As a scientist, lack of evidence is very good evidence. Two were confirmed in Logan County (2014 and 2015), and one . Weve done a lot of work over the years investigating sightings. Mountain Lions:They can have similar coloring and their tails can look alike, which has lead to some house cats being mistaken for them, even though mountain lions are much, much bigger. Because he lives among them, Harrigan understands that no one knows the woods better. 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. Ive been doing this for 40 years. "Connecticut is cougar heaven . They also want to foster the formation and protection of migration pathways for them and other animals to enter new states. Within six weeks, he continued, I was getting off the plane in Jackson Hole for a national mountain lion conference. Anyone can get fooled. Height. Its definitely a problem thats only going to get worse. Bobcats typically have brown fur with a reddish tinge that is marked with black or brown spots or stripes, according to the National Zoo. For helpful information on identifying mountain lion tracks and more, visit the Missouri Department of . But the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection said Sunday that bobcats are the only large wild cats found in the state. Anyway I got to see that set of eyes way closer than I ever wanted, by the time my hand got on my pistol she was gone. Mountain Lions: cougars, pumas, panthers and catamounts. I have heard several accounts from sober, sane, intelligent people who have seen them (especially a latre, good friend who was a very competent spokesman and hunter.). Mountain lions found in eastern Nebraska typically are dispersing young animals on the move to find new territory. Out & About | Best New England Holiday Events for 2019. He set down his cigarette and looked me in the eye. Friends that go backcountry skiing in Vermont have reported seeing tracks to me many times and I have seen pictures of the pawprints myself that look overwheming like a mountain lion. Sue Morse, the founder and science director of Keeping Track, a Vermont-based organization dedicated to protecting wildlife habitats, has studied mountain lions over her career as a naturalist, and says the majority of cougar sightings in the Northeast are misidentifications. Based on this blurry photo and pawprints, DEEP confirmed it was likely a mountain lion. The average annual population estimate from 2004-2020 of 2,876 total mountain lions, based on the statistical population . More recently, unexplained animal sightings in Connecticut and other states became more and more associated with mountain lions. Also known as cougars, panthers or pumas, mountain lions range in color from tan to grey, according to the U.S. Department of Agricultures Forest Service. Respect predators, protect them but dont worship or try to hug them! Hey, I know what I saw. The journey is chronicled in the 2016 book, Abbott, of the Housatonic Valley Association, is equally skeptical of the vast majority of mountain lion sightings. And theyre not going to find one, because the females don't disperse like that. After 20 minutes or so, we turned and stumbled our way back to the parking lot. 60-108 inches. It was his great coolness and daring (either that, or fear) that enabled Crowell to shoot the animal at a distance of one rod only (roughly 16 feet), first hitting it in the leg with his shotgun, then dispatching it with a bullet to the head from a borrowed rifle. It was a bright sunny summer day. You know, weve had so many home entries this year. The photos were time-stamped December 7, 2020. Adult Cougars have short fur that is brown or greyish (sometimes reddish) over most of the body, with a white chest and belly. We even had a sighting someone here at DEEP, in my office, was convinced they saw a mountain lion. Males (100 to 170 lbs.) Photo of a mountain lion taken by a game camera. For decades afterward, there were reported sightings of the mythical creature prowling the woods around town. The 1881 death of this catamount officially marked the end of cougars in Vermont; however, the very last Eastern cougar is thought to be an animal that was killed in Somerset County, Maine, in 1938. We know that the closest established breeding population is in either the Everglades of Florida theres a small population down there and then out in South Dakota and Nebraska. Lets learn to live alongside this very large animal is one of the schools of thought. It was his great coolness and daring (either that, or fear) that enabled Crowell to shoot the animal at a distance of one rod only (roughly 16 feet), first hitting it in the leg with his shotgun, then dispatching it with a bullet to the head from a borrowed rifle. As a scientist, lack of evidence is very good evidence. How to Report a Possible Mountain Lion Sighting. For mountain lions in Connecticut, a lack of evidence is very good evidence. Early spring 2019 I caught a glimpse of one entering over grown brush on the side of the road very very early in the morning. 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. A bobcats tail is short and bob-like, while mountain lions have long, curving tails that can grow up to 3 feet. I had been the first vehicle in a line held up by one lane traffic on a bridge reconstruction. She said it jumped up on the neighbors stone wall which was pretty high and walked across it. He wore red suspenders and a baseball cap. They have a right to exist here and they contribute to healthier prey species. By 1825, only 25% of Connecticut was forested due to deforestation from agricultural activities and other uses of timber. This guy was very intelligent, he had abandoned a professional career to pursue his dream of guiding. And so when they come to him with a sighting, hes prepared to believe. Yes I have seen several pictures on game cameras from people in Massachusetts in Central and western Mass that do have mountain lions on their game camera so please dont be ignorant. About Us; The tavern was quiet except for some hard-rock music playing on the radio, the murmur of a handful of men at the bar, and us. 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. The expert opinion held up until a man was killed by a Great White not too far away. Hey, I know what I saw. Now the bears, they dont even care if people are home, theyll go right in the house. Wild Turkey Brood Survey McEnroe: Scientifically, this is a case where absence of evidence is kind of evidence of absence, right? Even so, Abbott has heard of mountain lion sightings from what he deems reliable sources and believes its possible that other animals have made the difficult, some say almost miraculous trek, from the West to Connecticut. They set the stage for the exotics to move in, and this has a huge impact on our ecology, he said. She served as the Senior Producer for 'The Colin McEnroe Show' for several years before stepping down in 2021 and returning to her previous career as a registered nurse. Over time, Wright became convinced Eastern cougars lived in small pockets in the deep woods. Its quite an uphill challenge for us to manage that situation right now. It may not surprise you to learn that I was quite intrigued by this third group. he recalls. Colin McEnroe is a radio host, newspaper columnist, magazine writer, author, playwright, lecturer, moderator, college instructor and occasional singer. One one occasion she had two little ones with her so their den must have been sort of closeby. Weve done a lot of work over the years investigating sightings. According to Jason Hawley, a wildlife biologist for the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protections Wildlife Division, the department gets around 100 sighting reports of mountain lions each year, but upon further investigation, a good proportion of the sightings end up being bobcats. When I shared their story with the staff at the center where my sister lived, I expected surprise and interested. Im always amazed at the sheer volume of people who are interested in cougars, more even than wolves, she says. Yet I also remembered something Sue Morse had told me months before, as we sat in her living room drinking beer and chatting cats. They are most definitely here. Regarding a breeding population that is the unknown. There have been 40 confirmed mountain lion sightings since 2002 in the state, according to the Wildlife Department. "Mountain lions are considered extinct in the northeast." Bobcats are not uncommon in Connecticut, according to the state, although their population is limited throughout the state, with the. The mountain lion is also known as cougar, panther, or puma. Weights range from 80 to 225 pounds, but the average is 140 pounds. Bios and videos of the New Haven Register's 90th First-Team All-State Football players. Bobcats and a possible mountain lion have been mentioned within the past few weeks. People often get very emotional about it, Hawley says. Bobcats are most frequently misidentified by the public as mountain lions, but theyre not the only animals mislabeled. In a Facebook poll, 84 people said they believe mountain lions are in the county, 37 say they've personally seen them, and three people say they do not exist. Box 1896 Sacramento, CA 95812 916-442-2666 info@mountainlion.org. I started asking a lot of questions, and realized theres only one explanation for the answers I was getting: They are here., You could have 30 in Connecticut alone. Weve got a growing bear population. 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. I saw on three occasions in about the same location a beautiful mtn lion with the long bushytail that curves at the end. Mr. Betty and Mr.Ottomans passion and efforts are impressive. vital part of this countries ecosystem. He was previously a reporter for the Danbury News-Times and the Ridgefield Press. In 1994, scat collected after a sighting in Craftsbury, Vermont, was found to contain cougar hair (the animals are prone to ingesting their hair while grooming), and the commissioner of the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department circulated a memo with the following line: It is possible that cougars of unknown origin may be breeding to a limited extent in Vermont. Mountain lions (commonly called cougar or puma) vary in size and weight. building a betterand more civilConnecticut to live, work, and play. 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. For decades, wildlife experts should have been seeing occasional scat and paw prints in the winter. Fear is actually one of the most powerful ecological forces we know, and its a really important management tool., According to Laundre, the problems caused by a relatively fear-free ecosystem are not always obvious, in part because they can take decades to fully manifest. A few years later, though, the scat was retested with DNA analysis and found to be canid, rather than feline, in origin. These highlights have been edited and condensed for length and clarity. In Florida, where mountain lions are known as panthers, dozens are killed each year by cars. Middlebury, Vermont | Could You Live Here? Stupid me grabbed my camera and a stick as to protect myself ( yes stupid idea as I could stop this thing from attacking me lol. However, the National Wildlife Federation notes that the mountain lions range spreads all across the Americas, from the Canadian Yukon to The Strait of Magellan, making it the greatest range of any living mammal in the Americas.. Still, there are those of us who know what weve seen. Listen & Learn. Please. I met with Morse at her home in Jericho. Massachusetts and several other New England states have bear hunting, or harvest, seasons, which proponents say help control populations. There were caribou antlers mounted above the front doors, and the interior walls were covered in row upon row of books; a long table was piled high with still more books in seemingly random arrangements. So its this gathering storm. Having retired from a career at General Dynamics, he devotes many of his waking hours to cougar research, a passion hes cultivated for nearly twodecades. 2012). "There's no evidence of breeding pairs," he said. In 2011, genetic testing confirmed that a mountain lion originated in South Dakota and traveled more than 1,500 miles before being struck by a car on the Merritt Parkway, according to Reuters. You know, weve had so many home entries this year. To date, Keeping Track has helped conserve 40,000 acres in 12 states and inQuebec. There was no mistake. The image has since been deleted from social media. By now, I knew the answer to that one. What color was it? Connecticut Republicans are proposing to reduce the cost of electricity by removing state taxes and surcharges from customer invoices. Now the bears, they dont even care if people are home, theyll go right in the house. Size alone . 1 After three deer were killed on his property in March, Matunuck resident Abel Collins found what he suspected might be a mountain lion track nearby. She adds, I think its because a lot of people are fascinated by wild cats; they are the embodiment of the wild.. The official word is that mountain lions were declared extinct in Connecticut back in the late 1800s but sightings have become much more prevalent. It was a lion-like cat with a tan coat and no spots that was about three times the size of our 30- to 35-pound dog. When I came out, the cat appeared in front of me coming up a rise (incredibly close to some ski condos). Weve had housecats misidentified as mountain lions and even deer, Rego says. Can they really all be cases of false identification? I think of Aldo Leopolds Thinking Like a Mountain essay about how deer decimated the forests and died of starvation because of humans incessant desire to kill. These sightings are so persistent that there is a conspiracy theory that says DEEP officials know mountain lions are in the state but cover up their existence. Mountain lion hunting tags were sold in 2013 through a lottery system for the state's first lion hunt. I kept trying to make it be something else because I was shocked that I was, indeed, watching a mountain lion pass in front of me. It had rained previously. Snowy winter AM just before us neighbor kids were heading to catch the bus, we (myself, my dad and neighbor) all watched a large cat cross the yard and leave huge prints and a distinct tail drag mark in the snow! There are no breeding cougars in New England and we do not need any. When I accepted the assignment to write about my quest to uncover the truth regarding the existence of cougars in New England, I had little idea what I was agreeing to. 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