A hunt is underway for a mountain lion who attacked a man at a campsite in Arizona.
The 64-year-old victim had been camping with a group of rafters near the Salt River in Gila County on March 16 when the mountain lion struck, county officials said in a statement.
A group of 10 other rafters attempted to fight the mountain lion off with their paddles until it eventually backed away, and left the man alone. They then escaped the scene using their rafts to get to safety.
Gila County and Animal Care and Control officers said the mountain lion responsible remains "at large." Officials have launched a search for the lion and are continuing to investigate the incident.
"The attack happened 21 miles downstream from the Salt River bridge, [in] the White Mountain Apache Nation—which is the north side of the Salt River, in an especially remote area," JC Castaneda, Animal Care & Control Program Manager for Gila County told Newsweek in an email.
The victim is "doing well," but is still "very sore from the attack," Castaneda said.
On March 20, USDA hunters with hound dogs followed lion tracks in an attempt to find the animal responsible but without success.
Officials said in a statement that they have also increased surveillance in the area.
Mountain lions that show aggressive behavior towards humans are usually hunted down so they cannot attack another person.
There are an estimated 2,000 to 2,700 mountain lions living in Arizona. They live mainly in the mountains and rocky hills.
Hunting the species is legal in the state, although it is forbidden to kill females with cubs.
Mountain lions usually prey on smaller mammals. Attacks on humans are very rare, but they can occur when the lion feels provoked or threatened.
In a statement detailing the incident, Gila County officers said it is important for people to get vaccinated against rabies, in order to protect themselves from native wildlife.
They also urged people to stay away from wildlife that may carry rabies. It is not clear whether the man attacked had been exposed to rabies in the incident.
Although rare, conflicts with mountain lions have increased throughout the U.S. in recent years.
This has chiefly been put down to habitat degradation and the expansion of human developments. This can force mountain lions further away from their typical habitat, into closer proximity with humans.
In other parts of the country, mountain lions have also proved a nuisance for livestock and pets.
A famous mountain lion known as P-22 in California was recently captured after it killed several dogs.
Update 3/21/23 4:54 a.m. ET: This article has been updated to add comment from JC Castaneda.
Do you have an animal or nature story to share with Newsweek? Do you have a question about mountain lions? Let us know via nature@newsweek.com.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
");jQuery(this).remove()}) jQuery('.start-slider').owlCarousel({loop:!1,margin:10,nav:!0,items:1}).on('changed.owl.carousel',function(event){var currentItem=event.item.index;var totalItems=event.item.count;if(currentItem===0){jQuery('.owl-prev').addClass('disabled')}else{jQuery('.owl-prev').removeClass('disabled')} if(currentItem===totalItems-1){jQuery('.owl-next').addClass('disabled')}else{jQuery('.owl-next').removeClass('disabled')}})}})})
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7r7HWrK6enZtjsLC5jqGsp6xdqL2ivsqem2aln6q7ta3Ip2SloZ%2BjeqLA05qapJ2UYq6ztdmopZplYWyFeYSRbQ%3D%3D