Preston – A rare and deformed lion have been found and killed by licensed hunters after the animal attacked a dog in the area. The lion had an extra set of teeth and whiskers on his head.
“They tracked it down for a while in the afternoon, and they brought it down to let us know the had gotten it… I did see that weird feature on his head and handled it. It was pretty strange” said Tyler Olson, the dog’s owner, to KSTU.
A photo of the creature was released by the Idaho Fish and Game entity that showed the abnormality in the lion’s head. The officials said that it was the first time they saw something like that.
Explanations have come to surface, goverment officials said it is possible that the lion had a conjoined twin that died in the womb, and the remains were absorbed by the surviving fetus. This could explain the extrange extra parts, but it is not the only explanation.
A tumor called “teratoma” could also be the abnormality’s explanation. This type of tumor can be able to grow teeth and hair in animals. In humans can grow fingers and toes. Specialists hope to recover the carcass to study it further and reached a conclusive reason for the abnormality.
The attacked dog survived barely due the puncture wounds in his body. It is now recovering, announced local media. The mountain lion can be also known as puma, cougar and catamount. Their natural prey is mostly deers, but they can also hunt small animals like coyotes and raccoons.
His population is considered by U.S and Canadian provinces “sustainable enough” to allow managed sport hunting. They are a shy specie that rarely looks for attention. They have attacked humans, although not very often. Statistics showed that there are, on average, only four attacks and one human fatality each year in the western area, as reported by National Geographic
Source: CNN