22 Mountain Lions of the Black Hills
bear (Ursus arctos) (fig. 2.7). Interactions between predators have been documented
within the Black Hills region. For example, mountain lions have killed and partially
consumed coyotes (Smith 2014), both in the Black Hills and in other regions, for ex-
ample, the North Dakota Badlands (Wilckens et al. 2016). Because of the relatively
high density of bobcats in the region, killing likely occurs between lions and bobcats
as well, but there is no evidence that the harvest of bobcats was affected by the recent
increase in mountain lions in the region.
The Black Hills National Forest (BHNF) is highly developed and is one of the most
heavi ly roaded national forests, with 13,411 km of inventoried roads within and adja-
cent to the BHNF boundary (USDA Digital Line Graph Files, Black Hills National For-
est Ser vice Database, Custer, SD, unpublished data; fig. 2.8). About 90% of the Black
Hills is surrounded by four- lane highways, and overall road density for the Black Hills
National Forest– Custer State Park region is estimated at 2.1 km road/km^2 (fig. 2.8;
D. M. Fecske, unpublished data). Also, the Black Hills National Forest has a higher
figure 2.7. General George Armstrong Custer killed a grizzly bear during
the reconnaissance of the Black Hills in 1874. Progulske 1974.