Can so many people be so wrong? Remember, this one was photographed in Arizona in good puma country, although this was the first one I've recorded there. All rights reserved. A placard affixed to the fence outside Rocky's pen states that "cougars are solitary creatures and rarely seen by humans." There are, from time to time, eyewitness accounts from hunters or hikers who claim to have seen the cat. This is actually a good thing, as genetic isolation generally weakens a species. Biologists traced it. Newspapers carried stories in 1956 about hunters supposedly seeing and killing wolves in Pike and Monroe Counties. Everyone is familiar with albinism, the absence of pigmentation that results in a white, essentially pigment free animal, defined by pink skin and pink eyes. Note the size of the tail, the pointed ears, the speckled coat, the basic lack of white underneath. At one point, there was debate whether that cat should be protected, since its genes were diluted from escapees or released pumas that originated in South America or our West. Then there is Rocky. "If there was mountain lions in Pennsylvania), I think we'd be getting reports from farmers and people with pets that there were attacks on their animals," Martinelli said. It will happen eventually. On that, I've had emails sent with game trail photo attachments, or killed pumas, supposedly shot in Pennsylvania, but these were hoaxes. Perhaps my Fed Ex driver was simply recalling a rural legend, but he said it was an employee that he knew, and it was a story he heard first-hand. Editor's note: The Pocono Record and Tri-County Independent have collaborated for a series of stories called Mountain Beasts: Pocono cryptids, legends and lore. Bobcats, feral cats and domestic dogs may be misidentified as mountain lion. For example, leopards and jaguars, normally spotted cats, have a melanistic color morph, the 'black panther,' the black leopard or black jaguar. Over the last two years I have occasionally posted a Question of the Month soliciting sightings from people who believed that they have seen a mountain lion in Pennsylvania or in other areas in the mid-Atlantic states. How, Who, and Why? Features Writer Micaela Hood is signing off with the Pocono Record after five years of covering arts, culture, entertainment and sports in northeastern . In July and August I received seven different reports, and everyone involved had done a search of some type to compare images of bobcats and pumas. The next day, another friend, who works for Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area, called me to ask if I had seen the photo of a Pocono mountain lion with a deer in its jaws. The last native mountain lion known to be killed in Pennsylvania is on display in the State Museum of Pennsylvania in Harrisburg. It is almost safe to say that the panther has in these parts become extinct, Goodrich wrote. Illinois can also now be added to this list a mountain lion was found on the outskirts of Chicago. The record size for this species is 8 feet, and it probably weighed 15 to 20 pounds, which shows how exaggerated this claim is. Only when I reviewed the images on my laptop did I discover that I had a mountain lion! There is a big community of mountain lion enthusiasts across the Northeast convinced that the animals still exist in breeding populations. I've done this myself once, in Tanzania, when I saw a black house cat that I thought was a black leopard! Mountain lions are 7-9 feet, while bobcats are 3 feet long. The agency has declared extinct the eastern cougar, one of 11 subspecies ofmountain lions native to North America. In January, the U.S. So many of these sightings have been proven wrong misidentified bobcats, coyotes or even house cats) that it would be irresponsible for a biologist to accept any of them as fact without absolute physical evidence hair, droppings, tracks or a road-killed animal. We hope you enjoy this foray into the most weird and wonderful our beloved Pocono Mountains have to offer. To be fair, I've also spoken with people who, at first, thought they'd seen a puma only to find, to their embarassment, that they were looking at a house cat! The large tracts of untouched rocky land and bighorn sheep populations make for pristine mountain lion habitat. Can so many people be wrong? The reintroduction of mountain lions into South Dakota is one of the great wins of modern conservation. Some experts predict that this wide-ranging predator, which can travel 600 miles in search of a territory, will surely reach our eastern states sometime in the next few decades. It was definitely a mountain lion, and it had a big buck, white-tailed deer in its jaws. After a small population was reintroduced into their historic land, their population has grown to a stable and breeding group of between 200-300 individuals. No one needs to panic.". In this at this distant epoch, archaeologists attempt to clear some of the mists and mysteries of prehistoric times. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. It's sort of like big foot, some people say they've seen him.". A few could, perhaps, be mistaken idenity. However, recently I saw a photo of a melanistic bobcat, as black as could be, with bright yellow eyes. But more importantly, he also said that regardless of color, he saw a big cat, with a tail that looked to be about 4 feet long! Reports of a mountain lion have come from several residents of Hemlock Farms who were hiking on. Florida is the only state on the east coast with a breeding population of mountain lions. With that in mind, lets break down how we classified the states. Mountain lions have an interesting life cycle that consists of a few different characteristics. "I thought I had a sighting in the late '90s," Delaware Water Gap National Recreation park ranger Chris Kross said. The mountain lion is a large, slender cat, with a long rope-like tail. If youve done any research on your own, you may have noticed that we didnt include a lot of states that have had cougar sightings, especially in the last few years. It has the color of a mountain lion, but the long tail appears to be missing. I don't want to seem like a nut case here, but I must ask this question and you'll soon understand why? In prior interviews with the Game Commission, the suggestion was made to this writer that what many people may actually be seeing is a bobcat, perhaps in less than ideal circumstances. Hunters I've spoken with said they've been told you can't kill a puma, which they felt was ironic since the same official told them pumas don't exist in Pa. I love the big cats and devote a huge amount of my field time photographing African lions, leopards, cheetahs, and in 2011, tigers. Biologists who investigate these reports claim that several may, indeed, be mountain lions, but most likely they're animals that have escaped from captivity or have been released by their. Biologists who investigate these reports claim that several may, indeed, be mountain lions, but most likely they're animals that have escaped from captivity or have been released by their owners. . "I kind of doubt they saw a cougar, but I'm not God.". I am hoping that more and more people will learn of my own interest in this, and will pass on this information and that I'll receive more reports and, hopefully, sometime, a game camera photo that is definitive. The Pennsylvania Game Commission is always open to review evidence, but to date only hoaxes have crossed the PGC. Two other reports went, in detail, on what they saw, the size, the length of tail, etc. If mountain lions are discovered in PA anytime soon they'll either be big foot's pets or genetically engineered and released by the DCNR to cull the orangu-bear population. Ramapough Lenape chief: National park in PA and NJ would be among 'most destructive things' since colonization, Bigfoot, mountain lions, and other mythical creatures: PA officials discuss what they know, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. The Poconos is a mountain area in northeastern Pennsylvania.It is 2,400 square miles of wooded mountains and valleys full of beautiful lakes, rivers, forests and wildlife. Arkansas isnt somewhere that we would generally think of when looking for mountain lions, but they are on the rebound! No An official form of the United States government. They're seeing an animal they don't know or recognize, and while some may be watching a smaller bobcat about 35 pounds), some believe they've actually spotted a cougar. Of interestRamapough Lenape chief: National park in PA and NJ would be among 'most destructive things' since colonization. Here's a glimpse at what long-gone Pocono beasts the region's very first wave of residents may have seen, and the wild things that followed up to as late as the early 20th century. Do Mountain Lions Attack Humans? Noted Wayne County historian Phineas Goodrich recorded in his 1880 book on local history that the common gray wolf was much more common in this area than the cougar. Although unconfirmed, mountain lions continue to be reported in many spots across Pennsylvania, including several reports in the past couple months. (National Park Service). A dark brown puma, backlighted by a strong sun, could appear all black, or very dark, and he accepted that. Those cats for which DNA evidence was recovered had come east from South Dakota, part of the known, modern-day, U.S. mountain lion range. A bobcat gives you a warm, that-kind-of-looks-like-my-cat-but-slightly-bigger feeling. Now, if there were any escapes, and if any of these bred with a possible minuscule number of eastern pumas, a relic native population, wouldn't the gene pool be corrupted? I've looked in the PGC game laws booklet and saw nothing on this, which I guess you could conclude means a puma would not be legal to shoot. Other states have had sightings, especially as mountain lion populations begin to explore and look to expand. Colby is a freelance writer from Charlotte, North Carolina. Here, they've not been," Lau said in an e-mail. One man sent me a game camera photo that was blurry but looked like a mountain lion, or puma, as I like to call them. Many have a desire to see some clear-cut evidence. YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. Today, we are going to explore the 15 US states that have mountain lions, plus a few others that may have some. While the chances that I'll ever see a puma in Pennsylvania myself are virtually zero, I'm always on the alert -- for the bobcat I've never seen in Pa., for a fisher, bear, deer, red salamander, toad, or snake, and yes, I'm always hoping that I too will become one of those who saw something that officially cannot exist within the state, a puma I know I saw but, of course, could not have! In books I've read critical or skeptical or down-right dismissive of the idea of pumas in the East, the argument has been advanced that the hopefull puma-dreamer/spotters arguing that the State needs to prove pumas don't exist does not mean that in the State not proving this means that pumas indeed do exist in this state. Mountain lions thrive there due to the high elk population, dense forests, and isolated mountain ranges. DCNR gave the following as examples: the saber-tooth cat; a small, three-toed horse; the Pleistocene beaver, and the mastodon. Because the neck bothered me, I decided to do some Photoshop on the puma in the lower left, moving his head higher up and changing the image to a contrasty black and white - to give a silhouette for comparision. The large, undeveloped interior filled with rocky habitats perfect for mountain lions allows them to safely live and breed. In his 1973 book "Faces in Clay" Leslie lays open the archaeological treasures of stone arrow or spear points and tools lost long ago by a succession of native peoples. Interestingly, the US Fish and Wildllife Service has declared the Eastern Puma extinct, except for the Florida population known as the Florida panther. Melanism is the reverse, where there is an abundance of dark or black pigmentation. They mostly live in the far western Trans-Pecos region of the state, with about 50,000 to 80,000 acres of suitable land currently being used by the cat. "I'm proud to know her," Murray said of the tiger, "but I wish I didn't.". Mountain lions live in rescue centers like Murray's, and the Pennsylvania Game Commission said a dozen or so people are permitted to possess them. Hunting is legal in the state, but it is heavily controlled and restricted. I'd love to hear of any reports you have. Let's say the facts indicate that there have been a lot of 'pet' pumas, and many of these escaped. Biologists traced it back to the Black Hills of South Dakota, from where it ventured nearly 2,000 miles looking for a new mate. In the map above, I collected data from the state and on the federal level to find state parks . Although a large proportion of the Lenape Nation was dispersed far from their ancestral homelands in the 18th century, colonial settlers and their descendants struggled to live in this region with wolves and cougars inhabiting the forests. Some may also be kept illicitly as pets, which would quickly become a problem as the cat matures. Known as the Niagara Falls of Pennsylvania, there are four trails that lead to the cascades from the Bushkill Falls trailhead, each ranging in . This ideal habitat allows for a large population of 2,000 mountain lions to thrive. He saw his cat at very close range -- 20 yards or less, and when I pointed out to him that pumas are never black he said that perhaps it was the light. All of the above are Mountain Lions, or Pumas, or Cougars. I had three cameras positioned, so had a cat visited, I'd have had it. The mountain lion population in Nevada is essential to the control of deer and rodent populations in the mountainous regions of the state. The mountain lion, which is also called a cougar, puma or panther, weighs on average between 75-120 pounds, has long whiskers and a distinctive swooping tail. Controlled hunting of mountain lions is allowed within the state. Heres What the Data Says. Here's more about mountain lions in Pennsylvania: If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. Certainly it is a romantic notion, but I've always held out the hope that pumas still roamed the east. Are mountain lions on their way to Pennsylvania? Although there was no evidence that the 2011 mountain lion ever set foot in Pennsylvania, DNA evidence confirmed that it had been both west and east of the state. In Yellowstone, definite puma country (perhaps not ideal habitat, but pumas are found in every section of Yellowstone), I've spoken to guys on road crews and with rangers, each with 20 years of field or road experience in Yellowstone, and the ranger had only seen 2 (both road kills and together) and the road crew guys two or three in all their years. ? Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. Caribou remains, dated by radiocarbon in excess of 10,000 B.C. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. Wishful thinking? I receive about one email or phone call a month, on average, from people that I do not know who are contacting me because their sighting compelled them to do a Google search on puma sightings, and they found my site and previously posted questions. Mountain lions were once widespread across North America, but their range shrunk dramatically as they were pursued through unregulated hunting and by farmers aiming to protect their livestock, and moved off the landscape by habitat fragmentation. The photographer had no reason to stage the shot -- indeed, the composition and background was terrible, and not what you'd expect for something staged, but the shot wasn't perfectly clear. All rights reserved (About Us). I can't dismiss the eye-witnesses I've interviewed. In Pennsylvania, I receive a few reports of black, big cats, which makes one wonder -- are there melanistic (black) pumas out there, or are those sightings always wrong. Their are two web sites I know of that dealt with eastern pumas, with the one, the Eastern Puma Research Network, concentrating on sightings in the east. He also published a follow-up on Oct. 15 with the same mountain lion-deer hoax photo, as well as personal stories from several local residents who claim they've seen mountain lions in the Poconos. I was heading up the road and I saw an animal with a long tail.". How do I deal with shaving weight for carrying my gear? However, if it doesn't exist, and if someone saw one, wouldn't there be a worry that it was a dangerous escapee? A second image of the same cat, in a different light, reveals the trademark spots of a bobcat. But an image captured by one family's. As a state known for its mountains, its no wonder that mountain lions live here! Some have even reported seeing a "black panther," a near-impossibility because of the rarity of that recessive gene. It seems unlikely, considering captives have never shown this trait, but people are reporting big black cats. Among other uses, the tax was levied "for destroying wolves, foxes, heads and crows." Claws 'N' Paws Animal Park in Lake Ariel has two. In August, Amy Walters said her 12-year-old son was spooked by a mountain lion in Forest County in northwest Pennsylvania while riding his dirt bike. I am bothered by the constricted neck of the cat on the game camera; 2. the tail is curved down, rather than up, but it may have been in mid-swing; 3. the goldenrod-appearing flower, and the background of cars, gives a sense of scale and location. Caribou meat apparently was part of their diet. Mountain lions, which continue to be reported across Pennsylvania throughout the year, are officially extinct east of the Mississippi River and north of Florida, according to the U.S. It wasn't, and I assumed it was a road-kill. The Cougar Network, working with state agencies, have documented multiple mountain lions as far east as Kentucky, Tennessee and Michigan in recent years, as well as one cat killed on a highway in Milford, Connecticut, in June 2011. Thank you for reading! Consider that the endangered Florida puma has mixed genes. They often would catch sheep in broad daylight. But no one that I've communicated with had these preconceptions, and seeing what they saw was a complete surprise. Would a puma then qualify as a native species? There is also a small population of cougars in Florida. The head of the puma is small in comparision to a house cat when compared to the entire body. Again, I've been told that some Game Commission personnel have admitted that pumas may exist in Pennsylvania, but they rationalize this by saying that the pumas are not breeding and they are not from original wild stock. Colorado and California have the highest estimated populations of mountain lions in the United States. Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. "He doesn't like men too much," said Suzanne Murray, owner of East Coast Exotic Animal Rescue in this south-central Pennsylvania town. Goggling Eastern Puma brings up other web sites, however, with varying levels of professionalism or credibility. Recent post: Why Is It Called Beaver Stadium? Penn State's Nittany Lion hide sampled for DNA sequencing, Mountain lion reports in Pennsylvania popular, but often a hoax, More Local News to Love Start today for 50% off Expires 3/6/23. At one time this fact almost resulted in this cat not being protected, since it wasn't a pure strain. The Pocono Mountains are . Find cabins in the Poconos, PA near places like Bushkill Falls, Camelback Mountain Resort, and more. "There hasn't been one solid piece of proof to believe they are here. Is it the New Best Pack? Have all of those who have seen a puma really seen a bobcat? Let me explain this. While there have been no confirmed occurrences of mountain lions in Pennsylvania since the late 1800s, dozens . "When I started telling people, most of them didn't believe me, but I will never forget that huge face staring right at me," said a Montgomery County woman who says she saw a lion last summer in Limerick Township while walking her dog. I asked our Game officials about evidence, and they cite no road kills. Best hike for seeing waterfalls. Images from a homeowner's surveillance camera show a tan cat with a long body, beyond a chain-link fence. Mountain lions can live in almost any habitat including forests, prairies, deserts, and swamps. On a recent stifling morning in Adams County, the 290-pound mountain lion with perfect bone structure is ignoring the raw chicken breast and pork chops a handler tossed into his pen. "Likewise, I'm not aware of any escapes from captive facilities in my time here. There are approximately 4,000 of those 10- to 40-pound cats in the state. One of the important things for any animal is a place to call home. Never has this been more accurate than in today's digital, computerized world. Despite reported sightings throughout the East, including Pennsylvania, and a confirmed mountain lion killed in Connecticut in 2011, there has been no evidence that any of those cats were native . I spend a lot of time outdoors, and I've seen about 10 black bears in Pennsylvania, and all within ten miles of my home.
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