Tuesday, July 28, 2026
Science

Changes to cougar diets and behaviors reduce their competition with wolves in Yellowstone, study finds

A new study shows that interactions between wolves and cougars in Yellowstone National Park are driven by wolves stealing prey killed by cougars and that shifts in cougar diets to smaller prey help them avoid wolf encounters. The study, published at a time of growing overlap between cougar and wolf...

Changes to cougar diets and behaviors reduce their competition with wolves in Yellowstone, study finds
Image: Phys.org
A new study shows that interactions between wolves and cougars in Yellowstone National Park are driven by wolves stealing prey killed by cougars and that shifts in cougar diets to smaller prey help them avoid wolf encounters. The study, published at a time of growing overlap between cougar and wolf habitats in the western United States, found wolves occasionally killed cougars, but cougars did not kill wolves.

Originally published at Phys.org

The Morning Briefing

Subscribe to our Newsletter

Be the first to receive the latest news, market analysis and updates — delivered straight to your inbox.