Research shows cougars on the Olympic Peninsula are isolated from other groups in Washington state
A study recently published by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) is shedding light on how cougars move throughout the state and how cougars on the Olympic Peninsula may be more cut off from other populations, which could spell trouble for the big cats long-term.
An analysis of DNA taken from over 1,900 cougar tissue samples gathered over the last 16 years revealed several genetically distinct populations of cougars in different regions of the state. The analysis showed those populations intermixing, meaning they were able to breed and exchange genetics with different groups.
However, that was not the case for cougars on the Olympic peninsula.
“You would see that cougars from the Cascade Range are also making their way over to the Selkirk Mountains and that, you know, cougars in the Blue Mountains are exchanging with cougars in Oregon and Idaho, and you know, maybe cougars in southwest Washington are intermixing with the southern Cascades,” said Richard Beausoleil, WDFW wildlife biologist and co-author of the study. “It appeared from the genetic analysis is that animals were occasionally able to leave (the Olympic Peninsula) but we weren’t seeing a lot of exchange coming from off the peninsula back onto the peninsula.”
https://www.msn.com/en-us/travel/news/research-shows-cougars-on-the-olympic-peninsula-are-isolated-from-other-groups-in-washington-state/ar-AA16Jaju
Not as many young men in that part of the state /s