State wildlife officials call off search for third mountain lion after deadly attack in Colorado
LARIMER COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) – State wildlife officials are calling off the search for mountain lions in the remote area of northern Colorado where a woman was attacked and killed earlier this week, marking the first deadly attack in the state in over two decades.
Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) says the search ended after authorities killed two of the predators believed to be connected to the attack – including one found with human DNA on its paws – but failed to locate a third after a 72-hour search.
The search came after, on New Year's Day, a woman was found dead by hikers on the Crosier Mountain trail, just north of Estes Park. The hikers reportedly spotted a mountain lion near the woman and threw rocks at the animal to drive it away before attending to the woman, but they were unable to find a pulse.
The attack marked the first fatal mountain lion attack in Colorado since the late 1990s, and the fourth killing in North America over the past decade, according to ABC News.
The Larimer County Coroner has identified the woman who was killed as Kristen Marie Kovatch, a 46-year-old medical assistant from Fort Collins.
The coroner also officially confirmed the injuries were "consistent with a mountain lion attack," with Kovatch's cause of death being identified as asphyxia due to having her neck compressed.
"Our hearts go out to the victim’s family,” Mark Leslie, Regional Manager for CPW’s Northeast Region, said. "This is a terrible tragedy. This hiker did what many people did on New Year’s Day. She went out in nature on the first day of a new year, and the fact that she did not return to her family and friends is nothing short of heartbreaking. We encourage the public to have compassion and empathy for her and her loved ones."
The same day of the attack, two mountain lions were located in the area and shot and killed by wildlife officers, CPW confirmed.
A necropsy revealed that one of the mountain lions that had been euthanized, a young male, had human DNA on all four of its paws.
CPW also says a third mountain lion was spotted in the area, leading the agency to launch a search; but despite CPW officers and houndsmen with trained dogs searching the remote area thoroughly for over 72 hours, no fresh tracks or scents were detected. The search was officially called off on Monday afternoon.
“It is very unlikely that these lions were in such close proximity to the scene by coincidence,” said Leslie. “This [euthanization] is not a decision we take lightly. CPW is charged with protecting human safety. Given the gravity of this situation and the rarity of this type of behavior, this was a necessary, if unfortunate action.”
As of Tuesday, CPW says the Crosier Mountain Trail is back open to the public, and mountain lion signage with messages on how to handle conflicts with the animals remains on the trail.
The agency asks that any mountain lion sightings be reported to them by either contacting the Denver office at (303) 291-7227, the Fort Collins office at (970) 472-4300 or Colorado State Patrol at *CSP (*277) to reach an on-call officer.
Stay up to date with the latest local news, sports, and investigations by downloading the KRDO13 app. Click here to download it from the Apple App Store. Android users can download it from Google Play here.
