Smithsonian magazine's 22nd Annual Photo Contest | Made possible through the support of MPB.com

18th Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest Natural World
Waking lion

There are few things more exciting than a huge predator in your neighborhood. In a world of information, sometimes there can be too much, but neighborhood sharing apps allow photographers to quickly act on information shared. This mountain lion was spotted in a nearby tree and i was able to spend a few hours watching and observing this animal as it patiently waited for nightfall to head back over to the wilderness just a block away. The local ranger suggested it spent a little too much time in the area and once traffic and people started going about their day it retreated up the tree to wait out the day. It didn't recognize it went up the tree in someones yard. I waited until the very last available light to capture an image of it sitting up and preparing for its night time activities, namely to hunt.

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 04.2020
Date Uploaded: 11.2020
Photo Location: Boulder, Colorado, United States of America
Copyright: © Caine Delacy