Utah’s growing population and related urban expansion have increased the number of wildlife encounters across the state in recent years. However, not every encounter or animal sighting needs to be reported to the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, according to a press release issued by the division.

Wildlife encounters during the summer often occur when people are hiking or camping in the mountains or canyons, which are natural wildlife habitat areas. However, these encounters are also common in cities and other urban areas during the winter months.

As snow falls in the mountains, turkeys, deer, moose and other wildlife species move to lower elevations looking for food. Cougars, which prey mostly on deer, often follow the deer into the valleys.

While it may seem like cougars and other

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