The Wild Felid Research & Management Association

Research. Manage. Educate. Conserve.

The Wild Felid Research and Management Association (WFA) is a non-profit association of professionals and non-professionals directly involved with research and management of wild cats or simply interested in learning more about wild felids and ways to help conserve them in the Western Hemisphere.

Our mission is to promote the sound management, conservation, and restoration, where necessary, of wild felids in the Western Hemisphere through science-based management and education. Our intention is to openly share knowledge and expertise by facilitating relationships with and among government entities, non-governmental organizations, universities, and other interested parties.

WFA is in the process of updating our NEW WEBSITE.
Many pages are still in development, so we appreciate your patience. 

What WFA stands for...

Highest scientific & professional standards in research, management & conservation of wild felids;

Science-based management & conservation;

Communication & collaboration across scientific disciplines;

Increased public awareness on felid biology, ecology, conservation & education;

Professional growth of our members;

Access to resources, technologies & tools.

 

 

"The Wild Felid Research and Management Association provides a long overdue and valuable conduit for increased communication and cooperation among cat biologists in the Western Hemisphere."

Mel Sunquist, PhD, Professor Emeritus, University of Florida

Members, the winter 2021 issue of The Wild Felid Monitor in now out!  

This is Harley Shaw's 15th, and final, issue as the newsletter's editor. His professionalism and expertise have been greatly appreciated and have resulted in an exceptional publication.
He will be sorely missed.

WFA's new editor is Darby McPhail, a graduate student at Virginia Tech and a 2020 Wild Felid Legacy Scholarship recipient. She will work under the direction of Dr. Marcella Kelly in the Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA. 

 

 News & Events

    puma pubs 2020                           

On Bookshelves Now

Path of the Puma: The Remarkable Resilience of the Mountain Lion

Jim Williams new book, Path of the Puma, was published in 2018, and tells the pumas remarkable tale from experience in the Rocky Mountains of North America to their southern most haunts in Patagonia.

READ THE REVIEW

Yellowstone Cougar: Ecology before and during wolf restoration

A seminal study by Toni Ruth, Polly Buotte and Maurice Hornocker that examines the effects of wolf restoration on Yellowstone National Park's cougar population. 

Effects of Hunting on a Puma Population in Colorado

A ten-year experimental study by Colorado Parks and Wildlife researchers reveals the effects of hunting on a puma population and the implications to wildlife managers.

View the PDF



The deadline for the 2021 Wild Felid Legacy Scholarship has been extended! 

Awards range from $1250 to $1500

Please submit your application by April 30.

Application information

SAVE THE DATE

The 13th Mountain Lion Workshop has been rescheduled for April 2022.  To see future updates, check back at https://wafwa.org/workshops/mountain-lion-workshop/

We are now working on the summer 2021 issue of The Wild Felid Monitor. If you are looking for something to do while practicing social distancing, consider submitting an article! We are looking for Notes from the Field and especially Tools of the Trade articles. Contact us at wildfelidmonitor@gmail.com or wild.felid.association@gmail.com if you are interested. 

handling a bobcat JOIN the WFA to stay current, support our newsletter, and keep in touch with other wild felid professionals. Consider becoming a REGIONAL REPRESENTATIVE, or if you are a graduate student, a STUDENT REPRESENTATIVE, so that you can help inform the membership about current research, management or conservation actions that affect wild felids. Or you may want to join one of our COMMITTEES. If you want to share something right away, go to our FORUM. Your DONATIONS to our grant and scholarship funds are a great way to support emerging biologists and further our knowledge to aid in wild cat conservation throughout the
Western Hemisphere. 

 

 Get Support

If you are a current graduate student, please check out WFA's SCHOLARSHIP page for information on current opportunities. WFA also awards RESEARCH AND ACTION GRANTS when funds become available. WFA has provided $40,000 in grants to a number of worthy projects in the past 5 years. Additionally, WFA soon hopes to begin offering TRAVEL GRANTS to help support students and professionals attend important conferences and workshops.  Andean Mountain Cat

 

 Education & Resources

Lynx Kittens

Keep informed by reading our newsletter,
The Wild Felid Monitor.
Issues come out twice per year, winter & summer. If you want to submit an article or update for an issue, we need them by April 15 (for summer) and October 15 (for winter). 

See our MANAGER'S CORNER to find out how agencies are managing and responding to conflicts with pumas. 

Our LINKS page provides a list of organizations involved with wild felid research, management, education and conservation activities.

 

 America's Cats

Learn about the 12 wild cat species of the Western Hemisphere   WH Felids