Letter: Speak up to protect cougars in Utah

The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources proposes to increase by 34 the number of cougar trophy hunting permits. This year, 641 cougars might have their lives shortened by gunshot.The state believes that our mountain lion population is sustainable if we kill no more than 10% to 12% of the known number of cats. But cougars are elusive, making the true size of the population a best guess based on extrapolations drawn from the numbers killed in the various regions around the state.This percentage wo