Roaming
While female mountain lions generally remain in the region of their birth, young males leave home and cross vast distances in search of mates. In one study of mountain lions in the Black Hills of South Dakota, the eastern edge of the species' contemporary range, young males traveled an average of 160 miles from home; the longest journey was more than 600 miles, ending near Oklahoma City.
Even that voyage was a pit stop for another Black Hills mountain lion killed on a Connecticut highway in 2011. Subsequent genetic tests showed that hair and blood left at animal kills in Minnesota and Wisconsin belonged to that same lion, which ultimately roamed more than 1,800 miles.
Image: D.J. Thompson & J.A. Jenks/Ecosphere