One backyard in British Columbia briefly turned into a catwalk when a cougar casually strutted past a riverfront cabin, much to the fascination of the property’s owner. A Reddit video of the creature shows it walking through the piece of land, demonstrating how human-wildlife interactions have become increasingly common.
What’s happening?
In the subreddit r/trailcam, the poster described how the big cat passed by their off-grid home, eliciting reactions of awe and concern.
“I’ve captured hundreds of deer, dozens of moose, bear, and coyotes with a few lucky bobcats sprinkled in,” the user said. “But this is my first ever cougar! It sauntered by my off-grid cabin on the river where I spend most of my sunny summer days.”
(Click here to watch the video if the embed does not appear.)
One commenter from Saskatchewan remarked that they were hoping to spot one of these majestic cats too, saying, “Bears and wolves are becoming more common, so fingers crossed I get one of these guys.” Their observation pointed to the growing trend of humans encountering wildlife in their neighborhoods.
Why are human-wildlife encounters concerning?
The changing climate has created resource shortages and, coupled with human development, put stress on wildlife habitats, which has pushed animals such as cougars closer to human-occupied spaces.
“Definitely walking through like he’s been there before. Probably part of his territory,” one person observed in the comments. They were likely right; after all, the cougar’s range used to extend across all of Canada, but now cougars primarily live in Western Canada because of hunting, hounding, trapping, poisoning, and deforestation in the early 20th century, according to Exposed Wildlife Conservancy.
The B.C. Wildlife Federation reported that “cougar conflicts with people are common” and “injuries to people, although far less common, have been increasing over the last century.”
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The World Wildlife Fund says that dwindling water and food sources drive both people and animals into overlapping landscapes and lead to more frequent, and potentially dangerous, wildlife encounters. Notably, one study found that a dramatic increase in conflicts between cougars and people led to a response from hunters and, thus, higher mortality in cougars.
What’s being done to manage human-wildlife encounters?
In Canada, the Cougar Coexistence Project works to educate communities about living safely with cougars and reducing attractants. Its goal is to help people coexist with cougars by using science-based, humane strategies to reduce conflict; expand education through signage and outreach; and track cougar movements with trail cameras so resources can be focused where they are needed most.
Globally, governments and organizations are building wildlife crossings and improving land-use planning to preserve contiguous cougar habitat.
As one commenter wrote, the cougar looked like a “nice healthy one too, patrolling like a boss,” a fitting sign of the resilience that still threads through places where people and wildlife meet.
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