Dealing with the Wild in Wilderness – Mountain Lion, Bear, Moose

After having 2 encounters of moose family in nearly 4 days, I have realized that my animal whispering-skills are none existent and I should learn what these animals tendencies are. While having fun out here in Utah, I wanted to inform myself of how to prevent attacks, how to handle encounters, and finally how to handle getting attacked. This is what I found about the common animals in Utah: mountain lion, bear, and the moose.


Mountain Lion 
Mountain Lions are one of the most widespread animals in the world, besides humans. They are known as ambush carnivores, so the chance of seeing one is really unlikely unless the lion decides it’s worth the fight to show itself.

Located: Remote mountains, canyonlands, or hilly areas with good cover: Western US/Canada, Mexico, and Florida (endangered there)
Height: 2 to 3 ft
Length: 7.9 ft long Avg
Weight: 115 to 220 pounds
Probability compared to car accidents: Car is ~2,000 times more likely to kill you than a mountain lion.
Awesome Meter: 8
Chance of Seeing: 1

Prevention of Attack:

1) Don’t let small children/dogs wander too far. Mountain Lions see them as easy, small prey.
2) Travel in groups. 2 is minimum, obviously, but 3+ is really best.
3) Don’t camp on treelines. Mountain lions seek shelter in the treelines, instead camp in the wide open and never travel alone even for the dreaded bathroom break. 

If you encounter one:

1) Give it space to flee. It’ll be more freaked out to see you than you to see it.
2) Look big and hold your ground. If you choose to run, the lion will chase you. If you hold your ground with arms up, waving backpack – anything to make you look bigger – the lion will more than likely leave without an attack.
3) Do not bend over. If you do the lion can mistake you for a four-legged-prey animal. Stay upright.

If attacked:

1) Use whatever is around you as a weapon: sticks, rocks, backpack, dirt in the eyes, whatever.
2) Pepper spray. Pretty self-explanatory, it would suck to get hit with that.
3) Fight like hell and stay on your feet.

Random Notes:

1) Mountain Lion’s teeth and fore-claws though are really scary; they tend to rip apart their victims with their hind claws. So if you stay on your feet, while attacked, you will have a better chance of surviving than if you get taken to the ground.
2) Making noise really does nothing for a mountain lion. Chances are, it already knows you are there.

Bear
Bears are known as the king of the forest and very well should be feared. They can rip you apart with their claws/jaws/all that. They are mainly found in the northern parts of the US/Canada. Black bears have been known to be less aggressive to its counterpart the Grizzly. (As I live in the lower 48 and sometimes play in Alaska, I just wanted to research the Black and Grizzly bear. I don’t know if I’ll ever cross a Polar bear.)
Located: In general, bears are mainly found in the northern parts of the US/Canada.

Black bears – Western US/Alaska, all of Canada, parts of Mexico
Grizzly – Montana, Northwestern parts of Canada and Alaska, Yukon Territory, Northwest Territory

Height:

Black – 2 to 3.5 ft
Grizzly – 3.35 ft

Length:

Black – 4 to 7 ft
Grizzly – 6.5 ft Avg

Weight:

Black – 130 to 550 pounds
Grizzly – 400 to 790 pounds

 
Probability compared to car accidents: Car is ~2,000 times more likely to kill you than a bear.
Awesome Meter: 10
Chance of Seeing: 4

Prevention of Attack:

1) Keep distance
2) Make noise. By doing so you will make a bear aware of your presence and it will want to avoid you more than you will want to avoid it. (Well maybe, you’ll be more afraid, since we are a third it’s weight)
3) When camping, keep food away from your campsite and cook 100 yards away from said campsite. Bears have an amazing sense of smell and have been known to chase down a smell miles away. Store food in bear-tight containers and never eat/store food in your tent.
4) Never come between momma bear and baby bear. Momma will attack in defense-mode.

If you encounter one:

1) Back away slowly, making sure to keep your eyes on it. Then once at a safe distance and know that it too has turned around, run.

a. Do not try to outrun a bear outright. It can reach up to 30mph…yeah we run at around 10mph. Don’t try it.
b. Never turn your back to a bear. It’s instincts will kick in and treat you as running prey.

2) Shout at it. Shouting should do enough to scare the bear away.
3) Throw something of yours on the ground (especially food). It may distract it long enough for you to get away.

If attacked:

1) Use bear spray if you have it. It does not shoot like pepper spray for people, but creates a huge yellow cloud that gets shot of the can 15 ft away.

By a black bear:
1) Fight back with whatever weapon you can find.

By grizzly:
1) If you are being stalked, fight back, but playing dead will help the chances of reducing injuries. When playing dead the best position is to leave your backpack on and go into the fetal position with your head in between your legs and your hands/arms over your neck/head. The other option is to lie on your stomach, covering your head and neck again.

Random Notes:

1) Once attack is over, don’t get up right away. Assess what the bear is doing before making any big movements.
2) Using a gun is nearly useless. A bear will continue its charge unless the shot is perfect and the bullet is a .357 (Magnum) 

Moose
Part of the deer family, the moose is the 2nd biggest species just behind the elk. Known to have huge racks of antlers, the ability to run 35mph, and have a short fuse when with a young-one; moose are not to be messed with.
 
Located: USA - Utah, Colorado, Idaho, Wyoming, Montana, Washington, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine, Alaska, and northern parts of North Dakota/Minnesota/Wisconsin/Michigan/New York All of Canada and Northwest Territories & Yukon Territory
Height: 4.6–6.9 ft
Length: 7.9 to 10 ft Avg
Weight: 840 to 1,500 lb
Probability compared to car accidents: Car is ~1,250 times more likely to kill you than a moose.
Awesome Meter: 9
Chance of Seeing: 5 (especially during the fall and later in the day)

Prevention of Attack:

1) Keep a watchful eye ahead of where you are planning on running/hiking/biking. It’s common sense that they hang out at water sources or in big fields of grass.
2) Never threaten them, they will buck back.

If you encounter one:

1) Give it space. When moose feel threatened, like any cornered animal, it will attack and kick the life out of you.
2) If near moose with young babies, retreat from where you came from. They can be extremely aggressive with young ones.
3) Run. Since they are not predatory, they will leave you be unless you further provoke it by throwing things at it. Avoid doing that.
4) They do not do false charges. Never challenge a bluffed attack from a moose. It will attack the first time it shows signs of it.
5) Kicking up hooves, licking lips, pinned back ears, and a bowed head are the warning signs of a potential charge.
6) Hide behind something. Their eyesight isn’t the best.
7) Climb a tree. Moose can’t climb with hooves.
8) Sounds from the moose/baby, leave immediately. That’s the sound of it being threatened.

If attacked:

1) Lie in a fetal-position-ball covering your head and neck. Wait it out. Sounds horrible but it’s your only real option as it stomps on you with its hooves. Eventually it will give up and leave you be. Lie completely still until it is completely out of sight/out of mind. Once that happens seek out help immediately, you’ll need it.

Random Notes:

1) Be careful while trail running or mountain biking, these seem to be the times when people scare these animals the most even though most encounters happen hiking.

I hope this helped you better understand the animals that you may encounter while playing in the mountains. If you have additional suggestions/comments to the list please, please comment below. I am still learning about these animals and don’t claim to know everything about them. I just did research on them on Google to compile this list so anything would help.

Disclaimer: This is not an expert list of how to deal with wildlife. As always consult a professional for further information on the wildlife in the area – aka a ranger. They will know much more. This list is basically to inform but is not meant to be the end-all of wildlife education.