American Lion

This emergent project centers mountain lion hunting in the American West to explore the social, political, and multiplex interspecies relations formed through this pursuit. I will use ethnographic research on puma hunting to interrogate how rural social groups assert their place in local and national debates amidst changing environmental norms. I focus on specifically on hunters’ organization in response to efforts to ban mountain lion hunting in states like Colorado to understand how this niche group of hunters speak with both other hunters and non-hunters to form coalitions and build understanding of their lives and this hunting practice. Critical to both pro- and anti-hunting discourses is an evolving debate over appropriate motivations to hunt and what constitutes a hunting ‘trophy.’

I approach debates over the legitimacy of mountain lion hunting to probe the intersection of law, environment, and identity in rural America. Studying hunters’ political organization offers a novel approach to understanding how identities form in relation to changing conservation law and practices. I am currently pursuing funding to conduct this project.