The wonders of nature will never end. In the United States of Idaho, a mountain lion that was put down was found to have a set of fully developed teeth emerging from its forehead, as reported by wildlife officials. The lion is reported to have been put down legally by a hunter on December 30th.
“The teeth could be the remains of a conjoined twin that died during conception, or perhaps a type of tumor,” reported Idaho Department of Fish and Game. Biologists in the region have never witnessed such kind of a deformity before.
The lion was hunted down following an attack on a dog in a nearby town of Weston, Idaho. Although the dog survived the attack, the hunter set off to pursue the big cat and killed it a few hours after the incident.
As the law requires, a conservation officer inspected the lion’s body, only to find the set of teeth and a set of whiskers on the left side of the lion’s forehead. Mountain lions, which are a native species of big cats, are quite common in Idaho. They are evasive creatures which rarely come into contact with humans.
Amazing facts about Mountain Lions
Mountain lion is also referred to as puma, panther or catamount. They are territorial animals that thrive in enormous swathes of wilderness. This is according to the US National Wildlife Federation.
The Puma concolar- its scientific name- prey on large mammals such as dear and even smaller animals for example porcupines, deer, squirrels, raccoons, turkey, mice, beavers and rabbits. During winter, their prey species migrate down the mountain to evade the cooler temperatures, usually assembling at the edge of towns or villages. “This often puts predatory mountain lion in dispute with pets, livestock and even humans,” reports Idaho Department of Fish and Game.
Being the active hunters they are known to be, the mountain lions can traverse long distances in search of food. They normally hunt alone, unlike other lions that often hunt in packs, attacking from behind, fracturing their prey’s neck by biting it below the skull. After subduing their prey, they will bury it, leave it, and then return later on to consume it when hungry.
When it comes to population, it is estimated that 30,000 mountain lions reside in the western U.S. One type of mountain lion species, the Florida panther, is seriously endangered with a population of below 100 individuals.
Mountain lions each live independently. They are extremely territorial and tend to avoid other cats, with the exception of the mating season. Their territorial range varies in size, from 10 square miles to about 370 square miles, and often the females have smaller ranges compared to the males.
It is unfortunate that this spectacular creature had to be gunned down from straying off its wilderness.