Ed, that article reads the same as what we went through here. The state said they did not exist here. We had a nasty deep snow storm back on new years eve '70. Closed everthing 3' on the level, huge drifts. We lived 500 yards from the river at that time and I remember the neighbors horses in the coral next door. The moutain lion got on back of the appaluosa (snow bound )and ate on his hind qtrs, as he stood. Groosome site looking at the hip bones!
The ranchers around here just shot them, they didn't exist ..no harm no foul. In the early 90's, they finally recognised their existance and put them on the no kill list