Mountain Lions are all over New Mexico. I saw one outside of Tatum. There are plenty of antelope for them to munch on. They (mountain lions) reappeared as the area depopulated. Imagine getting in a scrape with one of them. A 8 lb. kittycat can scratch you up pretty good - imagine what a 100+ lb cat could do. :)
If the mountain lion get tired of chasing antelope in NM, they can alway eat mule deer. That’s what they do at Philmont. They seem to leave the antelope and the elk alone, at least judging from the freshly bloodied bones you see along the trails.
I didn’t know anything lived between Tatum and Roswell except rattlesnakes, a few wells and those itty bitty oak trees.