Still, these resilient animals reside in secluded areas across the United States, with current data suggesting they may even be returning to their historical regions! Mysterious big cat caught on security camera in Clarks Summit, Pa. Check out our online field guide to read more in this series. What does a Mountain Lion look like on a game camera? Me? The question is just like in the story of the boy who cried wolf) if that day ever arrives, how will we believe those first, true sightings after so many hoaxes have been perpetrated on the public? The 6 best hikes in the Poconos Mountains - Lonely Planet 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. Who knows? Bushkill Falls Trail. I wanted to know if they're here, so I called some people I trust and asked them one simple question: Are there mountain lions in Pennsylvania? I have not spoken with a Game Commission officer personally, so I don't know whether anyone killing a puma in Pennsylvania could do so without legal repercussions. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. In captivity mountain, lions can live to be about 20 years old. 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. Geologist Dr. John Yolton made the identification. It was decided that this shouldn't influence the decision and, in fact, an infusion of new genes produces a hybrid vigor, lessening the chance of in-breeding. If we don't see it, it doesn't exist. This one streaked across the road in the early evening, and fortunately, it stopped when it climbed a hill on the other side where I had another view from my side of the truck. 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. I'll be anxious to learn of your report. "From three really reliable sources who are always around the woods from Monroe County to Bradford, there is no doubt that there are mountain lions in Pennsylvania," East Stroudsburg University football team offensive coordinator and avid hunter Mike Terwilliger said. According to the commission, the last Pennsylvania mountain lion was killed in the late 1800s. The states beautiful wilderness and mountainous terrain are prime mountain lion habitats. Pa Mountain lion, cougar, or big cat in bucks county Pennsylvania One of these days, though, I'll get one that won't be, and I hope that will be soon. What the Lenape Indians never did, the European colonists and their descendants did swiftly eradicate the wolf and cougars viewed as a menace to their families and livestock. They are generally believed to be young cats roaming in search of new breeding territories to claim as their own. But many others believe wild mountain lions are traveling from Western states, where as many as 30,000 could exist, and across the Midwest to Pennsylvania seeking new territory. It also mentioned that someone raising a mountain lion without a license may either have let it go when it became too large to handle, or that the animal had escaped. "I thought I had a sighting in the late '90s," Delaware Water Gap National Recreation park ranger Chris Kross said. Please keep scrolling - ALL the Puma posts are included. Pocono beasts: Mastodons, wolves, cougars once abundant in region I had three cameras positioned, so had a cat visited, I'd have had it. Many of those claiming to have encountered a cougar in Pennsylvania take that non-confirmation by the commission as an attack on their veracity and character. I'll offer my own little anecdote. Mountain lions have an interesting life cycle that consists of a few different characteristics. This is not a Pennsylvania puma! The last documented sighting of an eastern cougar was one killed in Maine in 1938. Among other uses, the tax was levied "for destroying wolves, foxes, heads and crows." 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. The coat can be spotted or solid. 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. The last of three glaciations covered 30% of Pennsylvania, including much of the Poconos, from around 20,000-10,000 B.C. 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. 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! Mountain lion killed in Connecticut was on the opposite side of Pennsylvania a year ago, Is it real? 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. 2023 www.poconorecord.com. After all, how many people have pumas? If pumas do exist in the mid-Atlantic and Northeast, could they all be released cats or escapees? The agency has declared extinct the eastern cougar, one of 11 subspecies ofmountain lions native to North America. Have all of those who have seen a puma really seen a bobcat? a high priority. Claws 'N' Paws Animal Park in Lake Ariel has two. It has the color of a mountain lion, but the long tail appears to be missing. Reports of a mountain lion have come from several residents of Hemlock Farms who were hiking on. Images from a homeowner's surveillance camera show a tan cat with a long body, beyond a chain-link fence. "I'm proud to know her," Murray said of the tiger, "but I wish I didn't.". Imagination? Both were a threat to the farmer and family who carved a home in the ancient wilderness of the Poconos. Melanism is the reverse, where there is an abundance of dark or black pigmentation. The woman, a 66-year-old grandmother, asked not to be identified because she's a senior and didn't want people "bothering" her about it. Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. Since mountain lions are the top predators (unlike most other states with grizzly bears), they have a well-developed population. Although unconfirmed, mountain lions continue to be reported in many spots across Pennsylvania, including several reports in the past couple months. The story behind our new web site. What does a Puma (Mountain Lion) look like on a Game Camera? In this at this distant epoch, archaeologists attempt to clear some of the mists and mysteries of prehistoric times. It had been captured in Florida, and was to be released. These color morphs are most common in rain forests and jungles. 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 to the East. I'm a photographer, yet I've never had a chance to snap a photograph of one of these bears. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. 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. They regularly join the camp of those angrily claiming the commission has introduced the big cats back into Pennsylvania as a control measure against the state's huge deer population. About half of the state of Montana is ideal for mountain lions, primarily in her western and central regions. The Golden State has one of the largest populations of mountain lions in the country. 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. Would these ridges be declared off-limits for hunting? Let me know if you have seen one! Hopefully, we'll see the real thing. Would a puma then qualify as a native species? These cubs are born blind and helpless. While it would seem impossible to confuse the two after seeing them in person, Foster said many of the sightings are in the dark, from roadways and trail cams, with bodies half-concealed. There are, from time to time, eyewitness accounts from hunters or hikers who claim to have seen the cat. I've never seen or heard of a verified black puma anywhere, whether wild or captive, so I'd be inclined to dismiss reports of truly black big cats as misidentifications, even when a group of guys all see the same thing. An assessment list for Lower Smithfield Township in 1761 when it was part of Northampton County (Monroe having not yet been created) taxed "three pence per pound and shillings per head" laid on the land and inhabitants. Angel, her African lioness who snarls at strangers, is a big girl. 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. 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. The last known mountain lion in Pennsylvania was killed in Berks County in 1874. Mountain Lions in Pennsylvania - Hoot Hollow They ponder rare fossil evidence unearthed and seek to make sense of stratified geology, both fleeting in the face of what we call progress. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. Obviously, other pumas must be about, and the series of ridges extending north and east and west from my location could all be included as critical habitat as well. On that note, I was speaking with a Fed Ex driver recently who told me that one of his colleagues had seen what he swore was a dead mountain lion on the side of a road. Have some feedback for us? More Questions about Pumas in Pennsylvania. Why do I advocate manual exposure so avidly? State Game Officials do concede that some people may indeed have seen a puma, but it was undoubtedly a released captive. Biologists traced it. Local outlets carried reports of cougar encounters at least into the 1910s. 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. In many regions, the population within the state is actually increasing! Puma vs Mountain Lion: Is There a Difference? Flying over the area, I've looked down and commented upon the amount of habitat that would be available for a puma, if only they existed. Only once has anyone later determined that they had misidentified the cat, seeing a bobcat and not a mountain lion. In the forests of Kenya, however, they do occur. There are also big swaths of thick of forests in parts of the state. Colby is a freelance writer from Charlotte, North Carolina. Transient males have been sighted as far east as New York! The image in the Upper Left was from a Game Camera, sent to me by a friend. Now, forty years ago coyotes were rare or almost nonexistent in Pennsylvania, and had had that same sighting back then, when coyotes were thought not to exist within the state we would have had the 'facts' to doubt what we saw. My friend was a former hunter and fisherman, and spent a lot of time in the woods, as did I, but neither of us had ever seen a coyote. Let's see a clear photo, or a carcass or something. One of the three branches or clans of the Lenape Tribe at the end of the 17th century was known as the Wolf (Minsi). Mountain lions' canines are 3 to 4 inches long. He also noted that if the cat was here, wouldn't they be reproducing and increasing in population by now? Is there a correct position for the upright on a Wimberley actionhead? However, if you've seen a mountain lion, or other mystery creature, or evidence of either, in Pennsylvania, contact outdoor writer Marcus Schneck at mschneck@pennlive.com.). Can so many people be wrong? Recently the US Fish and Wildlife Service formally declared the Eastern Puma an extinct species, except for the remnant population in Florida. Find cabins in the Poconos, PA near places like Bushkill Falls, Camelback Mountain Resort, and more. Are there Mountain Lions in Pennsylvania? It wasn't, and I assumed it was a road-kill. Perhaps one or more of these Pocono sightings represent early pioneers reclaiming their former territories. All rights reserved. This is only hearsay, however, since I'm only going on their stories. 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. Foster said mountain lions and bobcats could not breed. Heres What the Data Says. Granted, the image is not great, and I used some Photoshop adjustment layers to enhance the image, making it a bit easier to see. If you see or photograph a puma in the mid-Atlantic states, please email or call me. Michelle LaRue, executive director of the Cougar Network and a research ecologist at the University of Minnesota, will discuss the eastern expansion of cougars from their core range in the western U.S. at 7 p.m. in Moravian College's Haupert Union Building, Bethlehem. Albinos are often very light sensitive, and they certainly are conspicuous, and most do not live very long. Consider that the endangered Florida puma has mixed genes. "It's fall bow-hunting season soon," he said. 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.

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