This was near the beginning of her walk. She came very close to a cam.
And she paused to sniff with the black tip on her tail so obvious!
The next place where we caught a glimpse of her was deeper in the forest. She moved through the area quickly.
Finally, she hit an area that the bears adore. She was just in front of a sapling that the bears like to mark.
Then, she continued along the same route...
I found this to be a good way to gauge her size. I rode through exactly the same spot a day later (without knowing that she'd been there the day before). I was going in the opposite direction. I scaled both photos exactly the same for the comparison. Based on this photo, I'm guessing that she weighs a bit more than I do but it's probably close.
I loved seeing the daylight photos and video of the mountain lion. More frequently, I get photos like this one, as a storm front moved in and a mountain lion prowled in the fog.
My cams captured video footage at each of those sites, and I put it together into a short video. You can watch it here or at Youtube.
Happy Wildlife Monday!
Such a pretty one on the prowl for something early!
ReplyDeleteMeow!
ReplyDeleteshe is so 'fluid' and so very beautiful.... i love to watch her flow through the beautiful woods. i notice in jan it was 39 degrees and 41 in may, not much difference. i enjoy seeing her in daytime
ReplyDeleteShe looks so healthy and gorgeous. They are so stealthy.
ReplyDeleteThis is so cool to see!
ReplyDeleteThat is one big kitty!
ReplyDeleteThat kitty is for sure Diva of her domain.
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful Mountain Lion.............
Hugs madi and mom
A cat with a mission.
ReplyDeleteWhy would they come out so boldly in the day? Would it be hunger? I am curious to what you think
ReplyDeleteWell, my thinking is that it wasn't exactly the middle of the day. It was fairly early in the morning in a place where no humans have passed the cams in a long time. I suspect the cat was either finishing up a night of hunting or a night of eating - hunting is more likely since she doesn't have a distended belly. After my last cam view of her, she turned directly into the forest, in a general area where lions tend to go to sleep for the day. So, I think that she was just out a little later than usual in an area where that wasn't a cause for alarm to her because it's so untraveled by humans. -- of course, those are all guesses. I wish that we could know her motivation!
DeleteShe sure is a beautiful creature!
ReplyDeleteWhat a special capture. She is just gorgeous and I wonder what she was doing out there in the daylight. Still, so lucky for all of us to get to see her in color, walking in the beautiful woods. Her woods, no doubt.
ReplyDeleteWe never tire of seeing the beautiful big cats
ReplyDeletehugs
Hazel & Mabel
Fantastic photo and videos. I don't know it I would want to go anywhere near where a mountain lion had been
ReplyDeleteHow wonderful to be able to capture her movements!!
ReplyDeleteI always love seeing these beautiful big cats. Thanks again for sharing.
ReplyDeleteYou can just see her strength in every step!
ReplyDeleteShe is stunning.
ReplyDeleteSo amazing to capture her out in daylight, what a treat.
ReplyDeleteKiersten