1] North America in the past 100 years, with 28 attacks resulting in fatalities. Fatal cougar attacks are extremely rare and occur much less frequently than fatal snake bites, fatal lightning strikes, or fatal bee stings.[2][3][4] Generally, humans are not considered as prey by carnivores, including cougars. Children, however, are particularly vulnerable. The majority of the child victims listed here were not accompanied by adults.

As with many predators, a cougar may attack if cornered, if a fleeing human stimulates their instinct to chase, or if a person "plays dead." Standing still however may cause the cougar to consider a person easy prey.[5] Exaggerating the threat to the animal through intense eye contact, loud shouting, and any other action to appear larger and more menacing may make the animal retreat.

Humans are capable of fending off cougars, as adult humans are generally larger. It is even possible for humans to win a fight against a cougar, such as the case of Travis Kauffman, who strangled a starving juvenile cougar to death when attacked while jogging.[6] Fighting back with sticks and rocks, or even bare hands is often effective in persuading an attacking cougar to disengage, though one should be careful when bending down as it make you look smaller which could encourage the cougar to attack.[7][8] In 2024, four women engaged "hand-to-hand combat" for 45 minutes with a cougar that had attacked and bitten their friend through the face; during the engagement the women pinned the cougar down with one of their bikes, and "at one point the cougar even lifted the bike with the women standing on it." A wildlife officer who was summoned to the scene ultimately euthanised the cougar by gunshot.[9] A person should walk away backwards when confronted by a cougar rather than turning your back on it and a person should avoid getting near a mother cougar's kittens.

Before 1970

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Date Victim Location — Circumstances
August 21, 1868 Child, 3 USA, Oregon, Lane County — "Killed by a Cougar" The Oregon Harold of August 24th contains the following: On the 21st instant, a little child three years old, of Mr. Patton, living on Rear Creek, three miles west of the Long Tom, in Lane county, was killed by a cougar. The child was playing in the yard and within, ten feet of the door of the dwelling, when the cougar sprang upon it from the bushes which grew near the house. The mother seeing the beast drag her child towards the timber, seized a stick and started in pursuit. She attacked the cougar with such resolution that it dropped its burden, and the heroic woman taking the lifeless body under one arm and her only remaining child under the other, made her way to a neighbor's house, a mile and a half distant. Mr. Patton was absent from home at the time."[10]
June 19, 1890 Arthur Dangle, 7, Male USA, California, Siskiyou County — Killed and eaten by two cougars while playing near his home in Quartz Valley.
November 11, 1901 Frank Cook, age unknown, Male Mexico, Baja California — The body of a Norwegian carpenter was found by hunters east of the Santa Caterina Landing. It was partially eaten. The hunters killed a nearby cougar.[11]
March 1, 1904 A. C. Marklein, age unknown, Male USA, Kentucky, Magoffin County — Killed by a cougar in Bushy Cane Creek. The victim and a friend named McCarty both from New York state were attacked. Marklein received fatal injuries.[12][13][14][15][16][17]
January 31, 1909 Child Brown, 2 or 14

*NOTE: Probable false report

USA, California, Balboa — It was reported that a boy was attacked and killed while in a tent near Balboa. News stories variously reported his age as 2 and 14. A local paper reported the following day that the story was a hoax. The paper confirmed the local coroner never received a report of a child suffering a violent death in this manner.[18][19]
July 5, 1909 Isola Kennedy, 38, Female;

Earl Wilson, 10, Male

USA, California, Santa Clara County, Morgan Hill — A rabid cougar attacked a woman and child. Both victims died from rabies, not from the physical injuries. This is the only instance of a double fatality and the only instance where the victims succumbed to disease rather than the injuries sustained in the attack.[20]
August 21, 1911 Child, 3 USA, Texas, Beaumont — Killed by a pet cougar inside his family home.[21]
December 17, 1924 Jimmie Fehlhaber, 13, Male USA, Washington, Olema — Attacked and killed as he tried to outrun a cougar for about 100 yards (91 m).[22]
June 1949 Dominic Taylor, 7, Male Canada, British Columbia, Kyuguot — Killed and eaten while walking on a beach.[23]
1951 Unknown, Female Mexico, Tamaulipas, Tampico — A woman was killed by a mountain lion.[24]
June 1953 Elena Salzar, 5, Female Mexico, Tamaulipas, Tampico — The girl was attacked on a farm 20 miles from Tampico. She was dragged off by the mountain lion, only her clothes were discovered two days later.[24]

1970s

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Date Victim Location — Circumstances
January 1971 Lawrence Wells, 12, Male Canada, British Columbia, Lytton — Wells was attacked and killed by male cougar while he was playing with his sisters.[25]
January 20, 1974 Kenneth Clark Nolan, 8 or 9, Male USA, New Mexico, Arroyo Seco — Killed by a 3-year-old female cougar while on a hike.[26]
July 1976 Matilda Mae Samuel, 7, Female Canada, British Columbia, near Gold River — Killed by cougar while walking on a road.[27]

1980s

[edit]
Date Victim Location — Circumstances
May 16, 1988 Jesse Sky Bergman, 9, Male Canada, British Columbia, near Tofino — Stalked and killed by a four-year-old male cougar at Catface Mountain.[28][29]
September 9, 1989 Jake Thomas Gardipee, 5, Male USA, Montana, Missoula County, near Evaro — Attacked and killed by a cougar while playing behind his home. The cougar was later killed, and a necropsy was performed at the Montana State University veterinary lab, establishing the cougar's role in the child's death.[30]

1990s

[edit]
Date Victim Location — Circumstances
January 14, 1991 Scott Lancaster, 18, Male USA, Colorado, Idaho Springs — Killed and eaten while jogging a familiar route on a hill above Clear Creek High School.[31]
May 5, 1992 Jeremy Williams, 7, Male Canada, British Columbia, Kyuquot — Attacked and killed by a young female cougar while playing in the school yard.[32]
April 23, 1994 Barbara Barsalou Schoener, 40, Female USA, California — Long distance runner and Placerville resident was attacked and killed while jogging on the American River Canyon Trail in Auburn State Recreation Area.[33][34]
December 10, 1994 Iris M. Kenna, 56, Female USA, California — Killed while hiking alone near Cuyamaca Peak in Cuyamaca Rancho State Park.[34][35]
August 19, 1996 Cindy Parolin, 36, Female Canada, British Columbia, Tulameen — Mother killed while defending her 6-year-old son on a horseback riding trip.[36]
July 17, 1997 Mark Miedema, 10, Male USA, Colorado — Killed by an adult female cougar in Colorado's Rocky Mountain National Park while hiking when he got ahead of his family.[37]
October 2, 1999 Jaryd Atadero, 3, Male USA, Colorado — Went missing during a religious hiking trip in the Arapaho & Roosevelt National Forest, partial remains discovered in 2003.

NOTE: this case is highly contentious and experts vary in opinion as to whether or not this was an official cougar attack.

2000s

[edit]
Date Victim Location — Circumstances
January 2, 2001 Frances Frost, 30, Female Canada, Alberta — This Canmore resident was killed by a cougar while skiing on Cascade Fire Road near Lake Minnewanka in Banff National Park. [38]
January 8, 2004 Mark Jeffrey Reynolds, 35, Male USA, California, Orange County — Attacked, killed and partially devoured while mountain biking at Whiting Ranch Wilderness Park. It is believed his chain fell off and the cougar attacked when he bent down to repair his bicycle. His family Terri, Gary and Dona started the Mark J. Reynolds Memorial "Children's First Bike Fund" which provides bicycles and helmets to underprivileged children.[34][39]
June 24, 2008 Robert Nawojski, 55, Male USA, New Mexico, Pinos Altos — Searchers found his partially devoured body on this date near his mobile home. Investigators concluded that he had been attacked, killed and eaten by a cougar several days earlier.[40][41][42]

2010s

[edit]
Date Victim Location — Circumstances
May 19, 2018 S.J. Brooks, 32, Male USA, Washington, near North Bend — Killed by a cougar while biking in the foothills near North Bend. Another bicyclist was injured, and the cougar was found and killed later that day.[43][44][45]
September 11, 2018 Diana Bober, 55, Female USA, Oregon — Killed by a cougar in Mount Hood National Forest on the Hunchback Mountain Trail. The first in Oregon’s recorded history.[46]

2020s

[edit]
Date Victim Location — Circumstances
March 23, 2024 Taylen Robert Claude Brooks, 21, Male USA, California, El Dorado County, near Georgetown — A cougar jumped and killed a 21-year-old who, in company with his 18-year-old brother, was out looking for shed ungulate antlers in a forested area. The brother was also injured during the attack.[47]

See also

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References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Cougar | Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife". wdfw.wa.gov. Retrieved September 22, 2019.
  2. ^ "Citation for claim about lightning strikes".
  3. ^ "Citation for claim about snake bites".
  4. ^ "Citation for claim about bees and wasps". MMWR. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. 68 (29): 649. 2019. doi:10.15585/mmwr.mm6829a5. PMC 6660102. PMID 31344022.
  5. ^ Subramanian, Sushma (April 14, 2009). "Should You Run or Freeze When You See a Mountain Lion?". Scientific American. Retrieved March 10, 2012.
  6. ^ "Remember the Fort Collins trail runner who killed an attacking mountain lion? Here's what his life has been like since". 18 July 2019.
  7. ^ McKee, Denise (2003). "Cougar Attacks on Humans: A Case Report". Wilderness and Environmental Medicine. 14 (3). Wilderness Medical Society: 169–73. doi:10.1580/1080-6032(2003)14[169:CAOHAC]2.0.CO;2. PMID 14518628.
  8. ^ "Safety Guide to Cougars". Environmental Stewardship Division. Government of British Columbia, Ministry of Environment. 1991. Archived from the original on August 23, 2007. Retrieved May 28, 2007.
  9. ^ Wanshel, Elyse (2024-03-18). "Cyclist Tackled Off Bike And Mauled In The Face By Cougar Saved By 'Heroic' Friends". HuffPost. Retrieved 2024-03-19.
  10. ^ "Idaho Semi-Weekly World. (Idaho City, Boise County, [Idaho Territory], Image 1)". September 2, 1868. Retrieved December 12, 2020 – via chroniclingamerica.loc.gov.
  11. ^ "The Salt Lake herald. (Salt Lake City [Utah) 1870-1909, November 12, 1901, Image 1". November 12, 1901. Retrieved April 22, 2017 – via chroniclingamerica.loc.gov.
  12. ^ "The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, March 02, 1904, Image 2". The Indianapolis Journal. March 2, 1904. p. 2. ISSN 2332-0974. Retrieved September 23, 2019.
  13. ^ "Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, March 01, 1904, Image 2". March 1, 1904 – via chroniclingamerica.loc.gov.
  14. ^ "The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kan.) 1892-1980, March 01, 1904, LAST EDITION, Image 5". March 1, 1904. p. 5 – via chroniclingamerica.loc.gov.
  15. ^ "The commoner. [volume] (Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-1923, March 11, 1904, Image 7". March 11, 1904. p. 7 – via chroniclingamerica.loc.gov.
  16. ^ Humanities, National Endowment for the (March 23, 1904). "Der Deutsche correspondent. [volume] (Baltimore, Md.) 1841-1918, March 23, 1904, Image 3". Der Deutsche Correspondent. ISSN 2372-2894. Retrieved October 5, 2019.
  17. ^ "Semi-weekly interior journal. [volume] (Stanford, Ky.) 1881-1905, March 04, 1904, Image 4". Semi-Weekly Interior Journal. March 4, 1904. ISSN 1941-3009. Retrieved October 5, 2019.
  18. ^ "The Deseret News - Google News Archive Search". Retrieved April 22, 2017.
  19. ^ "Aspen Democrat February 2, 1909 — Colorado Historic Newspapers Collection". Retrieved April 22, 2017.
  20. ^ Cheek, Martin (November 10, 2006). "Local Heroine Isola Kennedy Sacrificed Life". The Morgan Hill Times. Retrieved March 14, 2018.
  21. ^ Times, Special to The New York (1911-08-21). "STABS A MOUNTAIN LION.; Texas Farmer Kills Beast That Killed His Child". The New York Times. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
  22. ^ Lowe, Cara Blessley (November 30, 2008). Listening to Cougar. University of Colorado Press. p. 177. ISBN 9781607320364.
  23. ^ "Cougar Trapped, Slain After Killing Boy, 7". The Reading Eagle. June 21, 1949. Retrieved July 28, 2011.
  24. ^ a b "Mountain Lion Kills Girl On Mexico Ranch". The Deseret News. June 20, 1953. Retrieved July 28, 2011.
  25. ^ Lowe, Cara Blessley; Bekoff, Marc (2008), "Deaths by Cougar Attack, 1890-Present", Listening to Cougar, University Press of Colorado, pp. 176–189, ISBN 978-1-60732-036-4, retrieved 2024-08-07
  26. ^ "MOUNTAIN LION KILLS BOY, 8, ON A HIKE". The New York Times. 1974-01-22. Retrieved 2024-08-07.
  27. ^ "Ottawa Citizen - Google News Archive Search". Retrieved April 22, 2017.
  28. ^ "The Province from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada". Newspapers.com. 1988-05-18. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
  29. ^ Dickson, Louise (2019-03-30). "Young B.C. boy attacked by cougars expected to recover". Vancouver Sun. Retrieved 2024-08-08.
  30. ^ "On Mountain Lions, and the Forgotten Story of the 1909 Church Women Mauled by a Rabid Cougar". HuffPost. 2013-03-12. Retrieved 2024-08-07.
  31. ^ "Jogger Apparently Killed By A Cougar". St. Petersburg Times. January 18, 1991. Retrieved August 15, 2010. [dead link‍]
  32. ^ Deurbrouck, Jo (2007). Stalked by a Mountain Lion: Fear, Fact, and the Uncertain Future of Cougars in America. Globe Pequot. p. 171. ISBN 978-0-7627-4315-5.
  33. ^ Raia, James (April 27, 2004). "Athletics: Death by Cougar - Remembering Barbara Schoener". RunnersWeb.com. Retrieved September 15, 2007.
  34. ^ a b c California Department of Fish and Wildlife Nongame Program (2013). "Verified Mountain Lion Attacks on Humans in California (1986 through 2013)". Mountain Lions in California. Sacramento, California: California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Retrieved May 28, 2013.
  35. ^ Deegan, Joe (September 9, 2004). "Mountain Lion Hype". San Diego Reader. Retrieved August 15, 2010.
  36. ^ Zaidle, Don (September 18, 2007). "Killer Cougars". Outdoor Life.
  37. ^ "Mountain Lion Kills Boy Hiking in Colorado Park". New York Times. July 19, 1997. Retrieved August 15, 2010.
  38. ^ "There are cougars around: Attack a stark reminder for Alberta family". CBC.ca. May 27, 2018. Retrieved February 3, 2021.
  39. ^ "Man killed by mountain lion; cyclists also attacked in California". Associated Press. January 11, 2004. Retrieved August 21, 2007.
  40. ^ Search continues for mountain lion that killed Pinos Altos man Archived June 20, 2012, at the Wayback Machine, New Mexico Department of Game and Fish, press release June 23, 2008
  41. ^ Wounded mountain lion captured, killed near Pinos Altos Archived June 20, 2012, at the Wayback Machine, New Mexico Department of Game and Fish, press release June 25, 2008
  42. ^ Second mountain lion captured near Pinos Altos Archived June 20, 2012, at the Wayback Machine, New Mexico Department of Game and Fish, press release July 1, 2008
  43. ^ "Cyclist who died in Seattle cougar attack remembered in Montreal as pioneer for inclusive biking". Retrieved October 12, 2020.
  44. ^ Stevens, Matt (20 May 2018). "Cougar Attacks Two Bicyclists in Washington State, Killing One". New York Times. Retrieved May 20, 2018.
  45. ^ "Former-Topekan-SJ-Brooks-killed-by-cougar-in-Seattle-area". The Topeka Capital-Journal. Retrieved May 22, 2018.
  46. ^ "Cougar apparently killed Oregon woman missing for nearly 2 weeks, investigators say". Fox News. 11 September 2018. Retrieved December 3, 2019.
  47. ^ Ayestas, Jonathan. "Brothers identified after El Dorado County mountain lion attack that left 1 dead, the other injured". KCRA 3.

Notes

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