Oregon wildlife officials say this adult female cougar, caught on surveillance video Sept. 14, likely killed Gresham hiker Diana Bober on the Hunchback Trail in Clackamas County. The cougar was killed by authorities also on Sept. 14.

Oregon wildlife officials announced Friday they've ended their search for a cougar suspected of killing a Gresham woman hiking in the Mount Hood National Forest in Welches saying all evidence appears to show they fatally shot the culprit last week.

The female adult cougar killed last Friday was the only mountain lion spotted over a 78-square-mile area where more than 30 cameras were set up on trails and other areas near the Hunchback Trail to find the large cat suspected in the death of 55-year-old Diana Bober, according to the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. The cougar was recorded the same day walking through the trail near where Bober was attacked.

Bober, an avid outdoorswoman, was found dead Sept. 10. State officials said her wounds indicated a wild cougar was responsible, the first such reported fatal attack in Oregon history, and were awaiting the results of DNA testing to confirm the animal's involvement. Bober was reported missing by out-of-state relatives on Sept. 7. They said they hadn't heard from her since Aug. 29.

Authorities haven't been able to pinpoint when Bober was attacked. They began installing cameras near where Bober was found on Sept. 12 and kept expanding the area in the hopes of finding the suspected killer cougar.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Forensics Lab in Ashland wasn't able to extract DNA from any of the evidence provided in the case because there was a "significant lag" between when Bober was found and when the attack likely happened, according to Derek Broman, an ODFW carnivore coordinator.

Rainy weather washed away a lot of DNA that also could have been used to determine conclusively if the female cougar killed attacked Bober, Broman said.

"At best case, the DNA that they would be able to obtain would identify cougar but not likely be able to identify an individual cougar," he said.

Wildlife officials haven't found any clear evidence why the attack occurred, according to Broman. At 64.5 pounds, the cougar killed wasn't emaciated, hadn't had kittens in several years and tested negative for rabies and other diseases.

With the cougar killed, wildlife officials said they believe the Hunchback Trail area should be safe for hikers again and will be reopened Monday. But people recreating in the area should be aware of their surroundings and know what to do in the event they encounter a cougar themselves, Broman said.

"We still are certain that these types of events are incredibly rare, however the odds are still there that any time you have cougars and humans something like this can happen," he said.

Oregon has about 6,600 cougars, and they typically travel alone, wildlife authorities said. The state wildlife department receives about 400 complaints a year of cougars injuring livestock or threatening the safety of people or pets, he said.

Bober's death is the second in the Pacific Northwest this year after two mountain bicyclists were attacked in Washington in May, one of them fatally.

Everton Bailey Jr. of The Oregonian/OregonLive staff contributed to this report.

-- Kale Williams

kwilliams@oregonian.com

503-294-4048