Hunters find dead mountain lion in east-central Iowa with snare around neck

MONTEZUMA, Iowa (AP) — Wildlife officials say deer hunters found a dead mountain lion with a broken snare around its neck in east-central Iowa. 

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources says the nearly 120-pound cat was found last Tuesday in Poweshiek County by a group of hunters. 

Mountain lions – also known as pumas and cougars – have no legal wildlife status in Iowa, meaning the hunters could have kept the carcass. Instead, they turned it over to DNR officials.

Department wildlife biologist Vince Evelsizer told the Des Moines Register that the agency will conduct tests on the carcass to try to get more information on the mountain lion’s background. 

Confirmed mountain lion sightings in Iowa are rare.