i 9 2 WATCHED BY WILD ANIMALS 



to conditions; and these exact extreme cau- 

 tion. 



The mountain lion may be called sagacious 

 rather than audacious. Settlers in his territory 

 are aware of his presence through his hogging 

 the wild game and his occasional or frequent 

 killing of colts, horses, cattle, sheep, and chickens. 

 But so seldom is he seen, or even heard, that, 

 were it not for his tracks and the deadly evi- 

 dence of his presence, his existence could not 

 be believed. 



Though I have camped in his territory for 

 weeks at a time, and ofttimes made special 

 efforts to see him, the number of lions I have seen 

 except, of course, those treed by dogs is small. 



When a mountain lion is frightened, or when 

 pursued by dogs, he is pretty certain to take 

 refuge in a tree. This may be a small tree or 

 a large one. He may be out on a large limb 

 or up in the top of the tree. 



The lion is a fair runner and a good swimmer. 

 Often he has been known to swim across lakes, 

 or even arms of the sea, more than a mile wide. 

 And he is an excellent tree climber, and often uses 

 a living tree or a dead leaning one as a thorough- 

 fare as a part of his trail system on a steep 

 mountain side. Twice I have seen him on a 

 near-by limb at night watching me or my fire. 

 Once I woke in the night and saw a lion upon 



