. The friend showed the photograph to a Baltimore County animal control officer and asked him to identify the animal. This program continued in Arizona until roughly fifty years ago. It definitely wasn't a bobcat or a coyote, as I do know what they look like. Our eyes locked and we were both motionless. Another cougar buff, zoologist Donald Linzey, has collected 250 reports of mountain lions in Virginia over 11 years and believes 85 are credible. Reported Mountain Lion In Maryland Park Actually A Coyote , Mountain Lion Population (In Each U.S. State) Wildlife , Whiting Ranch remains closed with near-daily mountain lion , Video Evidence of a Cougar or Mountain Lion in Fallston , Confirmed Mountain Lion Reports | Missouri Department of , Mountain lions in little old Maryland? From RD:I live in Cumberland in Maurice River township. Whether that's true or not, I don't know, but I do know that there are mountain lions - or at least one lion - in the area. Over the past 25 years, dozens of Maryland residents have reported cougar encounters, even though wildlife officials insist that mountain lions haven't roamed the state for at least a century. I had seen a police officer in the parking lot at the mall and told him what I saw. Truly terrifying encounter even compared to a bear. Then in late August, a woman reported seeing a mountain lion on her drive between Millville and Avalon. I have seen a lion twice in Sussex County. A regional wildlife biologist with the Department of Natural Resources' Forest, Park and Wildlife Service, he says mountain lions were hunted into extinction by the people who settled Maryland. Although they're not often seen walking. In the interest of gathering credible mountain lion sightings when mountain lions actually arrive in the east the research team here at eMammal has put together a guide to identifying mountain lions. The Washington Times - September 25, 2008, 01:00PM, Washington Commanders team name and logo reveal from Fedex Field, Scenes from snow storm that hit Washington, Warriors wanted: Army Green Beret training. There are always rumors about what state fish and wildlife agencies in the eastern United States know about mountain lions. Trump plans to abolish U.S. Education Department if elected, Trump won't commit to the Republican National Committee's loyalty pledge, New Jersey woman blows up house, killing herself and her cats, rather than comply with eviction, Nancy Pelosi criticizes Joe Biden admin over handling of D.C. crime bill, Trump promises GOP will never again be led by 'freaks, neocons, globalists, open borders zealots', Copyright 2023 The Washington Times, LLC Although theyre not often seen walking about like the plentiful whitetailed deer, the top Maryland counties for bobcats are Garrett, Allegany, Washington and Frederick in that order. Already a subscriber to OutdoorNews.com? There have been no reports of injuries associated with this creature. Residents should also report any mountain lion sightings to by calling Fish and Game's Southwest. Turkey vultures return to Ohio a sure harbinger of the coming spring? Photo of a mountain lion taken by a game camera and a kill site of an 80 lb. Glenn Therres, a biologist and wildlife specialist with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources says, We receive a dozen or two dozen reports a year from citizens who see, hear or find signs of cougars. This occurred in the spring of 2017. Quite unnerving. document.write(year) From EW:Lions in NJmy son and myself were on a hunt in a ground blind on a friend's farm in Liberty Corner, NJ Somerset CoFebruary 19, 1996.roughly around 4:00 pm in the afternoon I thought a deer had entered the pine forest we were adjacent to.we were actually hunting bushy tails with flintlock smoothbores as deer season was closed. (Or a lot of people who are very good at creative writing and fooling me.). 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. I had people bash us for telling our story - but we've never wavered. People even report House Cats as mountain lions in a surprising number of cases. Please use caution. Mountain lions inhabit the badlands and Missouri River breaks regions of North Dakota. from afar it looked like silk black fur. The latest sighting happened Wednesday afternoon, according to a News4 viewer who says she spotted the animal near the Beltway exit to Connecticut Avenue. If mountain lions returned to Massachusetts, there is no need to update current forest management practices. After the male mountain lion was removed from Red Hill Trail on May 11, additional sightings in that area were reported: one on May 16, and two over the weekend of May 19 and 20. From MK:I just read your article about mountain lions in NJ. My cousin and her boyfriend, who own 40 acres in Mansfield Twp NJ saw one on their property as well. From D:My wife came home a couple of years ago and told me she saw two cougars crossing Range Road, a joint jurisdiction road between Fort Dix and Browns Mills, NJ, I told her they must have been something else. The young adult male was killed by an SUV on the Wilbur Cross Parkway in Milford, Connecticut on June 11, 2011. My dad also has a friend that lives in North Jersey I believe in alpha somewhere by the NY border in a more rural area and he has seen them in his yard and captured them on his trail camera. Someone else reported seeing the cat last February. Both off of Carrs Mill Rd before the cement bridge (for those of you that may be familiar) While the initial video got all of the attention, Soto posted a second video, too, showing a pack of hounds looking for scent in the area when the lion was sighted. With land cleared for farms and factories (nearly the entire state was deforested at the turn of the 20th century), there was no place for big cats to hide and nothing for . There was an animal that ran very quickly across the road and we both said that it looked like a mountain lion. Mountain Lion Sighting. The coloring was that of a deer but it was too strangely shaped to be a deer conclusion definitely a mountain lion. Definitely, a mountain lion after I googled the print.Some years ago there was a really bad coyote problem at the Wawayanda State Park. It was light brown with a long tail. (#08) We just wanted to inform you all that during our trip to the Snowshoe ski resort in West Virginia we sighted a mountain lion at a nearby field. l thought "oh shit" and figured l could try to use my bicycle for protection and dismounted. It came out of the woods and stopped in the middle of the road right in front of me in the headlights. No doubt we were lookin' at a Mt. They are here. Mountain lions in NJ? Today, their range stretches from the Yukon Territory in Canada along the western coast of the United States, all the way to the Southern Andes in Chile. Weight. According to Arizona Game and Fish Department (AZGFD), a person may use dogs to pursue, but not kill or capture a mountain lion in a unique pursuit-only season that coincides with the open season. Suggestions are presented as an open option list only when they are available. From RE:Hi Joe, no one believed me but back in about 1986 I was. My house, which is located in Hewitt, NJ (West Milford township), faces the woods, which is actually the edge of Wawayanda State Park. Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. It was heading northeast toward Peapack, NJ. To me, it was not a dog and then carry itself like a dog. Mountain lions also were reportedly sighted in Cape St. Claire in 1969, Kingsville in 1971 and several areas of Prince George's County in 1988. Mistaken reports of Mountain Lions in Massachusetts are most commonly bobcats, the state said. I knew it wasn't a dog - and it wasn't a bobcat. It was about 12:30 at night. l went around a tight right bend and, 100 feet up, walking the same way was a cougar. However, deer in the park are normally about 100 lbs. var year = today.getFullYear() There is no indication of population decline, the department said. This page is located more than 3 levels deep within a topic. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. Last year he recorded 11 cougar sightings in Maryland, 38 in Pennsylvania and six in Virginia. Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in. Webster residents say they spotted a mountain lion roaming around a residential neighborhood earlier this week, according to the Worcester Telegram and Gazette. Idaho Fish and Game officers and personnel responded to . The mountain lion was lying down in the snow. "It was sitting there looking at the smoke coming out of our chimney.". We do get photos/videos sent to us claiming to have witnessed a mountain lion but it is almost always a bobcat or sometimes even a house cat. From EG:About 10 years ago I used to frequent west Milford NJ. adroll_currency = "USD"; Mountain lions dont usually travel more than 100 miles from where they are born. Adults are a uniform tan or tawny in color, with a white or cream-colored chin, undersides and inner legs. They all agree it looks like a mountain lion. Greenbelt Park is managed by the National Park Service. Pitch-black out and all I could hear was a long slow deep growling that sounded like nothing Id ever heard except once before 3 years ago. There is no evidence of a reproducing mountain lion population in Massachusetts. California: 4,000 - 6,000. AZGFD sold 11,851 tags in 2021; 260 mountain lions were killed, 17 of those as the result of livestock depredations. It walked into the tree line and disappeared. a graphic depiction of America's mountain lion history. I dont doubt that womans experience in South Jersey one little bit! Genetic analyses confirmed the hair was from a male mountain lion and the propbable population of origin was Colorado. In Zone J, area 24A, which is close to the border of Graham and Gila counties, a 2-year-old lion, a 3-year-old lion and one of indeterminate age were killed in 2021. I then said to my friend, oh wow he said what did you see I said no you tell me, he then described that he saw a big brown animal with a little face and a big tail in a different color brown than the deer, I then told him I saw it as well and it was a cougar he thought I was crazy for saying that and then I showed him an article where someone had just seen it at Burnham Park in Morristown a week or so before that was only a few miles away. Straw says. A 140-pound male mountain lion was hit by a car and killed in 2011 in Milford, Connecticut. Therres says the last of Marylands natural cougar populations disappeared in the late 1800s, probably due to the lack of the cats favorite food: venison. I told some people but Im not sure anyone believed me. I will say I've received reports from all around the state but several of the reports seem to be in the same area: West Milford in the northern part of the state. "We do not have a population of mountain lions." Fishers had been in decline due to development and loss of habitat, but DNR is reporting that their numbers are now increasing and are prevalent. Copyright 2023 NBCUniversal Media, LLC. Over a period of a year and a half, this mountain lion left DNA evidence in at least four states. Also, Bobcats are spreading into areas in which they have not been seen before. Our wildlife research team decided to help take the mystery out of the sighting by going to the location and comparing the size of the animal to stationary objects in the frame as well as a human subject. I do have footprint pics in snow from Califon definitely not your usual coyote. From TP:I was driving on the parkway in Toms River back in the late winter and I swear I saw a dead mountain lion in the median. Citizen reported a mountain lion jumped through a fence and sent in hairs suspected to be from the lion. Case 2 60-108 inches. Nov. 11, 2021 - A California Mountain Lion was seen at approximately 4:52 p.m. on Nov. 11 near the University Glen water tanks and on the main part of the campus near Santa Barbara Street and Camarillo Street. Laugh all you want, but Agnes Muhl has no doubts about what she, her husband and her mother saw in the front yard of their Thurmont vacation home eight years ago. Adult males may be more than 8 feet long (from the tip of the nose to the tip of the tail), and can weigh between 130 and 150 pounds. "It ran right in front of my truck a few weeks ago," said Kenneth Basler, a town official who said he saw the large cat around Stevens Pond . In an article in the Maryland Natural Resource magazine, Therres mentions that reports of cougar sightings come from every sector in the state as if were overrun with the big cats. 13507065_10205364039255335_8657515368052999240_n.jpg. Wisconsin - Mountain lion sightings in Wisconsin are rare but there have been confirmed sightings within this state. "Other than two confirmed cases, all reports of Mountain Lions in Massachusetts that include tangible evidence have turned out to be other kinds of animals," a post by the state department of Energy and Environmental Affairs called "Are there Mountain Lions in Massachusetts?" A mountain lion reportedly showed up last week in a section of the Fernwood State Forest in eastern Ohio not far from Steubenville. var today = new Date() I didnt believe her until the security department showed me the security camera footage and there it was about a 30 or 40-pound mountain lion walking passed the security lights. Columbia police were notified of a possible mountain lion sighting in the city Thursday night, May 5. Heres how to pull big bluegills from Iowas West Lake Okoboji, A look at some other ways to call in a spring gobbler, How to catch and cook whitefish and tullibees, Nows the time to savor the fruits of the hunting experience. In Zone K, which includes areas 1 and 27 and covers some of Graham and Greenlee counties, 17 lions were killed in 2021. Demographic train wreck: Will Japan throw its old people on the tracks? It was about 4 feet tall and just walked slowly crossing the highway. Brigantino Park, on San Juan Road in Hollister, closed July 19 following the sighting of an adult mountain lion with a cub and will remain off limits until further notice, according to the park . If you would like to continue helping us improve Mass.gov, join our user panel to test new features for the site. Sighting of this animal also occurred in Michigan and New York. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. The same year, The Sun ran a story headlined "A Mysterious Big Cat Roams Maryland," which focused on a flurry of cougar reports in Western Maryland. Mountain lions ( Puma concolor) are one of the six native species of wild cats in North America. We contacted the Somerset County Park department who assured us that there are no mountain lions in their parks. All the same, Therres and his colleagues log every report into a database (so far 150 sightings have been entered) and I suppose the wildlife specialists have a good laugh now and then. From DJ:I used to live on Albrecht Lane in East Brunswick. 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). Brigantino Park notice. May 2015: Laclede Many believe mountain lions still exist in Pennsylvania. I know bobcats and it definitely wasnt one especially having a 3+ foot tail that was quite thick. Lefleche told the Telegram and Gazette that Ford's sighting seems credible. If you are already an OutdoorNews.com subscriber, you can log in here. On the return paved portion of my ride, l stopped to share my story with my friends at Mick's Canoes. From PD:Read your article about mountain lions in NJ. Standing in profile on top of the mound was a mountain lion. It scowled and flipped its long just before it leaped down the bank towards the fawns. It doesn't make sense to me that they wouldn't be in those areas considering anything prevents them from crossing state lines especially since they can swim and the Delaware river is often shallow enough to walk across in a lot of spots. It occurred after 8 p.m. Monday night, January 23, 2023, at Highway T and Old Highway 100 just north of Villa Ridge in Franklin County. Me and my friend are trying to put together a list/map of sightings in MD. Please let us know how we can improve this page. It was at the edge of the woods and it looked like it was just after a kill. The most recent sighting of a mountain lion in a Randallstown field Tuesday has revived claims that cougars aren't extinct in Maryland. I was going to attempt to somehow categorize these sightings, but I find that task overwhelming. This is the longest documented travel distance of a mountain lion. He tells the story of a friend who managed to snap a picture of a cougar prowling in his backyard in Phoenix. Top-requested sites to log in to services provided by the state. We had a tree that was partially blown over in a Noreaster creating a lifted-up mound of earth. There has only been 1 confirmed mountain lion sighting on the coastal side of I5 since around the 1970's or 80's, that info can be confirmed with any local park ranger. The mountain lion was about 50 yards to the left of my house and was walking up the side of the mountain. adroll_language = "en_US"; Search for cougarscontinues in Pennsylvania, Stories from the first season in a new hunting house. Copyright 2014 The Washington Times, LLC. Hunters must also possess a valid hunting license, which is $37 for residents. In the Washington region, sightings have been reported in rural areas of Maryland and Virginia. The state classed mountain lions as endangered in 1972 and banned all hunting of them. #1 The tail. People from all parts of the city are posting accounts. Open MF, 8 a.m.4 p.m. (closed noon12:30 for lunch). It was late October and leaves were mostly down on our 500+ acre site. An Ohio Division of Wildlife officer said he watched the . ) or https:// means youve safely connected to the official website. An adult male mountain lion can have a home range greater than 100 square miles. Forget Big Foot or the Loch Ness monster. Please do not include personal or contact information. (WJZ) --A reported mountain lion sightingin a Prince George's County park turned out to be a coyote. Habitat. 15: January 22, 2011: Macon: Subadult male mountain lion shot by coyote hunters. However, one must assume that it actually could happen. Lioneither a young one or a female I figured..went home, called NJF&G at the time, and reported it.. asked if they were interested in setting a culvert-type trap to capture it.they seemed pretty disinterested at the time, said it wasn't feasible as we were in a residential type area.. the day after with fresh snow on the ground we returned to find where it had stalked and killed a wild turkey.it was obvious to us with the winged slash marks still in the snow and where it walked downhill with the turkey in its mouth pushing the snow to the sides of it making a smooth pathway..it was something my son and I will never forget. MassWildlife receives dozens of reportsa year, most are simplyreportsor sightings with no evidence. FRANKLIN COUNTY, Mo. number of folks to write about their encounters. There is no proof. The hikers did not see the prey animal, but the mountain lion was focused and had zeroed in on something in the bushes. Well, as luck would have it, my co worker took this very nice pic of a mature female mountain lion last week just south of Uniontown Pa. If you need assistance, please contact the Division of Fisheries and Wildlife. Have any questions? I was leaving Westville towards the mall. Mountain Lion Weight: 80-160 pounds Length: About 7-8 feet long Tail: 2-3 feet long (up to half of the total length) Identification The mountain lion is a large, slender cat, with a long rope-like tail. In certain situations, the similarities in the silhouette are remarkable. 23 in West Milford NJ about 50 yards from the highway a huge cat ran across the trail in front of me maybe 25 feet from my front tire. They vary in size and weight, with males reaching up to 200 pounds and eight feet in length (one-third of their length is the tail). "Where'd you take the picture? - U.S. Park Police responded to Greenbelt Park in Prince George's County, Maryland Tuesday after a woman said she saw a mountain lion in the area. A mountain lion, seen above, was sighted on Ash Street in Webster Sunday. From PD: Read your article about mountain lions in NJ. I was excited for my husband to see it too, so I kept calling him and going to the dining room so he could hear me, as he was downstairs, but unfortunately by then, the mountain lion was no longer in my sight. One other gentleman and I almost 10 years ago saw a mountain lion on our worksite in Clinton NJ. a woman who swears she and her dog were approached by a cougar in Galloway Township. They are here! "These animals have usually been misidentified because they were seen under poor conditions or by someone not familiar with the species," the post goes on to say. adroll_adv_id = "T6XR4YM2C5FGXNZIDZPFXI"; I was amazed I told everyone I knew and it was like I was crazy or a liar. February 12. "I'm really positive.". Another sighting was at Berkshire Valley Road by my neighbor. Youd think that with the distinctive white head and tail of adult eagles no one could foul up on it, but Therres says, We receive reports of bald eagles that turn out to be ospreys, hawks, black-backed gulls and even pigeons.. adroll_pix_id = "UONCO23J7FHDDMDTKEX733"; Updated: Jul. I was walking past my double kitchen windows and glanced outside. What drew me to it was the seeming paws. The Connecticut mountain lion is the best documented wild Mountain Lion in New England. From JK:I had a mountain lion bounding across Weldon Road Jefferson Township Morris County about 75 yards in front of me. Though the government states the species is extinct, hundreds of sightings are still reported on a daily basis, particularly after the 2011 sighting of an Eastern mountain lion in Greenwich, Conn. On Tuesday, September 28, the Choconut Inn in Friendsville, Pennsylvania jumped in on the conversation with a Facebook post that read, "Hi everyone there's been numerous mountain lion sightings by Quaker Lake. Mountain lion sighting reported in Worcester County. Roughly 100 of the pumas are not doing very well in the Sunshine state, where automobile and truck traffic or disease claim a few of the animals every year, but theyre hanging on and we wish them well.Then there are occasional reports of mountain lion sightings in North Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia, but no one to our knowledge has ever totally proved that what they saw actually was North Americas biggest cat that can weigh 150 pounds or more and from nose to the tip of the tail can measure nearly 8 feet in length. I am sincerely amazed at the number of emails I continue to receive about mountain lion or cougar sightings in New Jersey. Then he realized from the length of its tail and the shape of its body that it was a mountain lion. Residents, especially those in the Rio Vista and Mather Road areas, are reminded to keep pets inside at night, use motion sensor lights to help discourage mountain lions from using their yards, and to let Fish and Game know if they observe a mountain lion. The West Virginia Wildlife Center is open to the public seven days a week from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mike Jacobsen found a dead mountain lion in his Denton-area field on Dec. 19. Thina Vanosnabrugge, a 41-year-old Hunt Valley woman, thinks they are. Evidence could include the body of a dead mountain lion or a live wild-captured animal; photos or video, in which a mountain lion can be identified and MassWildlife can confirm the location; DNA evidence from hair, scat, etc. If you're looking for some information that's important to you (such as research for work or learning how to manage your money), then the advice here is to first write down the relevant keywords on a piece of paper to figure out exactly what you want, which will be a lot more efficient. The bobcat is the only resident "big cat" with. // February 12, 2021. Tracking experts Paul Rezendes, Charles Worsham, George Leoniak, and Dr. Mark Elbroch examined the photos. Mountain lions have a long tail that is usually darker colored at the tip. In the '70s, Jungle Habitat was located here in West Milford. Diana Marchibroda and her miniature schnauzer froze in their tracks when the mountain lion stepped out of the woods last May. Other people say they have seen these beautiful cats and have also caught them, in the past, on camera in the woods.