Caribou remains, dated by radiocarbon in excess of 10,000 B.C. Here's an example: A man is holding a dead eastern diamondback rattlesnake, which was found in North Carolina and measured more than 9 feet long and weighed 95 pounds. Bobcats tend to be darker brown, with lighter belly fur and spots while mountain lions tend to be more uniform brown, tawny color. Let me explain this. "While it seems unlikely, it's not impossible that these animals are showing up in PA," said David Foster, a biology professor at Messiah College in Mechanicsburg. The skeleton was reassembled at the State Museum, where it has been on display ever since. 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 cat is known to live in the western U.S. and Florida, South America and Canada. These color morphs are most common in rain forests and jungles. 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. If it were, it would be listed. I've know of reports since 1973, in Cooke Forest, the heart of a lot of Pa. wilderness. Now, if there were any escapes, and if any of these bred with a possible minuscule number of eastern pumas, a relic native population, wouldn't the gene pool be corrupted? The Game Commission concluded they were coyotes. Noted Wayne County historian Phineas Goodrich recorded in his 1880 book on local history that the common gray wolf was much more common in this area than the cougar. They once inhabited the entire United States, but were killed off and pushed west. All of the above images are of bobcats. I don't believe someone's imagination could stretch a six inch long tail to three feet! The mountains and isolated forests of the state allow these large cats to live their lives without encountering humans very often. There is a small breeding population in the state, despite being killed off in the 1920s. Recently, on a back road in Pennsylvania, a friend and I had our first sighting of a coyote in Pennsylvania. Joseph Pugliese 2.2K views 7 years ago Beautiful Bobcat in our yard as our. Fish and Wildlife Service. The sightings were great bear views, but too fast or fleeting to allow me to grab a camera. Melanism is the reverse, where there is an abundance of dark or black pigmentation. Reports generally go uninvestigated by the Pennsylvania Game Commission, which discounts them as mistaken identities, illegal pets escaped or released and outright fabrications. 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. More Questions about Pumas in Pennsylvania. With that in mind, lets break down how we classified the states. The State argues that there is no physical evidence, and no credible photographs. Is there a correct position for the upright on a Wimberley actionhead. A tiny population of Florida cougars persists in the southeastern corner of the United States. He also published a follow-up on Oct. 15 with the same mountain lion-deer hoax photo, as well as personal stories from several local residents who claim they've seen mountain lions in the Poconos. Apparently, this picture was really making the rounds. He also noted that if the cat was here, wouldn't they be reproducing and increasing in population by now? PHILADELPHIA (AP) An instinct coiled way down in the human brain knows the difference between a bobcat and a mountain lion. These powerful, majestic creatures once lived across much of the country but have since been killed or pushed out of most of it. About six months ago I posted the question, Are there Mountain Lions in Pennsylvania? By the time he returned the vehicle was gone, and so was the cat, and no mention was ever made of this road kill in a radio or newspaper report. That solution: Shoot, Shovel, and Shut Up. . Check out our online field guide to read more in this series. 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. For example, leopards and jaguars, normally spotted cats, have a melanistic color morph, the 'black panther,' the black leopard or black jaguar. This, after they were told that there were no pumas in Pa. There are approximately 4,000 of those 10- to 40-pound cats in the state. 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. 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! I'm a photographer, yet I've never had a chance to snap a photograph of one of these bears. Mountain lions have an interesting life cycle that consists of a few different characteristics. Asa Packer Mansion Jim Thorpe. "I kind of doubt they saw a cougar, but I'm not God.". A dark brown puma, backlighted by a strong sun, could appear all black, or very dark, and he accepted that. Although size can be difficult to determine in the field, a puma will be three or four times larger than a bobcat. More common critters co-existed with early Native Americans in the Poconos, including two species long since removed: the wolf and mountain lion (also known colloquially as panthers and cougars). Consider that the endangered Florida puma has mixed genes. "With all of that said, though, there's a general lack of evidence of mountain lions in Pennsylvania. Compare any game camera image with the shots above, or this game camera image, to confirm your identification. 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. Angel, her African lioness who snarls at strangers, is a big girl. According to the Pennsylvania Game Commission, there are no wild, breeding cougar populations in this state anymore. Have some feedback for us? 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.). "From people that I trust have had visual sightings, they've seen mountain lions.". 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. A Mountain Lion Cover Up 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.". Granted, the image is not great, and I used some Photoshop adjustment layers to enhance the image, making it a bit easier to see. Fish and Wildlife Service officially declared the Eastern subspecies of the mountain lion extinct, which would seem to bolster the skeptics. There are also big swaths of thick of forests in parts of the state. In some areas, entire populations of a species exhibit this trait, for unlike albinism, which results in a conspicuous white color and light-sensitive pink eyes, there are no ill effects with melanism. Both were a threat to the farmer and family who carved a home in the ancient wilderness of the Poconos. "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. Below is a list of physical characteristics that distinguish mountain lions from more . How, Who, and Why? The head of the puma is small in comparision to a house cat when compared to the entire body. Any Truth But more importantly, he also said that regardless of color, he saw a big cat, with a tail that looked to be about 4 feet long! Additionally, California banned the hunting of cougars back in 1972, encouraging population growth. Here, they've not been," Lau said in an e-mail. And book one of these Poconos cabins rentals for the best outdoor access to these activities. In 2016, a trail cam photo in South Jersey was later determined to show a house cat. Let's say the facts indicate that there have been a lot of 'pet' pumas, and many of these escaped. Although unconfirmed, mountain lions continue to be reported in many spots across Pennsylvania, including several reports in the past couple months. They often would catch sheep in broad daylight. Mountain lions can live in almost any habitat including forests, prairies, deserts, and swamps. Are there Mountain Lions in Pennsylvania? 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. 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 cougars examined in the Northeast in the past 70 years are likely released or escaped captives. They include a reported attack on horses at a farm near Dillsburg, York County, that Foster thinks may be legitimate. Mountain Lion in Pocono's Pennsylvania Kacie PA 7.9K views 2 years ago Mountain lion in bucks county pa or not? The mountain lion, which is also called a cougar, puma or panther, weighs on average between 75-120 pounds, has long whiskers and a distinctive swooping tail. Adults are a uniform tan or tawny in color, with a white or cream-colored chin, undersides and inner legs. Where can I find Depth of Field reference charts? Knowing that pumas range widely, would my ridge be the only one closed? Each year, over tha past five, I've spoken with at least one person who swears they personally saw a puma in this state. This is only hearsay, however, since I'm only going on their stories. 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. If you see a puma (mountain lion-cougar), contact me. But the point of this article isn't whether or not mountain lions exist in Pennsylvania or the Poconos. On a recent stifling morning in Adams County, the 290-pound mountain lion with perfect bone structure is ignoring the raw chicken breast and pork chops a handler tossed into his pen. I've done this myself once, in Tanzania, when I saw a black house cat that I thought was a black leopard! ? Let's see a clear photo, or a carcass or something. 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. Send it to me at mkuhns@poconorecord.com. I've looked in the PGC game laws booklet and saw nothing on this, which I guess you could conclude means a puma would not be legal to shoot. "They are very strong animals," she said. Hunting is legal, but the use of dogs was banned in 1996. On some investigations, Foster has teamed up with Stacey Griffiths, who started the Central PA Mountain Lion Sightings page earlier this year. Reports of a mountain lion have come from several residents of Hemlock Farms who were hiking on. What do I think of the Canon 1D Mark IV? Recently, on our Arizona Hummingbird and Bat Photo Shoot, I found a deer that had been hit by a car and had moved off to die beside a stream just 200 yards upstream from our lodge. Over 1,100 people follow her page. 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. It will happen eventually. Although size can be difficult to determine in the field, a puma will be three or four times larger than a bobcat. Do elk live in Pennsylvania? The 2,400-square-mile area has long been a popular outdoor recreation area boasting hunting, fishing, skiing, and more. Colorado has a large number of mountain lions within its borders, mostly due to the high elk population, dense forests, and isolated mountain ranges. When I first discovered this fresh carcass I examined it for throat punctures, thinking that it may have been killed by a puma. To learn more about "lion country" in Colorado check here. A mastodon's skull was first located in Marshalls Creek, Monroe County, on July 5, 1968. There is also a small population of cougars in Florida. The last of three glaciations covered 30% of Pennsylvania, including much of the Poconos, from around 20,000-10,000 B.C. The mountain lion, which is also called a cougar, puma or panther, weighs on average between 75-120 pounds, has long whiskers and a distinctive swooping tail. Do Mountain Lions Attack Humans? 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. One man, in the southwestern part of Pennsylvania, had seen one, at night, about 25 years ago. The record size for this species is 8 feet, and it probably weighed 15 to 20 pounds, which shows how exaggerated this claim is. Images from a homeowner's surveillance camera show a tan cat with a long body, beyond a chain-link fence. Please keep scrolling - ALL the Puma posts are included. 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. Have all of those who have seen a puma really seen a bobcat? As they get older, the cubs begin to leave the den and explore. Today, we are going to explore the 15 US states that have mountain lions, plus a few others that may have some. After all, how many people have pumas? All of the above are Mountain Lions, or Pumas, or Cougars. Two other reports went, in detail, on what they saw, the size, the length of tail, etc. Scientists debate whether the large prehistoric mammals became extinct at the end of the Ice Age due to over-hunting, or rapid climate warming. 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. Would a puma then qualify as a native species? They have almost been killed off a few times, but conservation efforts have helped to keep their numbers stable. 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. Would my mountain ridge be declared 'Critical Habitat' for the puma? As the latest hoaxed photo of a mountain lion supposedly killed in Pennsylvania died a slow death on Facebook yesterday, the head of an organization tracking the eastern movements of the big cats was preparing a presentation for a Pennsylvania audience tonight. 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. In captivity mountain, lions can live to be about 20 years old. 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. So many of these sightings have been proven wrong misidentified bobcats, coyotes or even house cats) that it would be irresponsible for a biologist to accept any of them as fact without absolute physical evidence hair, droppings, tracks or a road-killed animal. I can't dismiss the eye-witnesses I've interviewed. Newspapers carried stories in 1956 about hunters supposedly seeing and killing wolves in Pike and Monroe Counties. 2023 www.poconorecord.com. September 21st, 2008, 08:14 PM #74. Are mountain lions on their way to Pennsylvania? The large tracts of untouched rocky land and bighorn sheep populations make for pristine mountain lion habitat. 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. I was heading up the road and I saw an animal with a long tail.". Check out the tails of the two! original web site, although if I ever have enough time I might Good luck, and let me know! If you're interested in this, please pass on this link, and if you see a cat, please let me know! with a fluted projectile point were found near Middletown, Orange County, New York. If we continue to be bombarded with manipulated photos and untrue claims in most cases by people who just want to get attention then we may be very resistant to accepting the "real McCoy" if or when) one finally arrives. An animal's coat can stray far from the norm. 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. Would that declaration close that ridge to hunting? Over the last few years I've done several Questions of the Month regarding Mountain Lions, or Pumas as they should properly be called, in the Mid-Atlantic States and in Pennsylvania. Did they migrate south from Canada? Discover the Little-Known U.S. River Gorge That's, The 9 Best Books About National Parks for Travelers, mountain lions seem to be making a comeback. Colorado is the perfect habitat for mountain lions. There are controlled hunting laws in the state of Oregon. The claim of mountain lions on the move was bolstered in 2009 when one was killed by a car in Greenwich, Conn. 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. Nevertheless, I put up a MOULTRIE game camera -- a brand that I've had tremendous satisfaction with -- at the carcass, hoping that scavengers would visit. Its fur is a light, tawny brown color which can appear gray or almost black, depending on light conditions. WATCH: Sharks biting alligators, the most epic lion battles, and MUCH more. That's true. And how many would let them go, or provide an opportunity for escaping? There had been 17 other mastodon finds in Pennsylvania up to 1968, but all were fragmentary. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. A bobcat gives you a warm, that-kind-of-looks-like-my-cat-but-slightly-bigger feeling. 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.

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