Mountain Lions - Rocky Mountain National Park (U.S. National Park Service) NPS.gov Park Home Learn About the Park Nature Animals Mammals Mountain Lion Mountain Lion Last updated: May 4, 2018 Was this page helpful? No An official form of the United States government. They're common in the rural areas of the Lehigh Valley but are moving into more populated areas as evidenced by a 600-pound specimen (pictured) that was tranquilized in March after neighbors in. The last known mountain lion in Pennsylvania was killed in Berks County in 1874. What equipment do we take in the field? original web site, although if I ever have enough time I might 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 . Is there a Mountain Lion Conspiracy? 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. I Googled "Pocono mountain lion" and there it was the same photo, except the caption claimed that it was taken in Oklahoma, not Pennsylvania, and various posted comments asserted that the photo was manipulated. In personal contacts, that monthly average might even be higher. They mostly live in the far western Trans-Pecos region of the state, where they can freely roam 50,000 to 80,000 acres of land. The head of the puma is small in comparision to a house cat when compared to the entire body. 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. I've know of reports since 1973, in Cooke Forest, the heart of a lot of Pa. wilderness. "It's one of those things where I'll believe it when I see it," said Jason Farmer of Pocono Summit, my hunting partner for the last eight years. 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. The agency has declared extinct the eastern cougar, one of 11 subspecies ofmountain lions native to North America. Eyes are normal and are not light sensitive, and the over-all color, generally black, is usually not detrimental and may actually be of benefit. Why is bat photography so difficult? Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (each updated 1/26/2023). All of the above are Mountain Lions, or Pumas, or Cougars. The coat can be spotted or solid and varies in color from light browns, reddish and silvery grey. 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 was estimated to be a young adult American Mastodon that had died about 12,000 years ago, according to radiocarbon dating. They are generally believed to be young cats roaming in search of new breeding territories to claim as their own. "He doesn't like men too much," said Suzanne Murray, owner of East Coast Exotic Animal Rescue in this south-central Pennsylvania town. I have received about two dozen reports during that time, including one. 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. Mountain Lion in Pocono's Pennsylvania Kacie PA 7.9K views 2 years ago Mountain lion in bucks county pa or not? Mountain lions can live in almost any habitat including forests, prairies, deserts, and swamps. At one time this fact almost resulted in this cat not being protected, since it wasn't a pure strain. I'm wondering, then, if the complete dismissal of sightings of Eastern pumas (other than the acknowledgement of released or escaped pets) isn't motivated by economics. Discover the Little-Known U.S. River Gorge That's, The 9 Best Books About National Parks for Travelers, mountain lions seem to be making a comeback. Let's see a clear photo, or a carcass or something. Foster, the Messiah College professor, said he has investigated about 15 reported mountain lion sightings since late May, and believed "three or four are pretty likely a mountain lion." Each year, over tha past five, I've spoken with at least one person who swears they personally saw a puma in this state. "Given the period of time that has passed without verification of even a single eastern puma, the service concludes that the last remaining members of this subspecies perished decades ago," the Fish and Wildlife Service said in a Federal Register notice. An article in last year's New York State Conservationist magazine about mountain lions concluded that none exists in that state, even in the 6-million-acre Adirondack Mountain wilderness. In Tennessee, the most likely places you would find them would be in the forest. How, Who, and Why? If there were wild cougars in our midst, the Game Commission also pointed out, eventually there would be solid evidence such as a carcass, scat and paw prints that could be verified. All of these forests are, with few exceptions, open to hunting, and hunting is a very important industry in Pennsylvania, New York, West Virginia, Maryland, and Virginia. If pumas do exist in the mid-Atlantic and Northeast, could they all be released cats or escapees? Most nature magazines state whether the photos were taken "under controlled conditions" rather than in the wild.). Are they all the product of the off-spring of pumas that escaped their owners or were released? Mountain Lion Reports (PennLive has investigated many reports of mountain lions, and other mystery creatures, and has found no confirming evidence. The Game Commission concluded they were coyotes. "While confirmed cougar sightings have occurred recently in the wild in the East, there is currently no scientific or physical evidence documenting the continued existence of a population of wild eastern cougars," according to the U.S. Is it the New Best Pack? 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? Other states have had sightings, especially as mountain lion populations begin to explore and look to expand. Two other reports went, in detail, on what they saw, the size, the length of tail, etc. Newspapers carried stories in 1956 about hunters supposedly seeing and killing wolves in Pike and Monroe Counties. Here it is: I still couldn't get the big head/little neck, and the body is a bit stouter/shorter, but a striding cat might be stretched out a bit. The claim of mountain lions on the move was bolstered in 2009 when one was killed by a car in Greenwich, Conn. They've been extinct in the eastern part of North America for more than a century. The State Museum of Pennsylvania, in Harrisburg, displays a taxidermy mount of a mountain lion in glass case, with the notation, "This lion, found near Hawk Mountain in Berks County around 1871, is the last native mountain lion known to have been shot in Pennsylvania. However, my friend and I discussed this, and agreed, we saw what we saw, and had it been 40 years ago or four months ago, we knew we saw a coyote. Recently, a man I spoke with told me that he was reminded of a sighting he and two friends had 20 years earlier, and after recalling the incident he was motivated to call his college buddies and reflect on their observation. 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. I don't want to seem like a nut case here, but I must ask this question and you'll soon understand why? Local outlets carried reports of cougar encounters at least into the 1910s. Many have a desire to see some clear-cut evidence. 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. I'm a photographer, yet I've never had a chance to snap a photograph of one of these bears. Mountain lions have a lifespan of about 8 to 13 years old in the wild. Most, quite honestly, don't know or can't believe or accept what they saw, they really can't believe their eyes. A second image of the same cat, in a different light, reveals the trademark spots of a bobcat. Are mountain lions on their way to Pennsylvania? Martinelli said that if there were mountain lions in Pennsylvania, there would be more sightings of them. The claim of mountain lions on the move was bolstered in 2009 when one was killed by a car in Greenwich, Conn. If we don't see it, it doesn't exist. Mountain Lions do remain in the western states and there is evidence that in 2011, a mountain lion migrated about 1,500 miles from South Dakota to Connecticut where it was killed by a. Very, very rarely, when I ask someone who would be a likely candidate (a hunter, someone who owns a camp in the deep woods, travels likely routes often, foresters), 'Have you ever seen a mountain lion?' Fish and Wildlife Service. Known as the Niagara Falls of Pennsylvania, there are four trails that lead to the cascades from the Bushkill Falls trailhead, each ranging in . Wyoming has a historically stable population of mountain lions, but recent drops in numbers have caused some to worry. Ironically, I almost deleted the image, as on the small camera LCD monitor the cat was small and I thought that it was just another deer that moved along the stream. 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 that cat killed on a highway in Milford, Connecticut, in June 2011. Mountain Lions in Pennsylvania? The first settlers kept sheep to supply their household with wool. None of these sightings has been authenticated, and many of them, including a recent, alleged mountain lion picked up on a surveillance camera in Lackawanna County, turned out to be bobcats. "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. . Interesting, too, are the reports I've heard from people who were told that they would be in big trouble if they shot a puma. (National Park Service). Something to consider, even though we all trust the government. In the forests of Kenya, however, they do occur. Check out our online field guide to read more in this series. 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. Like Rocky, Nia is declawed. "They preyed upon the caribou, and probably the mastodon," Leslie wrote of these large animals flourishing on the grasses and cold-climate flora that sprouted following the glacier's retreat. To learn more about "lion country" in Colorado check here. 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. Remember, this one was photographed in Arizona in good puma country, although this was the first one I've recorded there. Who knows? I'm thinking of the solution often suggested for pesky endangered species out west, namely wolves and grizzly bears. A dark brown puma, backlighted by a strong sun, could appear all black, or very dark, and he accepted that. They once inhabited the entire United States, but were killed off and pushed west. A phantom creature has been sighted in the vast Delaware State Forest region of Pike County. "I know they're native to this area. With that in mind, lets break down how we classified the states. They know what they saw, regardless of what the facts say, and they know they saw a puma. He saw a big cat. It was recorded in Minnesota and Wisconsin in late 2009 and early 2010, and then died in Connecticut in 2011. While there have been no confirmed occurrences of mountain lions in Pennsylvania since the late 1800s, dozens . Illinois can also now be added to this list a mountain lion was found on the outskirts of Chicago. Apparently, this picture was really making the rounds. The sightings were great bear views, but too fast or fleeting to allow me to grab a camera. Today, we are going to explore the 15 US states that have mountain lions, plus a few others that may have some. Over time, cats that had been released in Florida, probably pets that outlived their welcome, bred with the native puma, and their genes mingled. Provided by Touchpoints "I thought I had a sighting in the late '90s," Delaware Water Gap National Recreation park ranger Chris Kross said. Heres What the Data Says. Asa Packer Mansion Jim Thorpe. Biologists traced it. On the second night, a mountain lion passed by, apparently drawn by the smell but put off by the stench, as the cat did not visit the kill. Most of the people I've spoken with live in this belt, but biologists friends I've spoken with have told me of their own reports, first-hand, from hunters in the Poconos who saw pumas, too. By the time he returned the vehicle was gone, and so was the cat, and no mention was ever made of this road kill in a radio or newspaper report. Let me explain this. The rocky habitat that covers much of the state is perfect for these ambush predators, especially since humans dont inhabit much of the land. This is huge news for conservationists around the country and a sign that cougars may be heading east once again. 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. Foster said mountain lions and bobcats could not breed. Let's say the facts indicate that there have been a lot of 'pet' pumas, and many of these escaped. Only when I reviewed the images on my laptop did I discover that I had a mountain lion! An animal's coat can stray far from the norm. Please keep scrolling - ALL the Puma posts are included. There are approximately 4,000 of those 10- to 40-pound cats in the state. Bushkill Falls Trail. Fish and Wildlife Service. And book one of these Poconos cabins rentals for the best outdoor access to these activities. 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. These color morphs are most common in rain forests and jungles. Where they always here as a relic population? 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. By the mid-1900s pumas were eliminated from almost all of the eastern states, and by mid-century were officially extinct east of the Mississippi, except for a remnant population in southern Florida. The State cites that there are no road-kills, and in a heavily trafficed state like Pennsylvania there should be kills. Mountain lions' canines are 3 to 4 inches long. One of the important things for any animal is a place to call home. One might argue that the eastern puma is extinct, but that does not mean that there are not pumas (mountain lions, cougars) in the east. "They are very strong animals," she said. The bobcat wouldn't survive. About six months ago I posted the question, Are there Mountain Lions in Pennsylvania? This is only hearsay, however, since I'm only going on their stories. All rights reserved (About Us). One of these days, though, I'll get one that won't be, and I hope that will be soon. I'd love to hear of any reports you have. YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. Enter your email in the box below to get the most mind-blowing animal stories and videos delivered directly to your inbox every day. I used to archery hunt for deer, and I spent a lot of time (way too much time) sitting silently in a tree stand waiting for deer. It seems unlikely, considering captives have never shown this trait, but people are reporting big black cats. In only one report had an official from the Pennsylvania Game Commision, a local warden, actually agree with the person reporting the sighting. Colby is a freelance writer from Charlotte, North Carolina. Murray also has a cross-eyed white tiger named Keisha, who crushed chicken bones with ease but delicately stepped into a metal pool to cool off. Most of the native mountain lions live in Bryce Canyon and Zion National Park, but humans rarely ever see them due to their secretive nature. He's sitting in a plastic doghouse, paws crossed, amber eyes locked on the two men ticking him off by their mere presence out beyond the fence.
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