Are There Mountain Lions in Indiana?

Mountain lions, also called cougars or pumas, originally inhabited much of North America, including Indiana and the broader Midwest. However, as European settlers expanded in the 1700s and 1800s, forests were logged and converted to farmland and towns. Simultaneously, hunters eliminated the deer and elk that mountain lions depend on for food. Combined with direct hunting of the lions themselves, these factors drove mountain lions to extinction in Indiana and most of the eastern United States by the mid-1800s. The species survived only in remote western wilderness areas and, in small numbers, in the swamps and forests of Florida and Louisiana. Today, mountain lions are found in western states from Canada to Central America, and a critically endangered subspecies persists in Florida.

Unlikely in the near term, though it is theoretically possible. For mountain lions to reestablish in Indiana, two conditions would need to exist: a large source population nearby and vast, continuous wilderness for them to disperse through. Indiana borders states like Kentucky and Ohio, which also lack mountain lions. The nearest significant population is in the Rocky Mountains, over 1,000 miles away. Recolonization would require a very long dispersal through settled and fragmented land, which is dangerous for mountain lions and unacceptable to most communities. Some eastern states with larger wilderness areas and wildlife corridors, such as West Virginia, have seen rare mountain lion dispersals, but Indiana remains too developed and too far from any source population for natural reestablishment.

Reports of mountain lions in Indiana appear regularly in local news and social media, but virtually all are misidentifications. The most common confusion is with large feral house cats, which can weigh 15 to 20 pounds and look surprisingly large in poor lighting or from a distance. Other misidentifications include large coyotes, which have expanded their range across Indiana in recent decades, or even large dogs. Bobcats, which genuinely live in Indiana, are sometimes reported as mountain lions, though bobcats are much smaller. Very rarely, a young male mountain lion might wander east from the western plains or south from breeding attempts in the Midwest, but such animals are typically transient and either perish or eventually return west. Any confirmed sighting would be an extraordinary event that would attract immediate attention from state wildlife biologists.

Indiana supports several genuine large predators and predator-sized carnivores. Coyotes are now widespread across the state, having expanded from the western plains over the past century. Black bears, while more common in the southern and eastern forested regions bordering Kentucky and Ohio, are increasingly sighted throughout Indiana, especially in fall and winter. Bobcats inhabit the forested areas of southern Indiana, though they are shy and rarely seen. Weasel family members, including badgers and fishers, also roam Indiana woodlands. None of these species pose a serious threat to humans, though coyotes should be respected as wild animals. Visit /wildlife/indiana to learn more about these animals and the habitats they prefer.

You are extremely unlikely to see a mountain lion in Indiana, but here is what one looks like: a large, slender cat with a long, rope-like tail, tawny or gray-brown fur, and a small head. Adult males weigh 130 to 160 pounds and measure 7 to 8 feet from nose to tail tip. Mountain lions have a lean, muscular build quite different from a stocky dog or large cat. Their ears are small and rounded, and their face is relatively narrow. If you encounter an animal in Indiana that you believe could be a mountain lion, take a photo or video if safe to do so and report it to the Indiana Department of Natural Resources or your local wildlife officer. Such a sighting would be historically significant, and biologists will investigate credible reports.

Mountain lions are found across the western United States, from British Columbia and Alberta south through the Rocky Mountains, Sierra Nevada, and deserts of the Southwest, Central America, and South America. In the United States, the best chance to see a mountain lion in the wild is in states like California, Colorado, Utah, Arizona, or the Pacific Northwest, where they inhabit remote national forests and wilderness areas. They are secretive, crepuscular (most active at dawn and dusk), and avoid humans, so even in these regions they are difficult to spot. Florida has a critically endangered subspecies, the Florida panther, which inhabits the Big Cypress Swamp and Everglades, but sightings are rare and viewing is not a realistic tourism goal. Most Americans see mountain lions only in zoos or wildlife centers.

Mountain lions do not currently have an established presence in any state that borders Indiana, including Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Illinois, Michigan, or Wisconsin. However, young male mountain lions, called 'toms,' occasionally disperse from the western mountains eastward, particularly during droughts or when populations are high. A few confirmed mountain lion sightings have occurred in recent years in Arkansas, Missouri, and eastern Oklahoma, as young males have wandered hundreds of miles from the Rockies. These vagrants rarely stay and typically perish or return west. States farther south, such as Louisiana and Florida, have tiny, fragmented mountain lion populations, but again no established population north or west of Florida. For a truly wild mountain lion sighting, travel west to the Rockies or southwest to the deserts.

Although an encounter is virtually impossible in Indiana, here is the protocol for any dangerous large animal: remain calm, do not run, back away slowly while facing the animal, and make yourself appear large by raising your arms. Make noise and show aggression if the animal approaches. Most wild mountain lions avoid humans entirely, and attacks are extremely rare even in the western states where they are common. In Indiana, if you encounter an animal you cannot identify, take a photo if safe and contact your local wildlife officer or Indiana DNR. Keeping pets indoors or on a leash in forested areas is good practice regardless of mountain lions, as coyotes and other predators are genuine risks to small domestic animals in Indiana.