The Nature of Things

There was an interesting article today in the science section of The New York Times about the return of the cougar to the eastern half of the continent . The species had been virtually exterminated east of the Rockies by 1900. The last one known to exist in Maine was killed in 1938. The ones that remained in the western states, mainly in the Rocky Mountains, were treated as vermin and they could be shot on sight as late as the 1960s. The Endangered Species Act of 1973 put an end to that. Scientists say that as early as 40 years ago the species started expanding its range. The life cycle of cougars demands that as young males reach adulthood, after about two years with their mothers, they must leave the area and find new places to settle and to find mates. Following that urge, the young males, as well as the young females, began to move east. Their numbers have steadily increased and there are now estimated to be as many as 30,000 in North America. They have recolonized much of the Mi...