Mountain Lions breed when?
- Thread starter Heretic
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LionCaller
New member
Originally Posted By: HereticThinking of getting serious about ML hunting. Will be trying to call them in.
Besides setting the call out farther than normal and using appropriate sounds, does anyone know when they breed?
Thanks!
Heretic,
From my research I have learned the following:
Cougars can and do breed at any time of the year. The farther north you travel in the US and into Canada they tend to breed from about December - March. However that is not a hard and fast rule and they females can start an estrus cycle at any time regardless of location.
The gestation period for cougars is about 90 days (give or take a week). I haven't found/read any scholarly data that suggested delayed gestation/fertilization, rather the data I've seen showed kittens being born throughout the year.
Thus, if your question is centered on when is the best time to use mating calls and screams, the answer is any time.
Male mountain lions with established territories have travel circuits that overlap with several females, allowing them greatest opportunity to breed and pass thier genetics forward. Since females can go into estrus at any time, an estrus call can certainly get the attention of a male at any time of the year.
Female cougars in an estrus cycle have been known to scream for hours and hours trying to attract a mate. Once joined by a male the courtship and breeding can last as long as 2 weeks, but most everything I read suggested about a single week was normal.
I have also read a few documents that said the breeding process was very vocal, and both the male and female mountain lions produced different sounds throughout their time together.
Additional note:
Some of the data I read showed that females who are beginning an estrus cycle will begin to give off scent signals to the male lions in her urine. The can happen for several days preceeding her cycle and normally has the effect of attracting a mate to her close proximity just before her cycle begins, thus once the cycle begins her man is not far away.
I haven't figured out an effective way to replicate this behavior, thus I still need to scout for lions and then call into areas that are known to have them. It's still a crap shoot but the scouting will increase success rates.
Here is a video from one of our trail cameras of a female scent marking on a boulder and then checking her mark:
Good luck to you this season,
Mark Healy
Besides setting the call out farther than normal and using appropriate sounds, does anyone know when they breed?
Thanks!
Heretic,
From my research I have learned the following:
Cougars can and do breed at any time of the year. The farther north you travel in the US and into Canada they tend to breed from about December - March. However that is not a hard and fast rule and they females can start an estrus cycle at any time regardless of location.
The gestation period for cougars is about 90 days (give or take a week). I haven't found/read any scholarly data that suggested delayed gestation/fertilization, rather the data I've seen showed kittens being born throughout the year.
Thus, if your question is centered on when is the best time to use mating calls and screams, the answer is any time.
Male mountain lions with established territories have travel circuits that overlap with several females, allowing them greatest opportunity to breed and pass thier genetics forward. Since females can go into estrus at any time, an estrus call can certainly get the attention of a male at any time of the year.
Female cougars in an estrus cycle have been known to scream for hours and hours trying to attract a mate. Once joined by a male the courtship and breeding can last as long as 2 weeks, but most everything I read suggested about a single week was normal.
I have also read a few documents that said the breeding process was very vocal, and both the male and female mountain lions produced different sounds throughout their time together.
Additional note:
Some of the data I read showed that females who are beginning an estrus cycle will begin to give off scent signals to the male lions in her urine. The can happen for several days preceeding her cycle and normally has the effect of attracting a mate to her close proximity just before her cycle begins, thus once the cycle begins her man is not far away.
I haven't figured out an effective way to replicate this behavior, thus I still need to scout for lions and then call into areas that are known to have them. It's still a crap shoot but the scouting will increase success rates.
Here is a video from one of our trail cameras of a female scent marking on a boulder and then checking her mark:
Good luck to you this season,
Mark Healy
LionCaller
New member
Originally Posted By: MOFarmBoyMark, sounds like you need to market some code red cougar scent.
I'm sure there's a joke about those 2 legged cougars in there somewhere...
Lord knows there's someone out there collecting mountain lion urine - the problem would be getting pre-estrus urine and then being in the field for enough days to "freshen" the scent marks frequently enough to get a tom to move in and hang out long enough to then come in and call him. There are a lot of moving parts to this idea.
As far as the two-legged cougars - I am frequently asked what sounds work best for calling in a Scotsdale Cougar.
I always tell them they need to make a sound like a dead-broke, strappin' ASU frat boy with a thing for much older ladies. I'm not sure just how that sounds, but it would have to bring 'em running.
Good huntin'
Mark Healy
I'm sure there's a joke about those 2 legged cougars in there somewhere...
Lord knows there's someone out there collecting mountain lion urine - the problem would be getting pre-estrus urine and then being in the field for enough days to "freshen" the scent marks frequently enough to get a tom to move in and hang out long enough to then come in and call him. There are a lot of moving parts to this idea.
As far as the two-legged cougars - I am frequently asked what sounds work best for calling in a Scotsdale Cougar.
I always tell them they need to make a sound like a dead-broke, strappin' ASU frat boy with a thing for much older ladies. I'm not sure just how that sounds, but it would have to bring 'em running.
Good huntin'
Mark Healy
rainshadow1
Custom Call Maker
Question was well answered above.
A side note, Tom Cougars will kill young, even their own. Some say it's an effort to bring the female back into season. Some say it's territorial. I think it's both. In any case, it's not a warm and fuzzy lifestyle...
There's a trapping outfit in MT that sells cougar urine. Don't know if they have estrous urine or not. They have captive Cougars. And I can't remember the name, he wrote that book... something about a "wolfer"... dang it, can't remember anything today! It was a coyote trapping book, I bought it, read it and then sold it because I wasn't planning to trap Coyotes.
Love that trail cam video, Mark! That's a rare gem!
A side note, Tom Cougars will kill young, even their own. Some say it's an effort to bring the female back into season. Some say it's territorial. I think it's both. In any case, it's not a warm and fuzzy lifestyle...
There's a trapping outfit in MT that sells cougar urine. Don't know if they have estrous urine or not. They have captive Cougars. And I can't remember the name, he wrote that book... something about a "wolfer"... dang it, can't remember anything today! It was a coyote trapping book, I bought it, read it and then sold it because I wasn't planning to trap Coyotes.
Love that trail cam video, Mark! That's a rare gem!
MOFarmBoy
New member
Originally Posted By: rainshadow1Question was well answered above.
A side note, Tom Cougars will kill young, even their own. Some say it's an effort to bring the female back into season. Some say it's territorial. I think it's both. In any case, it's not a warm and fuzzy lifestyle...
There's a trapping outfit in MT that sells cougar urine. Don't know if they have estrous urine or not. They have captive Cougars. And I can't remember the name, he wrote that book... something about a "wolfer"... dang it, can't remember anything today! It was a coyote trapping book, I bought it, read it and then sold it because I wasn't planning to trap Coyotes.
Love that trail cam video, Mark! That's a rare gem!
O'Gorman perhaps?
A side note, Tom Cougars will kill young, even their own. Some say it's an effort to bring the female back into season. Some say it's territorial. I think it's both. In any case, it's not a warm and fuzzy lifestyle...
There's a trapping outfit in MT that sells cougar urine. Don't know if they have estrous urine or not. They have captive Cougars. And I can't remember the name, he wrote that book... something about a "wolfer"... dang it, can't remember anything today! It was a coyote trapping book, I bought it, read it and then sold it because I wasn't planning to trap Coyotes.
Love that trail cam video, Mark! That's a rare gem!
O'Gorman perhaps?
LionCaller
New member
You're right - it is O'Gorman. His company has a whole line of scent, animal urine, and related stuff.
The book Steve mentions is called Hoof Beats of a Wolfer, and it's not ust a trappers book. A guy looking to be a better coyote caller would learn a lot from this book. O'Gorman shares decades of coyote knowledge and there are hundreds of photos of terrain, travel areas, denning areas, etc. Loads of good info.
rainshadow1
Custom Call Maker
Yeah, O'Gorman... Hoofbeats... an encyclopedia of Coyote without a doubt.
VantuckyKain
New member
Everything I have read says anytime of the year. Kittens can be born at anytime also. That is why it so important to make sure there are no kittens with a cougar. Especially in states like WA where it is illegal to kill a female with kittens.
Cougar in heat scent. Not a clue if it is legit or not.
http://www.inheatscents.net/cougar.html
Female in heat. She needs it bad.
Cougar in heat scent. Not a clue if it is legit or not.
http://www.inheatscents.net/cougar.html
Female in heat. She needs it bad.
Last edited:
rainshadow1
Custom Call Maker
Pop quiz! Ok, not really, just gathering ideas...
If you heard that in the field (I did deer hunting once, but had no tools - or clue - at the time...) What would you do?
Great clip Kain!
If you heard that in the field (I did deer hunting once, but had no tools - or clue - at the time...) What would you do?
Great clip Kain!
Heretic
Active member
Originally Posted By: LionCallerThus, if your question is centered on when is the best time to use mating calls and screams, the answer is any time.
That was my question. I called in what I think was a ML back in October. We were out coyote hunting at night on the edge of a narrow but deep, craggy canyon. The sound in the video provided a page back was similar to what we heard. Not as frequent and deeper but certainly what a person would consider cat-like.
We didn't see anything but what what we heard sounded as if it came from a much bigger animal than a bobcat. We only had shotguns with #4. The moon was bright so we didn't want to be out there without knowing what was looking at us. Just walked back to back slowly out of the area and back to the truck.
Thanks for all the info. Will let everyone know if we're lucky this year.
That was my question. I called in what I think was a ML back in October. We were out coyote hunting at night on the edge of a narrow but deep, craggy canyon. The sound in the video provided a page back was similar to what we heard. Not as frequent and deeper but certainly what a person would consider cat-like.
We didn't see anything but what what we heard sounded as if it came from a much bigger animal than a bobcat. We only had shotguns with #4. The moon was bright so we didn't want to be out there without knowing what was looking at us. Just walked back to back slowly out of the area and back to the truck.
Thanks for all the info. Will let everyone know if we're lucky this year.
dtm6582
New member
Originally Posted By: LionCaller
As far as the two-legged cougars - I am frequently asked what sounds work best for calling in a Scotsdale Cougar.
I always tell them they need to make a sound like a dead-broke, strappin' ASU frat boy with a thing for much older ladies. I'm not sure just how that sounds, but it would have to bring 'em running.
Mark Healy
LOL
I've heard the Devil's Martini is the place to make a stand.
As far as the two-legged cougars - I am frequently asked what sounds work best for calling in a Scotsdale Cougar.
I always tell them they need to make a sound like a dead-broke, strappin' ASU frat boy with a thing for much older ladies. I'm not sure just how that sounds, but it would have to bring 'em running.
Mark Healy
LOL
I've heard the Devil's Martini is the place to make a stand.