Are mountain lions having an adverse effect on the Kofa NWR desert bighorn sheep population?
Q14 The data from our collared lions coupled with existing mountain lion research tells us that the estimated five lions now including parts of the refuge in their home ranges are adding important mortality to a population already significantly stressed by the long-term, ongoing drought. What we know about mountain lion history in the Kofa mountains complex further supports that conclusion. While it is true to say that lions are native to Arizona, all the available data and research tell us that it is equally true to say that a resident population does not appear to have been a natural component of the Kofa in historical times. As late as 1995, an intensive mountain lion survey using trained dogs was conducted in all the mountain ranges that make up the Kofa mountains complex and found no evidence of any mountain lion presence. The record of the refuge tells us that, previously, even transient lions were a very rare part of the Kofa ecosystem. With an expected recruitment into the Kofa
