"People think they can get them declawed and that they're safe, but they still have teeth.". Journal of Mammalogy 97(5):1435-1440. You know I love hunting when I was younger in Pennsylvania but trying to kill the very last animal shows a sign of being inbred. adroll_pix_id = "UONCO23J7FHDDMDTKEX733"; They usually go after rabbits and small game but can kill animals as large as deer, according to pennlive.com. My cousin and his girlfriend swear they saw a mountain lion Davis hill Rd off of county route 249 in tioga county. adroll_version = "2.0"; The other was seen roaming in Arlee on. As an apex predator, their extirpationlocalized extinctionhas caused incalculable harm to the ecosystems of Pennsylvania. From PD: Read your article about mountain lions in NJ. They've been extinct in the eastern part of North America for more than a century. In January, the U.S. Michael Tanenbaum However, the last genuine sighting of a free-roaming mountain lion in the state was in 1967, and even that was suspected to have been someone's escaped or released pet. LaRue, M.A., Nielsen, C.K., Dowling, M., Miller, K., Wilson, B., Shaw, H., Anderson, C.R. Then I saw and was like, 'It could be a bobcat, possibly mountain lion,' " Nick Dodge said. Most are about three feet long. I also seen deer in my yard, a coyote, a mink, a wood turtle and a bear earlier this year as well. The best way to differentiate cougar tracks from other animals is size; cougar tracks are usually four inches from heel to toe and four inches wide, roughly twice the size of bobcats or coyotes. 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. While there are many unconfirmed sightings of mountain lions in Ohio, there is not believed to be any living in the state. Unfortunately, is it unlikely that cougars will return to Pennsylvania in the near future. "Likewise, I'm not aware of any escapes from captive facilities in my time here. Before that, a lion was captured on a . "I kind of doubt they saw a cougar, but I'm not God.". It has the color of a mountain lion, but the long tail appears to be missing. adroll_current_page = "other"; They're responsible for80 percent of the pollination of the fruit, legume and vegetable plants we need to eat. The Dodge family in Clarks Summit, Lackawanna County, captured an image of a big cat strolling behind the fence enclosing their yard and pool. PA game commission are nothing but liers they lie to the people all the time we need to do away with them turn it over to the government I do not trust our government but the game commission lies more, what appears to be very large lion tracks the PGC says photos were of a large dog I disagree I have a deer feeder and I think that is why they are all around my house, it seems every time my cousin mason and his buddies go camping they encounter oro see a mountian lion he says he swares the the cougar stalks them when they start walking through the woodsthey live in the northern part of pa in an little mountian town of treemont in schuylkill county we know there is mountian lions up there. An escapee is also possible. So, if you live close to here please keep this in mind while you are hiking or walking along the wooded areas. Eastern mountain lions lived in central Pennsylvania until the late 1800s, according to Foster. But they're probably bobcats. The mountain lion ( Puma concolor) is sometimes called cougar, puma, catamount, and panther. Coyotes are also confused for cougars (Figure 2). House cats on average are 11lbs and only a foot tall, which is much smaller than a cougar. Lion sightings they got. San Julian dutifully follows up on every cougar report he can. adroll_adv_id = "T6XR4YM2C5FGXNZIDZPFXI"; I think the mountain lion situation is like that. Find Easton area news on Facebook. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. When I say large, I mean way bigger than a house cat, about the size of a 60lb dog. Upon investigation, the mountain lion was clearly a Florida panther that had wandered . Please enter your email address below to create account. According to the Pennsylvania Game Commission, feline predators such as the eastern cougar, which is also known as the mountain lion, are "extirpated," meaning they're all but wiped out in the northeastern United States. This was hit by a truck on Mill Creek Road . Some have even reported seeing a "black panther," a near-impossibility because of the rarity of that recessive gene. Symptoms usually disappear after four days. The only native North American mountain lion species (Puma concolor) has long since been extirpated from the eastern United States, with the exception of a small population of Florida panthers whose genetic roots are a subject of debate. I write stories about rural and exurban areas, the places where development meets farmland and farms meet the great outdoors. Here, they've not been," Lau said in an e-mail. 4.7K views 3 years ago Scott describes his mountain lion / cougar sighting in western Pennsylvania (Indiana County) in October, 2019 in this interview. Get started. That said there have been numerous sightings of them over the years. Pennsylvania is too inhabited to support a population of cougars, unless there are major changes in cougar biology, cougar behavior, and public opinion. 4 . The dispatch center received calls about the mountain lion at approximately 4:30 a.m. near the Copeland Creek Trail between Country Club and Snyder Lane located in the area of Sunrise Park. So is the second largest extant cat in North America still managing to eke out a living in the Keystone state? Breeding cougars are almost entirely west of the Mississippi in states like South Dakota, Texas, and California (Figure 1). 3 Last 10 Years. Recently he was given a plaster cast of what was suspected to be a cougar track from Wayne County, made after a "large cat-like creature" was seen locally. Based on its extensive research, the Service concluded this subspecies of big cats had disappeared from the east by the 1930s. Mountain Lion Sighting. The Eastern Cougar Foundation, a clearinghouse for cougar sightings, claims it has received proof that big cats do exist in Missouri, Vermont, Massachusetts, Maryland, West Virginia, North Carolina, Illinois and Kentucky, and in Ontario and New Brunswick, Canada. Was running and had very long stride, at least 6 foot. The distance traveled varies based on habitat, time of year, and study methods. But the reported road-kill apparently never happened. The Everglades1,150 miles south of Pennsylvaniais the only known home to a breeding population of cougars in the East (Figure 1). Jeff Mulhollem jjm29@psu.edu 814-863-2719 814-865-1068 fax, http://aginfo.psu.edu/news/august01/lion.tif. I know I am not the only one who spotted this cat around the woods right outside town . If cougars are out there, why hasn't one ever been killed on a highway or shot? If you're hiking, stay on the path and don't venture into the woods. I work near Hazleton, Pa. Brocke R. 1981. Cougars are kept in captivity by a few people, but these cats are large agile wild animals that are not suited to captivity. The bobcat wouldn't survive. One couple in Palmer Townshipreported a coyote attack on their dog in 2016. It will happen eventually. "We have lots of remote areas where people seldom go," he says, "and our high deer population would offer them bountiful food. Spotting mountain lions is becoming a Pennsylvania pastime. FAIRFIELD, Pa. An instinct coiled way down in the human brain knows the difference between a bobcat and a mountain lion. But an image captured by one family's security camera last weekend certainly shows what looks to be a mountain lion. In January, the U.S. Mountain lions have killed humans in the wild, though sightings and encounters are rare even in the American West and Canada. Thousands of deer. Despite annual reports since the 1950s, no confirmed sighting was made in the state until the 1990s. The cougar was photographed as it made its way from Minnesota to Wisconsin. A hunter and an angler, San Julian, like most other outdoorsmen and nature lovers, wants to believe wild mountain lions survive in the woods of Pennsylvania. Cover Image: A cougar in Michigans Upper Peninsula (photo credit: Michigan DNR). The eastern cougar subspecies is slightly smaller than the western, but is similar in appearance and habits. No one needs to panic.". "They are very strong animals," she said. . YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. I told her I knew what a Maine Coon cat looked like and this was BIG, had short hair and LONG tail. Reintroduction of the cougar (Felis concolor) in Adirondack Park: A problem analysis and recommendations. There has never been any conclusive evidence.". Required fields are marked *. It has been well known that cariabou have migrated from Canada, so why not the mountain lion? "We've been here 45 years and I've probably been told by people at least 100 times that they've seen a cougar or mountain lion," said owner Vince Hall. Bobcats are much smaller, only two to three feet long (head to tail) and one to two feet high at the shoulder. The Fort Worth Star-Telegraph reports on a mountain lion sighting in April 2022. A placard affixed to the fence outside Rocky's pen states that "cougars are solitary creatures and rarely seen by humans." If you see a bobcat or mountain lion, you can report the sighting to the DEC by calling (518) 357-2158. Ears are another way to identify the cat: cougars have rounded ears and bobcat ears have a black tuft. I live in Cumberland County about a half a mile from the 944/Enola exit. Fish and Wildlife Service thinks cougars wereprobably wiped out in the 1930s in the eastern United States. Langell said two reports were . This is a BIG cat! The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. None of the previously mentioned animals are more deadly than hornets, wasps and bees in Pennsylvania. (The fear of cougars is unfounded. Bears tend to be shy and want to avoid contact with people, according to the Pennsylvania Game Commission. Lutz and several other volunteers are planning to travel to Bedford County within a few days of the next snowfall, in fact, to look for cougar sign because several sightings have been reported there in recent months. Of course, bees are crucial to our existence. A second image of the same cat, in a different light, reveals the trademark spots of a bobcat. Mountain Lions Background: In 2011, the U.S. The mystery of whether wild eastern cougars, also commonly known as mountain lions, pumas, or panthers, really survive in the Keystone State might finally unravel. 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