are there mountain lions in the poconosare there mountain lions in the poconos
Over the last two years I have occasionally posted a Question of the Month soliciting sightings from people who believed that they have seen a mountain lion in Pennsylvania or in other areas in the mid-Atlantic states. An escapee is also possible. Geologist Dr. John Yolton made the identification. Bobcats tend to be darker brown, with lighter belly fur and spots while mountain lions tend to be more uniform brown, tawny color. However, if it doesn't exist, and if someone saw one, wouldn't there be a worry that it was a dangerous escapee? One sighting I give complete belief in was from a friend who told me a puma crossed right in front of their vehicle, and paused on the berm for a few seconds, at a distant of ten yards or less. And yet today the debate continues: Are there mountain lions in Pennsylvania? 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. At one point, there was debate whether that cat should be protected, since its genes were diluted from escapees or released pumas that originated in South America or our West. Would my mountain ridge be declared 'Critical Habitat' for the puma? Mountain lions are well-established in 14 western states and have also recently been confirmed in 10 Midwestern states: Nebraska, Kansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Minnesota, Arkansas, Missouri, Iowa, Michigan and Wisconsin. They've been extinct in the eastern part of North America for more than a century. 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.). 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. I don't want to seem like a nut case here, but I must ask this question and you'll soon understand why? No An official form of the United States government. Transient males have been sighted as far east as New York! Biologists who investigate these reports claim that several may, indeed, be mountain lions, but most likely they're animals that have escaped from captivity or have been released by their. 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. 2023 www.poconorecord.com. At one time this fact almost resulted in this cat not being protected, since it wasn't a pure strain. I asked our Game officials about evidence, and they cite no road kills. "The day will come," he said, "when someone will pull the trigger on a mountain lion.". They often would catch sheep in broad daylight. And a bit of an unpleasant one at that, as they now faced ridicule or doubt whenever they discussed their sightings. YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. I've seen so many examples of these distortions, exaggerations and lies over the last couple of years that I've grown very dubious about anything I see on a computer. They know what they saw, regardless of what the facts say, and they know they saw a puma. But this one was black, and he knows mountain lions are some variant of brown. The last native mountain lion known to be killed in Pennsylvania is on display in the State Museum of Pennsylvania in Harrisburg. Interestingly, the US Fish and Wildllife Service has declared the Eastern Puma extinct, except for the Florida population known as the Florida panther. Mountain lions typically eat about one deer per week, along with other smaller prey as the opportunity arises. "People think they can get them declawed and that they're safe, but they still have teeth.". As you can see from the above images it is very difficult to confuse the two if you have a good view. There is also a small population of cougars in Florida. Cougar vs Mountain Lion What Are the Differences? In only one report had an official from the Pennsylvania Game Commision, a local warden, actually agree with the person reporting the sighting. Enter your email in the box below to get the most mind-blowing animal stories and videos delivered directly to your inbox every day. Biologists traced it. There had been 17 other mastodon finds in Pennsylvania up to 1968, but all were fragmentary. Suppose, instead of declaring the puma, or Eastern mountain lion, extinct, the USFWS actually recognized the existence of the cat as a wild, breeding species. Some experts predict that this wide-ranging predator, which can travel 600 miles in search of a territory, will surely reach our eastern states sometime in the next few decades. There is a small breeding population in the state, despite being killed off in the 1920s. Unless I am only dealing with a lot of delusional people with little judgment, something is out there. The state of Idaho is large, expansive, and full of rocky wilderness. The state of Arizona is home to a large, stable population of mountain lions. 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. And book one of these Poconos cabins rentals for the best outdoor access to these activities. It wasn't, and I assumed it was a road-kill. I've done this myself once, in Tanzania, when I saw a black house cat that I thought was a black leopard! You know, the Penn State Nittany Lions.". It was recorded in Minnesota and Wisconsin in late 2009 and early 2010, and then died in Connecticut in 2011. 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. 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. the more visible white on the chest, the lack of spots, the huge hind quarters. Yet, except for Florida, which has about 100 of them "Florida panthers"), no eastern state has a verifiable population of these large 100- to 200-pound cats that were extirpated 100 years ago. At one time this fact almost resulted in this cat not being protected, since it wasn't a pure strain. Only once has anyone later determined that they had misidentified the cat, seeing a bobcat and not a mountain lion. You would think someone would have a picture on a trail camera or whatever. In 2011, a confirmed mountain lion was killed by a vehicle in Connecticut and which had been determined that it had wandered east from the Mid-West. redo these pages to match the new web site But that's not If so, what would happen to the hunting industry in all of these states? Have some feedback for us? Depends on who you talk to, I guess. I usually follow-up on these reports and, via email or phone conversations, I receive more details. Can so many people be wrong? I'm a photographer, yet I've never had a chance to snap a photograph of one of these bears. Mountain lions roamed all of the continent prior to the arrival and westward spread of European settlers, but only the eastern and Florida subspecies were found east of the Mississippi. The last known mountain lion in Pennsylvania was killed in Berks County in 1874. Thank you for reading! Murray said Rocky was emaciated and chained when she found him at a private zoo. 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. Erosion from glacial melt and violence glaciers did to the land left a great litter of boulders, rocks, clay and lakes covering today's landscape. I could fill pages recounting the eye-witness reports I've heard, and for every report critics could certainly say 'but there's no physical evidence!' So what? You be the judge. Two weeks ago, a friend of mine who teaches in one of the Monroe County school districts called to tell me he was sending me a photo of a mountain lion taken by one of his students in the Poconos. Instead, the person usually pauses, sometimes with a sheepish or embarrassed expression on his face, and seems reluctant to continue. There are deserts, mountains, and swamps in the state of Utah, all of which are suitable for mountain lions. Scientists debate whether the large prehistoric mammals became extinct at the end of the Ice Age due to over-hunting, or rapid climate warming. Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. The agency has declared extinct the eastern cougar, one of 11 subspecies ofmountain lions native to North America. 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. Mountain lions live almost everywhere in the state of Washington. A mastodon's skull was first located in Marshalls Creek, Monroe County, on July 5, 1968. The first is the mating season which can occur during the late to early spring months. Archived Questions of the Month 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. Both were a threat to the farmer and family who carved a home in the ancient wilderness of the Poconos. According to the Pennsylvania Game Commission, there are no wild, breeding cougar populations in this state anymore. Mountain lions' canines are 3 to 4 inches long. 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. Again, I've been told that some Game Commission personnel have admitted that pumas may exist in Pennsylvania, but they rationalize this by saying that the pumas are not breeding and they are not from original wild stock. 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. In books I've read critical or skeptical or down-right dismissive of the idea of pumas in the East, the argument has been advanced that the hopefull puma-dreamer/spotters arguing that the State needs to prove pumas don't exist does not mean that in the State not proving this means that pumas indeed do exist in this state. 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. Looking for things to do in the Poconos? 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. Did they migrate south from Canada? Would a puma then qualify as a native species? Only when I reviewed the images on my laptop did I discover that I had a mountain lion! What does a Mountain Lion look like on a game camera? 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. The Asa Packer Mansion, built in the year 1861, is a historic house museum. "He doesn't like men too much," said Suzanne Murray, owner of East Coast Exotic Animal Rescue in this south-central Pennsylvania town. Like Rocky, Nia is declawed. Some have even reported seeing a "black panther," a near-impossibility because of the rarity of that recessive gene. The large, undeveloped interior filled with rocky habitats perfect for mountain lions allows them to safely live and breed. No evidence has ever been produced to support those charges. The states beautiful wilderness and mountainous terrain are prime mountain lion habitats. Although in captivity, they can live much longer. Mountain lions thrive there due to the high elk population, dense forests, and isolated mountain ranges. Continuing with that thought, if that were so, then it'd be possible, if not very likely, that the Eastern puma would be an Endangered Species. The image in the Upper Left was from a Game Camera, sent to me by a friend. The State argues that there is no physical evidence, and no credible photographs. But no one that I've communicated with had these preconceptions, and seeing what they saw was a complete surprise. One of the important things for any animal is a place to call home. With healthy populations and strong conservation programs, however, they seem to be pushing back east. One man, in the southwestern part of Pennsylvania, had seen one, at night, about 25 years ago.
are there mountain lions in the poconos