Cougar Attack Closes
Trails At Big Bend

BIG BEND NATIONAL PARK —(AP) Two popular trails at Big Bend National Park remained closed over the weekend after a mountain lion attacked a woman earlier in the week.

The Pine Canyon and Lost Mine Trails, as well as the Pine Canyon 4 campsite, are off-limits until further notice, park Superintendent Jose A. Cisneros said.

Mary Jane Coder of Harlingen and her three daughters, ages nine, eight and six, were hiking on the Pine Canyon Trail Monday when they saw a mountain lion on a large rock.

Ms. Coder gathered her children and tried to frighten the animal away by yelling, waving her arms and throwing rocks. The lion struck her in the left hand with its paw but did not hurt the girls.

The lion followed the family back down the trail, but stopped when they reached an open area.

The attack on Ms. Coder is the third documented mountain lion attack on humans in the park since 1984.

Park staff have been warning visitors to be especially wary of mountain lions, Cisneros said. Rangers have been advising visitors not to take small children on trails in and around the Chisos Mountains and to keep children close at all times.

Park officials warn visitors who see mountain lions to stick together and make themselves look large by waving their arms. They should pick up their children and throw sticks or rocks if the animal appears aggressive.

Visitors should not run from a mountain lion, however, because running triggers the animal's natural instinct to chase and attack prey.