Book Smarts – Three Must-Reads for Mountain Lion Callers
Education is one of the most important elements of successful cougar calling. Here’s a reading list to get you started.
In our quest to consistently locate and call the North American mountain lion we knew that education about the animal’s biology and behavior would be key to our eventual success. Dave Martens and I combed through several sources and found these three books to be of great value.
More than just humorous and exciting reads, these books approach the topic of cougars from a hunting & pursuit perspective and are loaded with useful information for lion callers. Two of the books, Lion Tales by Jon Kibler, and The Longwalkers by Jerry A. Lewis, were authored by professional hunters. The third, Soul Among Lions, was written by retired Arizona Game and Fish biologist Harley Shaw. All Three men dedicated the majority of their adult lives to fully understanding cougars and using hounds to track and bay them.
These books have information on travel behavior, mating behavior, terrain preferences, terrain variations, territorial considerations pertaining to “resident” and “transient” cougars, hunting behavior, behavior after a cougar successfully kills, and much more. Anyone with a desire to call these magnificent cats will benefit from these books.
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Mark Healy
Mark,
I loved Soul among Lions. Absolutely stuffed with good information on the Cougar. My #1 book on Puma thus far. Both factually, and from a well rounded, biologist perspective. (I’ve heard Shaw mis-quoted in the “anti-” books many times as if to support their rantings, so I’m glad I read him first!)
I thought Lion Tales was great, enjoyed the hunting accounts, and Kibler’s purist mindset is admirable. But the book was geared more towards hounds and dry ground hound hunting, so I felt a little left out being a caller from the evergreens and loving the snow when it comes. Tons of information for the caller in between the lines though.
I’ve got those two and 6 other Cougar specific books in my collection. Some “outdoorsie” some “naturalist” and some downright “bunnyhugger.” Some of the green books are very good data (Buy used, don’t support them!) but Soul Among Lions covers their tracks and is from a much more realistic perspective.
In addition, Theodore Roosavelt’s “Outdoor Pastimes of an American Hunter” has a long section called “With the Cougar Hounds” which is a great read also. Wonderful story teller.
Longwalkers is next on my list. I’m looking forward to it.
Thanks for the post!
- – Steve
RainShadow Game Calls & Custom Knives
Steve,
As always – Thank you for your insight and great comments. Best of luck to you this season – We hope you score some film footage.
Mark Healy
Mark,
I also enjoyed the Longwalkers. Thanks for the recommendation. It’s from more my kind of Country, as my Olympic mountains, the Cascade mountains, and Lewis’ Rocky mountains are all Northern Mountains with their own subtle personality differences.
Theres plenty of insight into the Cougar for the caller in this one as well. Some of it between the lines, some right there on the page.
Although, it’s interesting, both Lewis and Keibler give alomost the same statement, saying ther is no other way to take the Cougar than with a pack of good dogs! Here we are trying to prove otherwise!
I thought it interesting, I noticed an ego from both men, almost an elitism… but then when I got that “hounds only” from both of them, I found myself rearing up and saying, “Now wait just a doggone minute here, fellas…”
… I guess all of us who pursue the Cougar feel we have something to prove! They don’t have a monopoly on ego, it would appear. (…please forgive me for that right there, and bless the starvin’ pigmys in Africa…amen.)
Great Book!