Watch Adorable Baby Mountain Lions Caught Playing on Trail Cam

Two mountain lion cubs have been caught on camera playing and chasing each other in adorable trail cam footage from the Bandelier National Monument, in New Mexico. The national park shared the video to its Facebook page on Wednesday afternoon in a post that has been viewed over 6,900 times.

Two mountain lion cubs have been caught on camera playing and chasing each other in adorable trail cam footage from the Bandelier National Monument, in New Mexico.

The national park shared the video to its Facebook page on Wednesday afternoon in a post that has been viewed over 6,900 times.

"It's playtime, and these little lions want to show you how much fun they have," Bandelier National Monument said in the caption.

In the video, the cubs can be seen running around, playing with rocks and sticks in the undergrowth.

Bandelier National Monument stretches across over 33,000 acres of canyons and mesas in Los Alamos, New Mexico. The national park protects part of the ancestral lands of at least 23 tribal nations, and evidence of human presence in the region dates back over 11,000 years.

The land is also rich in wildlife, and is home to over 55 species of mammal, according to the National Park Service. These include mule deer, black bears, pikas, bobcats and, of course, mountain lions.

Mountain lions—also known as cougars, panthers and pumas—are usually found in steep, rocky canyons and mountainous terrain. Adult males can grow to over 8 feet long and weigh between 130 and 150 pounds, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Each male typically has a home range of over 100 square miles. The Bandelier National Monument therefore estimates that their numbers in the park are fairly small.

The cubs in the footage received collars when they were only just a few weeks old to help researchers monitor their survival and the distribution of their species. "Don't worry, the collars are designed to grow with the cubs so that they won't end up too tight around their necks," the National Park Service said.

In a previous post, the Bandelier National Monument said that mountain lion cubs typically leave their den with their mothers at roughly 3 months of age, and stay with her until they are between 15 and 18 months old. At this point, they disperse to find their own territory.

In this part of the Southwest, mountain lions typically have one to three cubs in each litter, and the cubs can be born at any time of year.

The video of the lion cubs has melted the hearts of many of its viewers and has received hundreds of likes on Facebook.

"They are so cute!" commented one user.

"They're adorable," said another.

Mountain lions are very elusive, but if you do see one it is important to keep your distance and make yourself seem as big as possible.

Uncommon Knowledge

Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

");jQuery(this).remove()}) jQuery('.start-slider').owlCarousel({loop:!1,margin:10,nav:!0,items:1}).on('changed.owl.carousel',function(event){var currentItem=event.item.index;var totalItems=event.item.count;if(currentItem===0){jQuery('.owl-prev').addClass('disabled')}else{jQuery('.owl-prev').removeClass('disabled')} if(currentItem===totalItems-1){jQuery('.owl-next').addClass('disabled')}else{jQuery('.owl-next').removeClass('disabled')}})}})})

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7r7HWrK6enZtjsLC5jrCYrZuYYq6lu9GamaWdXZeuo8WMpqaupqSWtq95y6Kmp2WTqq%2B0ec%2BlmLKhnpx6tb7AoqNmm5GisrOtjGpucmxhboI%3D

 Share!