Maybe We Should Not Be that Afraid of Sharks

[hummingway]

I've lived in cougar country much of my adult life. The only time they show any interest in adult humans is when there are too many cougar for the food supply in the area. In fact they do look at other animals and calculate the cost of trying to take them as food and in the case of an adult male the outcome is far from obviously in their favour. They do have an instinct to spring at a fleeing potential prey and children unaccompanied by an adult are potential prey. A starving animal will behave in a manner completely different from one that is simply hunting however and when, for instance, the deer supply is low or the population of cougars is too high you then have to be more watchful.

[Wishinforwind]

Hummingway: My point exactly. Bravo and well said!

[JayCall]

Years ago, my first wife's cousin and his father were duckhunting in SE North Carolina, up the Waccamaw River. A mocccasin slithered into their johnboat and the cousin lowered his 12 guage and shot the moccasin in the bottom of the boat! Kind of ruined their day!

[Astrid]

They do have an instinct to spring at a fleeing potential prey and children unaccompanied by an adult are potential prey. A starving animal will behave in a manner completely different from one that is simply hunting however and when, for instance, the deer supply is low or the population of cougars is too high you then have to be more watchful.

Watchful is the key word in this case. They also look for the unwary--the easy kill.

The main thing is, when one leaves the land and goes onto or into the ocean, one is leaving one's own turf and entering the domain of some other arch predator, so be wary.

[dinosaur]

I think it works the same way with humans too. When we get lost in the woods and are removed from our usual diet, we have to make due and eat whatever we can. I'm sure there is some insect family out there saying "watch out for humans, they are known to stalk us for food". Say the apocalypse was to roll in here tomorrow... there are plenty of folks out there who would be going without their london broil steak and finding love inside a can of beans.

we can even have fun with this in a social aspect. maybe a guy gets too drunk at the bar. the type of girl he would normally have success talking with don't want anything to do with him. so rather than "starve", he strikes up some conversation with a gal that normally wouldn't catch his eye.

moral of the story...you work with what you got till you get laid off, then you just take anything!

[Pete7]

BBC main evening news had a quick report of a shark attack in the Seychelles this evening.

http://sharkattackmonitor.wordpress....tness-account/

Pete

[zeehag]

ok you guys...whenye find the maneating mako shark and kill it, please freeze its meat and send me some--they taste divine bbq'd over mesquite.....
sorry her hubby was eaten but i wanna eat the mako.......

[David_Old_Jersey]

This thread reminds me of the joke about Tiger Keepers - only 2 kinds, those who have been eaten by a Tiger. and those who haven't..............yet.

Seems odd to me to put oneself at the mercy of the whims of a wild animal / creature - even if statistically the odds are on your side. Easy to confuse dumb luck with skill / knowledge.........

[dinosaur]

Originally Posted by David_Old_Jersey

Seems odd to me to put oneself at the mercy of the whims of a wild animal / creature - even if statistically the odds are on your side. Easy to confuse dumb luck with skill / knowledge.........

very true! we don't see birds walking up to cats and opening up their mouths, putting their heads in, then strutting off after a round of applause...

[Cheechako]

Originally Posted by hummingway

I've lived in cougar country much of my adult life. The only time they show any interest in adult humans is when there are too many cougar for the food supply in the area. In fact they do look at other animals and calculate the cost of trying to take them as food and in the case of an adult male the outcome is far from obviously in their favour. They do have an instinct to spring at a fleeing potential prey and children unaccompanied by an adult are potential prey. A starving animal will behave in a manner completely different from one that is simply hunting however and when, for instance, the deer supply is low or the population of cougars is too high you then have to be more watchful.

Yeah, they are very reclusive really, ive lived in the pac nw for 50 years and only had a quick glimpse of two, even tho I spent a lot of time in the woods. But thats what amazes me about these attacks, sometimes in backyards.

[avb3]

Originally Posted by Cheechako

Yeah, they are very reclusive really, ive lived in the pac nw for 50 years and only had a quick glimpse of two, even tho I spent a lot of time in the woods. But thats what amazes me about these attacks, sometimes in backyards.

I've seen cougar tracks many times, have heard them a few times (very chilling if you never have) and had a very strange encounter with one when I was in my late teens.

I was camping in Jasper National Park with a few friends, and a picture was taken of us under a tree (back in the days of film).

Three weeks later I get a phone call from my buddy, all excited. He informs me of the picture, and there 5 feet above us, is a crouching cougar.

We would have never known, but whenever I think of that picture, a chill runs down my spine.

[Cheechako]

We live on a hill with 18 homes on five acre tracts. Nothing but mountains and woods to the east of us. Last summer we had a cougar around which eventually ended up on the roof of one of the sheds a 1/4 mile from me. Eventually it attacked his horse, the horse survived but needed medical attention. I dont know any reason this cougar was that hungry... there are deer everywhere, rabbits and coyotes in abundance and field mice everywhere. Go figure....

[Wishinforwind]

. Eventually it attacked his horse, the horse survived but needed medical attention. I dont know any reason this cougar was that hungry... there are deer everywhere, rabbits and coyotes in abundance and field mice everywhere. Go figure

..

Lemme guess.. Run down a deer. there is a horse ina locked pen that wont run 20 miles. or if it does run it runs in a circle.

[avb3]

Originally Posted by Wishinforwind

.

Lemme guess.. Run down a deer. there is a horse ina locked pen that wont run 20 miles. or if it does run it runs in a circle.

Cougars preserve energy as much as possible; they don't make a habit of running down their prey, preferring to ambush instead, from behind.

This is what it looks like in real life (ignore the silly girls comments)

[David_Old_Jersey]

Originally Posted by Cheechako

We live on a hill with 18 homes on five acre tracts. Nothing but mountains and woods to the east of us. Last summer we had a cougar around which eventually ended up on the roof of one of the sheds a 1/4 mile from me. Eventually it attacked his horse, the horse survived but needed medical attention. I dont know any reason this cougar was that hungry... there are deer everywhere, rabbits and coyotes in abundance and field mice everywhere. Go figure....

Yeah, but the Cougar scared the Sharks away