Mountain Lion

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  • Topic: Cougar, Jaguar, Felidae
  • Pages : 5 (1630 words )
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  • Published : April 18, 2007
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November 9th 2004
Mountain Lions Have Returned: Can We Make Room For Them?
By Jacob Kay
Specific Purpose Statement: To persuade my audience that mountain lions are in trouble, and that we need to address their current situation, and help where it is needed. Thesis: Societies are increasingly endangering cougar's lives as well as their own by continuously infringing more and more on their territory.

I. (Attention Getter) On January 8th 2004, a female bike rider was attacked by a mountain lion who proceeded to drag her off by the head while another bike rider relentlessly tugged on her legs. A. Eventually, the cougar let go, but not before severely injuring the woman. B. As a search crew was looking for the cougar later that day, they happened across another victim of a mountain lion, only he had already been killed. II. (Reveal Topic)This attack, which occurred at Whiting Ranch Park in Orange County has become all too common in Southern California, as well as throughout the Western United States. III. (Establish Credibility) I have been interested in mountain lions for many years and felt it necessary that I research and look into this dilemma that effects so much of the environment. IV. (Thesis) The solution to this problem as usual is not the creature itself, but us, humans. Societies are increasingly endangering cougar's lives as well as their own by continuously infringing more and more on their territory. Unfortunately, our society has chosen to lay the guilt on these cats, instituting recreational hunting seasons, in nearly every state holding a puma population. Body

I. (Problem/info)Mountain lions are very unique and individual animals with many interesting characteristics. A. The scientifically named Puma Concolor goes by any of five names, Mountain Lion, Cougar, Puma, Panther, and Catamount. B. This species is extremely solitary, and has always been known to avoid contact with humans. 1. Cougars are predators who need every bit of their ability to be functioning in order to catch food, and survive. 2. They know this, and are careful in picking their prey, as to which is the most defenseless, for they can not risk an injury that could potentially enable them to hunt, resulting in a long, excruciating death. 3. They are extremely intelligent, and after stalking a person for some time, will realize that although the percentages are in their favor, the risk is higher, as humans are more capable of defending themselves. 4. Hence Cougars tend not to attack humans.

I. (cause/Info)Although mountain lions rarely attack people, when they do the whole world seems to go into a state of chaos, and these animals become America's most wanted. A. The fact of the matter is, according to Paul Beier, a wildlife professor at Northern Arizona, over the last 15 years, there have only been 75 attacks and 11 deaths in the USA and Canada. 1. In Colorado alone, there were only 2 deaths.

2. In this same time period over 4,000 people died in traffic accidents, including 800 pedestrians. 3. You are 2,000 times more likely to be killed by your car or somebody elses, than by a mountain lion. 4. On the same note, you are ten times more likely to be killed by the family dog or your neighbor's dog. (Transition) Mountain lions are not blood crazed monsters looking to kill, but as we expand into their territory which is extremely broad, more encounters become imminent.

I. (problem/info)Cougars are some of the most hardiest animals on the earth. A. They can survive anywhere from the ice cold tundra of Canada, to the Florida Swamps, and all the way down to the tropical jungles in South America. 1. They have survived terrible droughts, famines, and other natural environmental disasters, as well as the most recent problem, humans. B. Once thought to be endangered, even extinct in many areas, mountain lions have made a strong comeback throughout the United States and Canada after bountied hunting was banned in the...
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