Wyoming mammals

Mountain Lion in Wyoming

Puma concolor

Native to Wyoming S4 Apparently Secure in Wyoming

Not listed as nonindigenous in Wyoming by USGS NAS; native to its Wyoming range.

IUCN Red List status

LC – Least Concern

Widespread and abundant; not at risk.

Photo: Jeff Bartlett · CC-BYMountain Lion (Puma concolor)Photo: Jeff Bartlett · CC-BYMountain Lion (Puma concolor)Photo: Jeff Bartlett · CC-BYMountain Lion (Puma concolor)Photo: Colin Croft · CC-BYMountain Lion (Puma concolor)Photo: Colin Croft · CC-BYMountain Lion (Puma concolor)

Mountain Lion in Wyoming, by the numbers

Occasional in Wyoming 59th most recorded of 126 mammals logged in Wyoming

81 occurrence records

67 with iNaturalist photos

Jan 18, 2026 Last seen in Wyoming

Records from 2000–2026.

81 total records count every Wyoming occurrence from GBIF and iNaturalist; the monthly chart covers the 75 records with a full observation date.

Field encounter

Where and when you're most likely to encounter a Mountain Lion

Most active: Wyoming, in December to March.

Where: WyomingWY
When: December to March

Observe from a distance and give it room. Never approach, corner, or feed one.

When to be most aware of the Mountain Lion in Wyoming

Most sightings fall in December to March.

75 Wyoming occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) by month of year, 2000–2026. Shows when the species is recorded, not a guarantee of presence.

Monthly Wyoming records (table)

Month	Records
January	10
February	6
March	6
April	1
May	4
June	8
July	7
August	9
September	2
October	10
November	4
December	8

Monthly mountain lion occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) in Wyoming, 2000–2026.

Seasonality

Year-round in Wyoming, with recorded sightings peaking in December–March, with a smaller rise in June–August and October.

Occurrence map

Where Mountain Lion has been recorded in Wyoming

81 records mapped · zoom and drag to explore

81 Wyoming records mapped

Where mountain lion encounters are recorded

Park, forest, or monument	iNaturalist records
Yellowstone National Park	10
Grand Teton National Park	3
Gros Ventre Wilderness	2
Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area	1
Washakie Wilderness	1
Medicine Bow National Forest	1

Protected places with the most mountain lion records, from the USGS Protected Areas Database plus named mountain ranges, where encounters are most often recorded, not a full breakdown, so they don't sum to the total. Keep your distance and never approach one.

Where it's recorded in Wyoming

County	Records
Park County	17
Teton County	17
Albany County	8
Sheridan County	6
Carbon County	6
Laramie County	5
Fremont County	4
Lincoln County	3
Sweetwater County	2
Niobrara County	2
Platte County	2
Sublette County	1
8 other counties	8

The complete county distribution, spread across 20 Wyoming counties. Every occurrence record falls in one county, so these sum to the total. Counties from GBIF and US Census boundaries.

Mountain lions hold territories that can stretch over a hundred square miles, and Yellowstone National Park anchors the strongest named record in Wyoming with 10 sightings, more than triple any other single site, spread across Bridger-Teton, Grand Teton, Bighorn, and several other national forests that give this solitary cat the elevation range and cover it needs to hunt elk and deer largely undetected.

Records scatter across June, August, and October with no single dominant month, a pattern that fits an animal active year-round rather than tied to one season. NatureServe rates the species S4, apparently secure, in Wyoming, and most confirmed sightings still come from tracks, kill sites, or trail cameras rather than a direct encounter with an animal built to avoid exactly that.

Occurrence data from iNaturalist and GBIF.

Mountain Lion in other states

View all states →

Full species profile Mountain Lion Puma concolor Size 1–1.5 m3.3–5.1 ft Weight 36–120 kg79.4–264.6 lb Lifespan 20 yr View the full profile

More mammals in Wyoming in the atlas

Data & sources

The data and visualizations on this page draw on these open sources:

GBIFCC-BY 4.0occurrence records behind the range map, elevation, and record counts
iNaturalistCC0 / CC-BY / CC-BY-SAobservations, photos, and audio recordings
NatureServe ExplorerCC-BYthe state conservation rank
IUCN Red Listattributed factthe global conservation status
USGS NASpublic domainnative / introduced status
Natural Earthpublic domainthe relief basemap
USFSpublic domainnational-forest boundaries
USGS Protected Areas Databasepublic domainthe named parks, forests, and refuges behind "notable places to look"