A group of three adult-size cougars caused a bit of a stir in Hailey over the weekend after the trio was spotted in east Hailey, one of them as far west as Deerfield Park.
There were no reports of the cats in the city on Monday night, but Hailey Police Chief Jeff Gunter said his department is keeping a watchful eye on the situation.
So far the cats have only been seen at night and there are no reports of them causing any problems.
"That's not really a big concern, if people keep their kids and pets in at night," Gunter said. "But if they show up in the daytime in the parks then we might have to get more aggressive and have them tranquilized and move them out of here."
The drama started Saturday night when Hailey police received a report of a cougar near the mouth of Quigley Canyon. When officers arrived however, there were three big cats in the area.
Two of the animals were spotted again on Sunday night near the canyon mouth, but the third was located farther west in Deerfield Park near the intersection of Shoshone and Elms streets.
Hailey police, staying in their vehicles, used police lights both nights to herd the cats back into the canyon.
Big cats have been spotted before within Hailey's city limits, but have usually been seen in the area of the Big Wood River.
"Not recently, but years back," the police chief said.
Idaho Department of Fish and Game Regional Biologist Regan Berkley said the trio is likely a mother and two sub-adult offspring.
"It's not uncommon for older juveniles to hang out with mom for quite awhile," Berkley said. "Chances are good if they're hanging out together they're probably sub-adults. "It's probably a family group."
Berkley said young cougars usually stay with their mother for a year, but will sometimes stay for two years if the mother doesn't have a new litter in the meantime.
"Cats are usually very solitary," Berkley said. "They're not really very tolerant of non-family members."
Fish and Game Senior Conservation Officer Rob Morris investigated the sightings but was unable to locate the cats on Sunday morning.
"To my knowledge, that's the first time I've heard of them in that Deerfield area," said Morris, noting that he heard one report of a cat being seen as far west as the bike path.
"We have mountain lions that use the river as a migration corridor all year around, but these may have come out of Quigley Canyon," he said.
Mule deer, the main source of food for cougars, are plentiful in the canyon.
"I'm hoping those cats have moved out of the area," Morris said.
A group of three adult-size cougars, likely looking a lot like the one shown here, showed up two successive nights over the weekend in east Hailey. The Idaho Department of Fish and Game speculates that the trio is a mother and two sub-adult offspring who have yet to sever the ties with mom. Photo by Mountain Express
