Mountain lion and human interactions are rare. Mostly, these wild cats avoid being anywhere close to people. But that doesn’t stop many people from being nervous about hiking in mountain lion country, especially when you learn how fast they can run.
A new video posted to Instagram captures a cougar running down a highway.
Check it out:
Sophia Ritachka recorded this video while driving down a highway. In it, you can see the mountain lion moving nearly as quickly as traffic as it speeds down the roadway.
Ritachka says before she started filming, the cougar leaped from the left side of the highway and jumped over the divider before making it safely to the right side of the roadway. In her post, Ritachka wrote, “I was lucky enough to get a quick video!! What a cool morning!”
Ritachka lives in Montana, a place where there are estimated to be 2,500 matured mountain lions. It’s a significant population when it comes to this wild cat. However, in most cases, the animal will be stealthy and hide from people.
If you see a mountain lion, the first thing you should do is not run. Running could trigger the animal’s instinct to chase, and as you can see in the video, you do not want this animal running after you. Wildlife officials say mountain lions can run up to 50 miles per hour.
If you encounter a mountain lion, stay calm and back away slowly, but do not turn your back on the animal. Make yourself appear large, and you can throw sticks and rocks in the animal’s direction. In most cases, this is enough to scare away a cougar. However, fight back in the rare chance of an attack because your life may depend on it.
