I saw a cougar in Wolfeboro NH crossing / running across 28 ; close call between myself and a car traveling in the opposite direction over 12 years ago . Icould hear the panic in my wifes voice. However, Hawley noted that Eastern bobcats tend to have very few spots compared to bobcats that are out west or even in the Midwest. If they have spots, they are typically in the white, underside part of the bodies or on the insides of their legs. Pictured is an image shared earlier this month on Facebook of what was claimed to be a mountain lion sighting this past fall in Prairie du Rocher. As I turned a corner going north toward Waterbury, I saw the cat come up from the cornfield, saunter across the highway, turn and look in my direction and then amble off into the brush. Morse is a Vermont-based naturalist and the founder of Keeping Track, a nonprofit that trains people in the scientific protocols needed to detect, interpret, record, and monitor wildlife tracks and signs. Because while male cougars eventually strike out on their own and occasionally wander far from home, females are, as Morse puts it, hardwired to remain close to their mothers home range. Big kitty. I started to get nervous so I was scanning the area low and high in the trees. If theyre in one, theyre in the other.. Mountain Lion Historically, mountain lions (Puma concolor) occurred throughout South Dakota and were considered numerous in the Black Hills. The history of this theory in Connecticut and New England goes back long before our current era of fake news. It had rained previously. Its documented through track surveys, aerial surveys, trapping and collaring surveys. Abbott, of the Housatonic Valley Association, is equally skeptical of the vast majority of mountain lion sightings. I knew it was a cat track because the tracks were in a straight line and no signs of claws like you would see with a coyote track. Mountain Lions:100 all the way up to 200 pounds, Mountain Lions:Can grow up to 6 feet long. Patrick's reporting has appeared on NPR's Morning Edition, Here & Now, and All Things Considered. An Arkansas woman captured a big cat on her doorbell camera that she believes is a mountain lion or cougar. Wildlife biologists, as professional scientists, require a higher level of documentation and proof. I did call in a report to CT DEP and they basically dismissed my narrative questioning whether I made a mistake confusing the animal I saw with a bobcat or fisher cat. I live in Hopkinton, NH and saw one coming up from the Contoocook River one misty morning. As a carnivore biologist, Hawley says he would love it if mountain lions were here. How to Report a Possible Mountain Lion Sighting. Males (100 to 170 lbs.) I saw on three occasions in about the same location a beautiful mtn lion with the long bushytail that curves at the end. So theres fresh mud. Lizzie Post Would Like Your Attention. Ottmann grew up and still lives just minutes from the tavern; his familiarity with the establishment was obvious (after we met in the parking lot, he led me into the building through the kitchen, greeting each of the staff by name). On one side, there are those (as represented here by Sue Morse, Kim Royar, and Christopher Spatz, along with a number of others I spoke with) who contend that the lack of verifiable evidence is proof that the animals are not here. vital part of this countries ecosystem. About two years ago in July 2020, there were around 1,500 reports of bobcat sightings in the state, with some bobcat sightings in Brookfield and Ridgefield that year. Still, Spatz acknowledged that the word hope is very different from the word believe. my father was recently trout fishing in central Mass. Given the long, shared border between these provinces and New England, along with plentiful evidence that other species cross this border regularly, it seems entirely possible that cougars would also engage in international travel. DEEP believes their numbers have increased in recent years. Bobcats are plentiful across Connecticut and are between 18 and 35 pounds. Ive seen bobcats before, this wasnt a bobcat. And its a lose-lose situation, because theres really not a whole lot you can tell them in most cases thats going to change their mind.. LOS ANGELES (AP) A mountain lion that was part of a National Park Service study was fatally struck by a vehicle on a highway near Southern California's Santa Monica Mountains. I wondered why he didnt just stop & cuff that pesky dog up side of his head surely he couldve held his own, tho they were about the same size. I always hold out the possibility of a sighting to be genuine, but at the same time, over decades of experience, we know that the vast majority are misidentifications and a small number are actually hoaxes, he says. Weve had coyotes misidentified. Mountain Lions: cougars, pumas, panthers and catamounts. Hes also unafraid to take unpopular positions when he deems it necessary: Shortly before our meeting, hed signed a petition in favor of keeping ATVs off public roads. I was deer hunting with my father, it was in the fall about 7 years ago, in Barre Ma towards the Templeton Ma lines. Mr. Betty and Mr.Ottomans passion and efforts are impressive. You could have 50. I could hear the steady rush of traffic on Route 315. By Cameron Arcand October 3, 2021 at 2:07pm. But, I think with education and planning, we should reintroduce wolves and cougar in the Northeast. One day I most certainly watched him/her being chased up and down our chain link fence by a neighbors large dog who was barking insanely and couldnt quite catch the cougar, who finally made it away from the fence to escape the determined dog whod had him trapped up against it. Probably because of all the hunters that would be out trying to get their trophy and endangering others. The mountain lion is also known as cougar, panther, or puma. Up to several inches of snow expected for northern CT, NWS says, Passenger in car that nearly hit FBI agents in CT gets 3 years, Police: CT man hiding in back seat tried to rob female driver, Yale police investigating false report of active shooter, NY man charged with CT car theft extradited, state trooper says, CT advocates resume push for aid-in-dying bill, Wilton Police Chief John Lynch announces retirement, RTM narrowly votes to accept voting infrastructure grant, Milford changes rules on accessory dwellings, Termination upheld for CT fire lieutenant in drug scandal, several have reportedly been spotted around the Woodbridge area this month, one that was killed on the Merritt Parkway in 2011, U.S. Department of Agricultures Forest Service, mountain lions became extinct in Connecticut in the 1800s, UConn athletics operated at $53 million deficit following Kevin Ollie payment. Mountain lions inhabit the badlands and Missouri River breaks regions of North Dakota. It is healthy to have respect and caution, but fear shouldnt drive ecological decision making. I have no choice but to take this seriously, he told me. Still more confusion ensued when a lab technician said she might have gotten some samples confused, and thus the canid result was thrown into doubt. But its also a great story that lays out how an animal this large, at 150 pounds, traveling through even rural areas, leaves signs and is detected. He points out that when there was a real mountain lion in the state in 2011, his office publicized it immediately. We need [an apex] predator back on the land, Sue Morse told me. - YouTube Multiple people in North Stonington claim they've spotted a mountain lion roaming around. So long as the tails there, that is. I wasnt planning to shoot her unless she moved in my direction. The bobcat population has since recovered due to improving forest habitat conditions and legal protections. I appreciated Ottmann and Bettys confidence and commitment, but here I was, poking through thorny thickets behind a bar, trailing a bleeding man whose devotion to proving the presence of cougars was beginning to seem like a quixotic quest with no end. Dogos have been DOCUMENTED killing mountain lion / wolf. But further inspection revealed it was a very large coyote. Its closest living relative is the cheetah. Mountain lion spotted in East Haddam - YouTube 0:00 / 2:17 Mountain lion spotted in East Haddam 6,872 views Apr 27, 2012 22 Dislike Share Save WTNH News8 135K subscribers A Mountain lion. Yale New Haven Health Check; . Prior to becoming a reporter, he was the founding producer of Connecticut Public Radio's The Colin McEnroe Show, which began in 2009. So its this gathering storm. Here in southern Utah, lions have been known to occupy home ranges as large as 513 square miles. And Im assuming whatever were doing right now, its not working. 2012). Mountain lions also have tails that can grow up to 3 feet. Its quite an uphill challenge for us to manage that situation right now. We were about 50 feet from it and it stood taller than any labrador and we watched it tail and all slink down the side of the lawn and the rabbits being surprised out of the bushes. My mother always said she saw one across the street from our house one night in the late 50s early 60s. They also have facial ruffs and ear tufts on the tips of their ears, as well as shorter tails. Next to the jaguar, it is the largest North American cat. Weve done a lot of work over the years investigating sightings. Action Alerts. Wildlife do really crazy things, and you just never know.. Hawley said the last confirmed mountain lion sighting in the state was one that was killed on the Merritt Parkway in 2011 when a car struck the animal near Exit 55. We have people eating dinner in their kitchen, they hear a noise, all of a sudden a bear walks in, so they run into their bedroom to get away from the bear, while the bears out ransacking their refrigerator. It can run at speeds of up to 50 mph. We have people eating dinner in their kitchen, they hear a noise, all of a sudden a bear walks in, so they run into their bedroom to get away from the bear, while the bears out ransacking their refrigerator. The arrival of a real mountain lion in the state reframed the discussion in Connecticut surrounding the animal. But it also sort of instills that fear, a healthy fear of humans and bears. While other states have their Bigfoot and sea monster sightings, in Connecticut, and throughout much of the Northeast, we see mountain lions even when were told such sightings are unlikely, if not outright impossible. Not a bobcat 100% mountain lion and anybody that tries to think a bobcat as any resemblance to a mountain lion clearly has no idea about wildlife there are a lot of false reports because of this however they are without a doubt in part of New England and fish and game has as usual covered up despite coming out and following mountain lion tracks in the snow through the woods in Central Mass and finding a deer carcass 20 feet up in a tree and said to the landowner yep you probably have a mountain lion passing through and asked for the homeowner not to speak much about it furthermore DNA confirmation of a horse that was attacked in Petersham Massachusetts in the last several years and also the Quabbin Reservoir DNA were mountain lion without a doubt they are here. Indeed, one of her steadiest sources of funding for Keeping Track is a presentation on cougars that has been known to draw more than 500 audience members. The truth is, I was by this point dubious. For who but we humans can look across the landscape and not acknowledge our role in the diminishment of cougars and the myriad ways in which we have knocked the landscape out of balance? Massachusetts and several other New England states have bear hunting, or harvest, seasons, which proponents say help control populations. My stepfather had been a hunter and was no stranger to seeing animals in the woods and countryside, so when they came up over a knoll in the road and saw a large cat looking at them, he saw the face and thought, bobcatuntil they then saw the rest of the animals body: huge, beautifully tawny colored, and in possession of what my mother described as a very long tail, that was as thick as my wrist. Much as I liked Ottmann and Betty, and much as I found some of their evidence compelling, I was struggling to reconcile their more provocative claims with the restraint expressed by the many other experts Id spoken with. Ive never forgotten that and told it to many folks over the years, most of whom, I must say, thought I was hallucinating I guess but, it/he/she was a fact in Longmeadow, MA that summer long ago. Mountain Lions: Large tan cats with a distinctive two to three-foot curving tail, that can almost touch the ground as they walk. Apex predators like the cougar and wolf make for a healthier ecosystem. These highlights have been edited and condensed for length and clarity. Habitat. My heart was saying, Maybe this is it, he recalls. Still, there are those of us who know what weve seen. Diana Marchibroda and her miniature schnauzer froze in their tracks when the mountain lion stepped out of the woods last May. He has also reported for the Marketplace Morning Report. #3. Two mountain lion encounters in his driveway. He published his first book in 1959, The Ghost of North America: The Story of the Eastern Panther. But as Eastern cougar search efforts became more organized and still there were no concrete signs of the creatures, many became more skeptical. But further inspection revealed it was a very large coyote. The deer dont eat the exotics, but they eat the competitors. They were also reluctant to certify that turkey and moose had returned the Quabin reservoir lands for many years after locals reported seeing them. For instance, a favorite food for deer is the seedlings of forest tree species. Theyll say, Hey, you can see in the picture that it has a long tail, and when I look at the picture, I say, I see how you would see that because they way these cats walk, theyll kind of stand and trail their rear leg. Its definitely a problem thats only going to get worse. Stephen Gencarella, professor of folklore studies at the University of Massachusetts and a Connecticut resident, says, The government coverup is only the latest version of something that could stretch back in the oral tradition to precolonial times. He notes that supposed mountain lion sightings spiked in the late 1800s and early 1900s shortly after the animals disappeared from New Englands woods. And there are different schools of thought about that. Anyone can get fooled. Betty folded his arms across his chest, where they rose and fell and rose again with his breathing. Based on this blurry photo and pawprints, confirmed it was likely a mountain lion. Morse introduced me to her cat, Allister, whom she referred to as her portable puma. Then she fetched me a beer. I came across a dead adult deer carcass high up in an oak tree. Massachusetts and several other New England states have bear hunting, or harvest, seasons, which proponents say help control populations. Uscinski, a Connecticut native, adds that the theory that the government is covering up the existence of mountain lions is likely motivated by a distrust of authority. Mountain Lion Update - May 8, 2020, by Sam Wilson, Furbearer and Carnivore Program Manager. There, too, is Crowells photograph, grainy and old: the hunter leaning against a tree stump, his head propped casually on his left hand, elbow to stump, shotgun cradled in the crook of his right arm. Its distinctive featurethe one that sets it apart from other North American wild catsis its tail, which is thick and often as long as its body. Clearly, Puma concolor once inhabited the forests of the Northeast, although its difficult to say in what numbers. In New Canaan, residents reported seeing mountain lions in 2016 and in 2018. Manchester, CT 06045 Phone: 800-237-3606 Email: service@journalinquirer.com. Connecticut Republicans are proposing to reduce the cost of electricity by removing state taxes and surcharges from customer invoices. It was a 140-pound male mountain lion, the first confirmed in Connecticut in more than 100 years. Officially, the last mountain lions were hunted to extinction here in the late 1800s. Black panthers, which are not found in the U.S., are actually black jaguars or leopards. There are an estimated 3,000 - 7,000 Mountain lions in Colorado. A self-defense connoisseur with a large social media presence has ignited a firestorm over his posting of a video showing a mountain lion getting shot in the head. LINCOLN, Neb. By now, I knew the answer to that one. The police and everyone else just shook their heads but she to her dying breath said she saw a mountain lion in Lexington MA. The recent social media posting of what was thought to be an image of a mountain lion in Prairie du Rocher brought skepticism . So its this gathering storm. Patrick Skahill is a reporter and digital editor at Connecticut Public. The next week, on June 11, the cat was hit and killed by an SUV on the Wilbur Cross Parkway in Milford. And its not just Vermont. State wildlife experts say those big cats have been extinct in Connecticut. You cansubscribe here, orfind the current issue on sale here. But sometimes, instead of mountain lions, people thought they saw other creatures in the Connecticut woods, of which authorities were supposedly aware. Stay Connected Sign up. There was a tin of American Spirit tobacco on the table (Ottmanns), a laptop (Bettys), a notebook (mine), and a tumbler of Bacardi and Coke (Ottmanns again). Even in areas of high cougar density, the there are far more attacks on humans by domesticated dogs or deer/car collision fatalities than those due to cougar attack. To report grouse sightings, please contact Wildlife Division biologist Will Cassidy at william.cassidy@ct.gov or 860-418-5961. He wore red suspenders and a baseball cap. But that was OK. Bo Ottmann knew they were out there. I heard from Neighbors that they have been sighting from the mass pike which runs along this area but also very close to Quabbin! Otherwise, Hawley said cats like bobcats want nothing to do with people, and they will generally prey on chickens, small dogs or cats. my husband tapped my leg and asked what is that crossing the road It was a Cougar tan in color long tail which had a slight curl upward .I wish I had my camera to prove it but I know We saw it. Megafauna mania: our obsession with mountain lions and other large predators., Megafauna mania: our obsession with mountain lions and other large predators. Public opinion surveys show many more would support reintroduction, than oppose. Finally, in the third camp, there are the true believersthe cougar truthers, if you willthe men and women for whom the only logical conclusion (often reached after a significant investment of time, thought, and sometimes money) is that right here, right now, cougars live among us, feeding and breeding and rearing their young, and that suggesting otherwise is sheer ignorance, willful denial, or part of a mosaic of conspiracy. I reported it to Connecticut DEEP, only to be told there are no cougars in Connecticut. Description. But its also a great story that lays out how an animal this large, at 150 pounds, traveling through even rural areas, leaves signs and is detected. We told him what we saw, and he confirmed other sightings on the property. To obtain grouse distribution and harvest information, the Wildlife Division is asking grouse hunters to submit hunting reports through the Ruffed Grouse Hunter Log . So, traffic had been slowed from both ends for a good 3-5 minutes. The last catamount killed in Vermont stands under glass just inside the doors to the Vermont Historical Museum in Montpelier, a hop, skip, and a jump down the block from the statehouse. But a high-profile sighting in 2011 stirred up renewed interest in the animals here, when a mountain lion from South Dakota was hit and killed by a car on a Connecticut highway. Bobcats typically have brown fur with a reddish tinge that is marked with black or brown spots or stripes, according to the National Zoo. Theres also the lack of visual evidence, more glaring each passing year as so many hikers and hunters now carry phones with cameras. The department has said it receives reports every year of. Ive heard some biologists say it is not a distinct subspecies. However, that doesnt mean that mountain lion sightings are all false or that there havent been roaming cats sighted. Its a cool story with how far that animal walked. 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