In order to better understand mountain lion interactions with other species as prey, we regularly download data from GPS collars and investigate data clusters that may represent feeding sites. Mountain lions throughout their range prefer deer over any other prey species. They kill deer and return to kill sites over the course of several nights, covering the carcasses with leaves and grasses to preserve the meat and hide it from scavengers.
In areas where deer and bighorn sheep overlap in range, some mountain lions will take bighorn sheep for food. This is a concern especially in areas where bighorn sheep populations are struggling, and critical in areas where bighorn sheep subspecies are threatened or endangered. Thus, understanding factors that influence prey choice of mountain lions is critical for the conservation of other species too.
In the northeastern California study area, we are collaborating with the Institute for Wildlife Studies in their investigation of the ecological interactions between mountain lions and pronghorn antelopes, as these ungulates are of special interest for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. In the northeastern study area elk and feral horses and donkeys are also food sources, and in the Gabilan and Diablo Range areas elk and wild pigs are alternative prey. In all our study areas, coyotes also make up a portion of the diet, as well as small numbers of domestic animals if they are present in mountain lion habitat and are unprotected at night from predators.