Looking for things to do in the Poconos? "I thought I had a sighting in the late '90s," Delaware Water Gap National Recreation park ranger Chris Kross said. 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. He also noted that if the cat was here, wouldn't they be reproducing and increasing in population by now? 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 hasn't been one solid piece of proof to believe they are here. Mountain lions live almost everywhere in the state of Washington. "We should be getting more pictures. Fish and Wildlife Service officially declared the Eastern subspecies of the mountain lion extinct, which would seem to bolster the skeptics. A total of 32 mountain lions have been struck and killed by vehicles in the study area since 2002. 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. She feeds and cares for them with donations and grants. There is no known estimate of the number of mountain lions inhabiting Texas. Wishful thinking? Still, people say they know what they saw out there. Best hike for seeing waterfalls. The last known mountain lion in Pennsylvania was killed in Berks County in 1874. There are at least 20,000 black bears in Pa., and a small percentage are killed each year, but we're probably not talking about 20,000 pumas in the state. While there have been no confirmed occurrences of mountain lions in Pennsylvania since the late 1800s, dozens of sincere reports of sightings and tracks and even more hoaxed reports emerge across the state each year. Recently the US Fish and Wildlife Service formally declared the Eastern Puma an extinct species, except for the remnant population in Florida. Colorado and California have the highest estimated populations of mountain lions in the United States. The Pocono Mountains, commonly referred to as the Poconos / p o k n o z /, are a geographical, geological, and cultural region in Northeastern Pennsylvania.They overlook the Delaware River and Delaware Water Gap to the east, Lake Wallenpaupack to the north, Wyoming Valley and the Coal Region to the west, and the Lehigh Valley to the south. 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. Additionally, California banned the hunting of cougars back in 1972, encouraging population growth. Imagine my surprise. "He doesn't like men too much," said Suzanne Murray, owner of East Coast Exotic Animal Rescue in this south-central Pennsylvania town. 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. In prior interviews with the Game Commission, the suggestion was made to this writer that what many people may actually be seeing is a bobcat, perhaps in less than ideal circumstances. There's a whole world to learn about and Colby is content to spend his life learning as much as he can about it! This is not a Pennsylvania puma! What you wouldn't expect to find here anymore is a mountain lion. For example, leopards and jaguars, normally spotted cats, have a melanistic color morph, the 'black panther,' the black leopard or black jaguar. Are the various States guilty of essentially the same thing? Of course, the writer's comments were hearsay, but it does make sense. Leslie estimated that the first humans making up the Paleo-Indians lived in the upper Delaware valley as early as 11,000 B.C. The rocky habitat that covers much of the state is perfect for these ambush predators, especially since humans dont inhabit much of the land. The Game Commission concluded they were coyotes. Although size can be difficult to determine in the field, a puma will be three or four times larger than a bobcat. Are there Mountain Lions in Pennsylvania? Woolly mammoth bones were discovered in Bradford County in 1983. In the forests of Kenya, however, they do occur. Editor's note: The Pocono Record and Tri-County Independent have collaborated for a series of stories called Mountain Beasts: Pocono cryptids, legends and lore. 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. He notes how over the millennia, the region was inhabited by humans, only to be depopulated by migration brought on by the search of food due to a fickle climate, war or epidemic. Let me know if you have seen one! When he isn't distracted by his backyard birdfeeder, you can find him camping, exploring, and telling everyone around him about what he's recently learned. There is a big community of mountain lion enthusiasts across the Northeast convinced that the animals still exist in breeding populations. Here in central Pennsylvania we live on the outskirts of what one puma-tracking website has as almost the high point of sightings, extending from north-central Pennsylvania in a southwestern diagonal that extends into the mountains of West Virginia. Biologists traced it back to the Black Hills of South Dakota, from where it ventured nearly 2,000 miles looking for a new mate. Mountain lions thrive there due to the high elk population, dense forests, and isolated mountain ranges. Wyoming has a historically stable population of mountain lions, but recent drops in numbers have caused some to worry. There are also big swaths of thick of forests in parts of the state. The earliest wave arrived at the end of the last Ice Age; the last wave is the Lenape or Delaware Tribe, which made contact with colonial settlers in the 1600s. A recent alleged sighting in South Abington Township, Lackawanna County, had Facebook groups abuzz. The last native mountain lion known to be killed in Pennsylvania is on display in the State Museum of Pennsylvania in Harrisburg. He saw a big cat. Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. The Mountain Lion is a large, slender cat with a smallish head and noticeably long tail. Now consider: If it was confirmed that there was a breeding population of endangered pumas on the mountain ridge behind my house, if the USFWS recognized the existence of this endangered species, what might happen? Leap transferred ownership rights to the state. If youve done any research on your own, you may have noticed that we didnt include a lot of states that have had cougar sightings, especially in the last few years. Viewers can never be certain that what they're seeing on a computer is actually what it's purported to be. Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. I regularly ask hunters and outdoors people if they've ever seen a mountain lion, or know of anyone that has. 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! ? You be the judge. In Michigan, there has been multiple sightings of 'black panthers,' animals that were thought to be mountain lions, or pumas, except that they were black. A neighbor scared the animal away before it could finish its meal; the sheeps carcass was used as bait, to catch the big cat. Mountain Lion Reports Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. Adults are a uniform tan or tawny in color, with a white or cream-colored chin, undersides and inner legs. 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. Same story as 'black panthers' across the country, because of course there, scientifically, can be no such thing. An animal's coat can stray far from the norm. original web site, although if I ever have enough time I might It seems unlikely, considering captives have never shown this trait, but people are reporting big black cats. John Leap of East Stroudsburg's Lakeside Peat Humus Co. and an employee, Paul Strauser, found the bones in a peat bog off Route 209. The Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) also reports evidence that humans arrived during the last glaciation or soon after. Cougar Network tracks mountain lion expansion from the western U.S. to the east. "If my son would have been on a pedal bike, without a helmet on, that thing would have nailed him," said Walters, 44. Instead, the person usually pauses, sometimes with a sheepish or embarrassed expression on his face, and seems reluctant to continue. If you see or photograph a puma in the mid-Atlantic states, please email or call me. 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? 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. (National Park Service). The Pennsylvania Game Commission is always open to review evidence, but to date only hoaxes have crossed the PGC. In personal contacts, that monthly average might even be higher. Note the size of the tail, the pointed ears, the speckled coat, the basic lack of white underneath. I believe them. Knowing that pumas range widely, would my ridge be the only one closed? 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. 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.). Mountain lion killed in Connecticut was on the opposite side of Pennsylvania a year ago, Is it real? ? I've done this myself once, in Tanzania, when I saw a black house cat that I thought was a black leopard! The mountain lion population in Nevada is essential to the control of deer and rodent populations in the mountainous regions of the state. "Hunters are always saying they see mountain lions, and the Game Commission always says there aren't any," said Robert Hale, owner of Buffalo Gap Outfitters in Dillsburg. "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. One of the important things for any animal is a place to call home. I've read a lot about this, and the usual explanation is the very human desire to see something, to see what someone wants to see, and thus these people are seeing bobcats or brown cats or dogs or foxes and, because they 'want' to see a puma, they do. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. Others would like to see some scientific proof. How, Who, and Why? Did they migrate south from Canada? For example, one man I interviewed said he saw a 'black' puma, and this should disqualify his sighting as a black puma has never been recorded. The Pocono Mountains are . Are they all the product of the off-spring of pumas that escaped their owners or were released? Are Mountain Lions in Missouri Making a Comeback? Some may be animals that dispersed into the region from western populations. Their are two web sites I know of that dealt with eastern pumas, with the one, the Eastern Puma Research Network, concentrating on sightings in the east. Check out the tails of the two! In this at this distant epoch, archaeologists attempt to clear some of the mists and mysteries of prehistoric times. 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. It is almost safe to say that the panther has in these parts become extinct, Goodrich wrote. This animal was undoubtedly a bobcat. Local outlets carried reports of cougar encounters at least into the 1910s. Confirmed cougar sightings have increased in the Midwest and Great Lakes states in recent years.". The story behind our new web site. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. Hunting is legal in the state, but it is heavily controlled and restricted. It was definitely a mountain lion, and it had a big buck, white-tailed deer in its jaws. 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. "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. The 'look' is from my The other site, The Cougar Network, is still active, and is reporting the cats expanding range from the West, but offers little about the phenomenon of Pennsylvania cats. But no one that I've communicated with had these preconceptions, and seeing what they saw was a complete surprise. 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. Although there was no evidence that the 2011 mountain lion ever set foot in Pennsylvania, DNA evidence confirmed that it had been both west and east of the state. years are available through this link. Many of the reports I receive are extremely credible. The other three images are from my file, selected to most closely approximate the pose of the cat from the game camera. These color morphs are most common in rain forests and jungles. 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. As you can see from the above images it is very difficult to confuse the two if you have a good view. 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. The other two clans were the Turtle and Turkey. This happens usually around the 18-month mark. Mountain lions live in rescue centers like Murray's, and the Pennsylvania Game Commission said a dozen or so people are permitted to possess them. If we don't see it, it doesn't exist. They ponder rare fossil evidence unearthed and seek to make sense of stratified geology, both fleeting in the face of what we call progress. The reintroduction of mountain lions into South Dakota is one of the great wins of modern conservation. However, it is clearly a mountain lion, and I'm presenting this poor image as a baseline reference for anyone recording a mountain lion on a game camera, or seeing one. That summer, a team from the State Museum of Pennsylvania in Harrisburg excavated the nearly complete skeleton of the ancient elephant, the first of its kind found in the Commonwealth. More Questions about Pumas in Pennsylvania Conversely, an outdoor writer I know told me that when Pa. enacted a menagerie permit law years ago, 'a lot of mountain lions suddenly died,' as the owners of these cats, rather than going through the paperwork, simply released their pumas and claimed that they had died. These powerful, majestic creatures once lived across much of the country but have since been killed or pushed out of most of it. Illinois can also now be added to this list a mountain lion was found on the outskirts of Chicago. They are generally believed to be young cats roaming in search of new breeding territories to claim as their own. All rights reserved. Bobcats, feral cats and domestic dogs may be misidentified as mountain lion. 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. Are there pumas, or mountain lions, in Pennsylvania and the mid-Atlantic States? According to the Pennsylvania Game Commission, there are no wild, breeding cougar populations in this state anymore. 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." Most, quite honestly, don't know or can't believe or accept what they saw, they really can't believe their eyes. It had been captured in Florida, and was to be released. There is also a small population of cougars in Florida. It has the color of a mountain lion, but the long tail appears to be missing. I'll offer my own little anecdote. I asked our Game officials about evidence, and they cite no road kills. 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. The Cascade Mountains are an important habitat for mountain lions in the region, and a stable population lives within the state. Who knows? Is there a correct position for the upright on a Wimberley actionhead? Mountain lions were once widespread across North America, but their range shrunk dramatically as they were pursued through unregulated hunting and by farmers aiming to protect their livestock, and moved off the landscape by habitat fragmentation. 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. While there have been no confirmed occurrences of mountain lions in Pennsylvania since the late 1800s, dozens . A Game Commission vehicle was there, and the Fed Ex driver, after reaching the bottom of a long hill, turned back to check on what he saw. 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. Any Truth Where reports dating that far back from escapees? The coat can be spotted or solid. I am bothered by the constricted neck of the cat on the game camera; 2. the tail is curved down, rather than up, but it may have been in mid-swing; 3. the goldenrod-appearing flower, and the background of cars, gives a sense of scale and location. In all those hours I never saw a coyote, bear, or bobcat, and yet all live in my area. Reports generally go uninvestigated by the Pennsylvania Game Commission, which discounts them as mistaken identities, illegal pets escaped or released and outright fabrications. 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. How do I deal with shaving weight for carrying my gear? At one time mountain lions, or more properly puma (Puma concolor), enjoyed the widest geographic range of any New World mammal, and were found throughout all of the contiguous United States. Outdoor adventures abound, and so do our fabulous shopping and restaurants. A bobcat gives you a warm, that-kind-of-looks-like-my-cat-but-slightly-bigger feeling. I am hoping that more and more people will learn of my own interest in this, and will pass on this information and that I'll receive more reports and, hopefully, sometime, a game camera photo that is definitive. Do Mountain Lions Attack Humans? Never has this been more accurate than in today's digital, computerized world. He said he'd never forget the sighting, but it was only when he saw another, a few months ago, in daylight, from his cabin, that he decided it was time to tell someone. Hopefully, we'll see the real thing. There had been 17 other mastodon finds in Pennsylvania up to 1968, but all were fragmentary. I have received about two dozen reports during that time, including one. Over the last few months several people have responded to this question with reports of their own. Something to consider, even though we all trust the government. The Asa Packer Mansion, built in the year 1861, is a historic house museum. Among other uses, the tax was levied "for destroying wolves, foxes, heads and crows." Some outdoor enthusiasts insist they have seen the big cats here and believe them to be naturally occurring, native animals. "With all of that said, though, there's a general lack of evidence of mountain lions in Pennsylvania. Are there Mountain Lions (Pumas, Cougars) in Pennsylvania and the Mid-Atlantic States? Apparently, this picture was really making the rounds. 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. Only when I reviewed the images on my laptop did I discover that I had a mountain lion! Mountain lions weigh 90-160 pounds, while bobcats weigh 20-30 pounds. When I first discovered this fresh carcass I examined it for throat punctures, thinking that it may have been killed by a puma. 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.". Puma vs Mountain Lion: Is There a Difference? The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. 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. Mountain lions, Goodrich wrote, were more dreaded than wolves as the cat could climb over any fence that could be built. 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). Goodrich said he once saw a mountain lion spring from a thicket and kill a sheep on a public road. Mountain Lions in Pennsylvania? Note the long, usually thick tail. The same goes for New York and several other eastern states. I hope no one ever shoots a puma to prove their existence here, but I hope someone gets a great photo, of the cat, of a road-kill, of tracks, and that I see it. Would my mountain ridge be declared 'Critical Habitat' for the puma? A mastodon's skull was first located in Marshalls Creek, Monroe County, on July 5, 1968. Foster said mountain lions and bobcats could not breed. Certainly it is a romantic notion, but I've always held out the hope that pumas still roamed the east. More Questions about Pumas in Pennsylvania. Everyone is familiar with albinism, the absence of pigmentation that results in a white, essentially pigment free animal, defined by pink skin and pink eyes. In August, Amy Walters said her 12-year-old son was spooked by a mountain lion in Forest County in northwest Pennsylvania while riding his dirt bike. Reports of a mountain lion have come from several residents of Hemlock Farms who were hiking on. Let's say the facts indicate that there have been a lot of 'pet' pumas, and many of these escaped.
Ph Level Of Bagels,
Crowne Plaza Hotel Chicago Deaths,
Is Jake Jabs Still Alive,
Which Of The Following Statements Describes Managed Care?,
Articles A