LARIMER COUNTY, Colo. — The person who was attacked and killed by a mountain lion in Colorado on New Year's Day has been identified as a 46-year-old woman.
The Larimer County Coroner’s Office identified her Monday as Kristen Marie Kovatch from Fort Collins.
The coroner's office performed an autopsy Monday and determined that Kovatch's injuries were consistent with a mountain lion attack and ruled the cause of death as asphyxia due to external neck compression. The manner of death was ruled as an accident.
As Scripps News station KMGH previously reported, a group of hikers on the Crosier Mountain Trail came across a mountain lion near a person on the ground around 12:15 p.m. on Jan. 1. They were able to scare it away with rocks and then went to try to help the woman. A physician within that group was unable to find a pulse on her, said Colorado Parks and Wildlife spokesperson Kara Van Hoose.
CPW officers, Larimer County Sheriff's Office deputies, Estes Park police and Glen Haven Area Volunteer firefighters all responded to this incident and launched an extensive search for mountain lions in the area.
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CPW biologists ended up euthanizing two mountain lions they found close by, Van Hoose said. They also observed a third mountain lion and pursued it, but were unable to locate it.
"In accordance with CPW policies, any wildlife involved in a human attack must be euthanized to ensure public safety," Van Hoose said.
She explained this further, saying that once an animal has lost its healthy fear of humans and has taken a step to attack people, "we can't, in good conscience, leave that on the landscape. That's a threat both to humans and to other animals."
On Monday, CPW said necropsies on both animals were complete. They were roughly 1 year old and healthy. One was male, and one was female.
Human DNA was found on all four paws of the male mountain lion, CPW said. The female lion did not have any.
The final necropsy reports are not yet complete.
"Due to multiple lions present at the attack area and evidence found at the scene, CPW officers suspected a family group was responsible," CPW said.
“It is very unlikely that these lions were in such close proximity to the scene by coincidence,” said Mark Leslie, regional manager for CPW’s northeast region. “This is not a decision we take lightly. CPW is charged with protecting human safety. Given the gravity of this situation and the rarity of this type of behavior, this was a necessary, if unfortunate action.”
Also on Monday, CPW provided a timeline of mountain lion activity in Larimer County.
That included the following:
- Oct. 28, 2025: A man was hiking with his off-leash dog along the 2000 block of McGraw Ranch Road in Estes Park. A mountain lion attacked and killed the dog. This was reported on Nov. 20, 2025.
- Oct. 29, 2025: A woman was hiking with her off-leash dog on West Creek Road in Larimer County. A mountain lion took her dog. This was reported the following day. CPW was unable to locate any lions.
- Nov. 12, 2025: Gary Messina from Glen Haven was running on the Crosier Mountain Trail when he came across a mountain lion. He said he took a quick photo and then the animal lunged at him. He said he threw his phone at the predator, yelled at it and kicked dirt in its direction while it tried to circle behind him. He managed to hit it on the head with a stick before it ran off, he told the AP. Read that full story here. This was reported to CPW the same day. Temporary signs were placed in the area, in addition to the permanent ones.
- Nov. 30, 2025: A man and woman were hiking on Crosier Mountain Trail when they encountered two mountain lions. They threw rocks at the animals. They reported the incident via voicemail to CPW, which received it on Dec. 1. Temporary signs were again put up in the area. They were up on Jan. 1, 2026.
- Dec. 23, 2025: A man found a mountain lion attacking his dog in his yard off County Road 43 in Glen Haven. He shot and killed the 3-year-old lion. This was reported the following day. A necropsy found no abnormalities in the animal.
On Monday, CPW said Crosier Mountain Trail has reopened and mountain lion-related signage will remain in place. Permanent signs about lion activity have been in place for years.
“Our hearts go out to the victim’s family,” Leslie said. “This is a terrible tragedy. This hiker did what many people did on New Year’s Day. She went out in nature on the first day of a new year, and the fact that she did not return to her family and friends is nothing short of heartbreaking. We encourage the public to have compassion and empathy for her and her loved ones.”
Anybody who sees a mountain lion or has any kind of conflict with one should call the Denver office at 303-291-7227, the Fort Collins office at 970-472-4300 or Colorado State Patrol at *CSP (*277).
Colorado is home to an estimated 3,800 to 4,400 mountain lions, CPW says.
According to CPW, the agency has documented 28 mountain lion attacks that resulted in injury in the state since 1990. Of those, 11 happened in the northeast quadrant of the state, which includes Larimer County. During that same time frame, the state has seen two confirmed fatalities and one suspected fatality — a 3-year-old boy — due to a mountain lion attack. One of the confirmed human fatalities and the unconfirmed one both happened in this northeast quadrant, according to CPW.
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Across North America, fewer than 20 people have died of a mountain lion attack in more than 100 years, CPW reported in 2019.
Back in February 2019, Denver7 reported on a mountain lion attack at Horsetooth Mountain in Larimer County where a 31-year-old runner was attacked by one of the animals. He was able to escape.
CPW provided the following tips on what to do if you encounter a mountain lion:
- Do not approach a lion, especially one that is feeding or with kittens. Most mountain lions will try to avoid a confrontation. Give them a way to escape.
- Stay calm when you come upon a lion. Talk calmly and firmly to it. Move slowly and never turn your back on it.
- Stop or back away slowly, if you can do it safely. Running may stimulate a lion's instinct to chase and attack. Face the lion and stand upright.
- Do all you can to appear larger. Raise your arms. Open your jacket if you're wearing one. If you have small children with you, protect them by picking them up so they won't panic and run.
- If the lion behaves aggressively, throw stones, branches or whatever you can get your hands on without crouching down or turning your back. Wave your arms slowly and speak firmly. Try to convince the lion you are not prey and that you may in fact be a danger to the lion.
- Fight back if a lion attacks you. Lions have been driven away by prey that fights back. People have fought back with rocks, sticks, caps or jackets, garden tools and their bare hands successfully. If you have trekking poles or keys, use those too. CPW recommends targeting the eye and nose as these are sensitive areas. Remain standing or try to get back up.
