LAS VEGAS ( KLAS ) — Wildlife advocates want Nevada to change regulations on trapping to give better protection for mountain lions — the state’s apex predator.
A petition submitted Tuesday to the Nevada Board of Wildlife Commissioners seeks a major change to requirements to check traps, shortening the period to 24 hours. That’s far below current requirements that mandate a 96-hour check.
“Nevada’s 96-hour trap check window is the longest and cruelest in the American West. It’s no wonder that mountain lions lose digits, limbs, and lives in these unchecked devices,” Chris Smith, wildlife program director for WildEarth Guardians, said in a news release. “The commissioners are charged with protecting wildlife. Department data clearly shows that they are failing to protect mountain lions.”
That data showed at least 278 mountain lions were trapped, leaving 24 dead and 11 injured in the nine years surveyed since 2002: 2002-2004, 2007 and 2010-2015.
“Information from the Nevada Department of Wildlife (NDOW) – over 20 years of data – shows that about one of every six mountain lions in Nevada has signs of injury consistent with previous trap or snare encounters,” Don Molde of the Nevada Wildlife Alliance said. “We don’t know how many others die of injuries or starve to death and go undetected. Probably a lot.”