Found the track, how big the cat?

K

Karl in Phoenix

New member
While hunting for coyotes yesterday, I was walking a stream bed and found some day-old mountain lion tracks that were 4-inches wide.

How big would the lion be?

(I know there is a Mountain Lion place to post but thought I would get more eyes on this post in this location.)

Many thanks for your input.
 
Karl, I am no Mt lion expert, but that sounds like the average lion track to me. How much does it weigh is another story. Where the
lion lives and what it eats and how much it eats has alot to do with it's size I'd think. I'm just guessing, I'd think the average western lion is a little over a 100 lbs, maybe around 120 to 150 for males, less for female. I'd also say a few larger ones are lurking out there lol, Good Hunting
 
I'll pass on some information a friend of mine received from Montana Game & Fish personnel last winter when there were two cougars around his neighborhood. One was a male and one was a female. They said you can tell the size of a cat by the number of inches between steps. The one around my friend's ranch had 30" spacing between steps and they told him that was a pretty large cat. I didn't hear any weight guesstimates, sorry.

I did go out to his ranch the week after these two cougars killed three sheep and I did see their tracks about 1/2 mile south of my friend's cattle feed lot!! Kind of makes the hair stand up on the back of my neck knowing I might well be the hunted instead of the hunter!!!
 
Danny B,
Many thanks for your input. I will get a small digital scale to add to my bag of stuff, that way, if I "take" the mountain lion, I can report his weight. (I need a small scale anyway for coyotes and bobcats.) I have not yet taken a lion but have had them walking in my foot prints, seen as I backtracked back to the hunting vehicle.

Silverfox,
Thank you for your input. I will get a small measuring tape and put it in my bag of stuff. I guess the tape measure will come in handy when I bag that mountain lion, so I can report its overall length.

I think it is kinda cool to be sneaking around in lion country, hunting predators where I may be hunted, too. It appeals to my philosophy of "fair chase". However, my hair does stand up when I see those big cat footprints overlapping my own (and traveling in the same direction).

Cheers,
 
Karl,

I have found stride length to be a better indicator of the size of lion for the conditions I hunt in. We were always tracking lions on snow. Different snow conditions can make tracks appear bigger than they really are. Especially if you are looking at a track that might be average sized but partially melted snow can make it look bigger.

Measure from the front of the track. Stretch the tape across and skip the second track and take the measurement to the front of the third track. If you have 34" or less it is a small lion. 38" is a decent sized young male or large female. 41" is a good sized male. 43"-45" plus is huge. You have to take these measurements on flat ground. If the lion is walking uphill or downhill it won't work. The cat needs to be walking also. I have found this to be a better gauge for estimating lion size because powdery snow can make it tough to judge paw size.

Good luck Karl.
 
Lonny,
Many thanks for your input. I will definitely put a small tape measure in my bag of stuff. I had no idea before how much a tool the measure would be until now. Many thanks again.

This area where I found the tracks is snowless at this time. However, it looks like it is right out of the National Geographic TV specials for a non-snow eco-system for mountain lions. I have to keep the Go Rin No Sho All Around Vision in this area for cat ambush.

Gotta love Arizona.

Cheers,
 


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