Three mountain lions were recently killed in Arizona after it was discovered that they were feeding on human remains near a hiking trail.
The large felines were captured and killed out of an abundance of caution, although authorities in Tucson do not believe that the big cats killed the person they were spotted consuming.
“We thought the risk was too great, and we had to take action,” said Mark Hart of the Arizona Game and Fish Department to KOLD on Wednesday. “Mountain lions are not routinely scavengers. Mountain lions prefer live prey and they’re very good at killing live prey. And there’s abundant javalina and deer in the Catalina foothills, so why it happened in this case, we’re just not sure.”
Hart said that traps were set for the mountain lions and that an adult female and two younger lions, all weighing over 100 pounds, were captured and “lethally removed” because the unusual behavior was an “indicator in the future that they are likely to attack.”
The remains of the person who was eaten were found at the trailhead of the hiking route on Monday evening. An autopsy has been scheduled for Thursday.
