Cougar Trickster of Kwakiutl
Among the Kwakiutl (Kwakwaka_wakw) people of coastal British Columbia, the cougar trickster belongs to the rich tradition of forest spirits and supernatural beings that inhabit the temperate rainforests of Vancouver Island and the mainland coast. Kwakwaka_wakw cosmology recognizes four distinct spirit realms: sky spirits, sea spirits, earth spirits, and otherworldly spirits. The cougar trickster operates primarily as an earth spirit associated with the dense cedar and hemlock forests, occupying a role similar to but distinct from the better-known Dzunukwa. Its stories are told during winter ce