In a battle of apex predators, Washington cougars are killing wolves at a surprising rate

Wolves may be an apex predator, but researchers in Washington recently noticed that they’re being attacked and killed by another carnivore at the top of the food chain: cougars.

In Washington, a recent and unique rise in wolf killings is leaving officials and researchers stumped. But the mystery involves more than the age-old rivalry between cats and dogs.

"Cougars and wolves have been sharing the landscape for a long time," said Kylie Mohr, who wrote about the issue for National Geographic. "Research shows that cougars and wolves kill each other throughout the West. But what's happening in Washington is more frequent in recent years."

In the last decade, there have been six documented killings of wolves by cougars in Washington state. However, that likely isn't the full picture, Mohr said.

"That's only what we know through radio collars, so it could be happening more to wolves that don't have any collars tracking them."