Over time, cats that had been released in Florida, probably pets that outlived their welcome, bred with the native puma, and their genes mingled, 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. While there have been no confirmed occurrences of mountain lions in Pennsylvania since the late 1800s, dozens . All rights reserved. 2023 www.poconorecord.com. I don't want to seem like a nut case here, but I must ask this question and you'll soon understand why? The State cites that there are no road-kills, and in a heavily trafficed state like Pennsylvania there should be kills. Wyoming has a historically stable population of mountain lions, but recent drops in numbers have caused some to worry. Are the various States guilty of essentially the same thing? The life cycle then repeats itself. I Googled "Pocono mountain lion" and there it was the same photo, except the caption claimed that it was taken in Oklahoma, not Pennsylvania, and various posted comments asserted that the photo was manipulated. original web site, although if I ever have enough time I might The Asa Packer Mansion, built in the year 1861, is a historic house museum. 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. Did they migrate south from Canada? Mountain lions have a lifespan of about 8 to 13 years old in the wild. A mastodon's skull was first located in Marshalls Creek, Monroe County, on July 5, 1968. The large, undeveloped interior filled with rocky habitats perfect for mountain lions allows them to safely live and breed. Colby is a freelance writer from Charlotte, North Carolina. 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. The Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) also reports evidence that humans arrived during the last glaciation or soon after. Like Rocky, Nia is declawed. Wishful thinking? Activities Milford Things To Do Hotels Map Of Activities Delaware Water Gap Hotels Bushkill Lake Harmony Hawley Skytop Tannersville Pocono Mountains Counties About the Poconos Pocono Mountains History Weather Area Services . Although unconfirmed, mountain lions continue to be reported in many spots across Pennsylvania, including several reports in the past couple months. A placard affixed to the fence outside Rocky's pen states that "cougars are solitary creatures and rarely seen by humans." (PennLive has investigated many reports of mountain lions, and other mystery creatures, and has found no confirming evidence. Although size can be difficult to determine in the field, a puma will be three or four times larger than a bobcat. Good luck, and let me know! Mountain Lion Reports 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. In the area around the border of Pennsylvania and West Virginia there are mountains and deep caves that contain some of the coal mines that were a major part of the state's industry in the early part of the 19 th century. In personal contacts, that monthly average might even be higher. Colorado and California have the highest estimated populations of mountain lions in the United States. The northeastern U.S. population is thought to have disappeared in the 1930s. What you wouldn't expect to find here anymore is a 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. 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. They've been extinct in the eastern part of North America for more than a century. Are mountain lions on their way to Pennsylvania? Everyone else, when reporting, were frustrated as they were told they had seen a bobcat. Mountain lions live almost everywhere in the state of Washington. Cougar Network tracks mountain lion expansion from the western U.S. to the east. So how or why could there be a conspiracy? 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.". Mountain lions that are looking for new breeding areas are known as transient and are almost always males. Just take your pick of all these incredible Pocono lake house rentals or just a Pocono cabin for rent, in luxury of course! Other states have had sightings, especially as mountain lion populations begin to explore and look to expand. The head of the puma is small in comparision to a house cat when compared to the entire body. The mountain lion population in Nevada is essential to the control of deer and rodent populations in the mountainous regions of the state. 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. Do Mountain Lions Attack Humans? They once inhabited the entire United States, but were killed off and pushed west. But no one that I've communicated with had these preconceptions, and seeing what they saw was a complete surprise. The state of Arizona is home to a large, stable population of mountain lions. 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. 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. Among other uses, the tax was levied "for destroying wolves, foxes, heads and crows." A dark brown puma, backlighted by a strong sun, could appear all black, or very dark, and he accepted that. Viewers can never be certain that what they're seeing on a computer is actually what it's purported to be. Who knows? No An official form of the United States government. 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. We hope you enjoy this foray into the most weird and wonderful our beloved Pocono Mountains have to offer. It was estimated to be a young adult American Mastodon that had died about 12,000 years ago, according to radiocarbon dating. He's a hunter, a woodsman, and he's seen a lot of game, so I can believe he saw a back-lighted puma. Why do I advocate manual exposure so avidly? Foster said mountain lions and bobcats could not breed. Possibly, but it seems unlikely that enough would have been released or had escaped to make for a viable population. The record size for this species is 8 feet, and it probably weighed 15 to 20 pounds, which shows how exaggerated this claim is. "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. Many of the reports I receive are extremely credible. About half of the state of Montana is ideal for mountain lions, primarily in her western and central regions. Who knows? The same goes for New York and several other eastern states. Are there Mountain Lions (Pumas, Cougars) in Pennsylvania and the Mid-Atlantic States? 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. Recently, on a back road in Pennsylvania, a friend and I had our first sighting of a coyote in Pennsylvania. If there were wild cougars in our midst, the Game Commission also pointed out, eventually there would be solid evidence such as a carcass, scat and paw prints that could be verified. 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. This is not a Pennsylvania puma! Mountain lions can live in almost any habitat including forests, prairies, deserts, and swamps. Recently the US Fish and Wildlife Service formally declared the Eastern Puma an extinct species, except for the remnant population in Florida. Here's a glimpse at what long-gone Pocono beasts the region's very first wave of residents may have seen, and the wild things that followed up to as late as the early 20th century. 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. What would account for the long tails? Goggling Eastern Puma brings up other web sites, however, with varying levels of professionalism or credibility. 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. Although size can be difficult to determine in the field, a puma will be three or four times larger than a bobcat. 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. 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. 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!' "I kind of doubt they saw a cougar, but I'm not God.". In many regions, the population within the state is actually increasing! It was recorded in Minnesota and Wisconsin in late 2009 and early 2010, and then died in Connecticut in 2011. The claim of mountain lions on the move was bolstered in 2009 when one was killed by a car in Greenwich, Conn. 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. Fish and Wildlife Service. About six months ago I posted the question, Are there Mountain Lions in Pennsylvania? "When I started telling people, most of them didn't believe me, but I will never forget that huge face staring right at me," said a Montgomery County woman who says she saw a lion last summer in Limerick Township while walking her dog. Most of my original Questions of the Month for the last several 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 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. "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. Granted, the image is not great, and I used some Photoshop adjustment layers to enhance the image, making it a bit easier to see. Still, people say they know what they saw out there. 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 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. The mountain lion is a large, slender cat, with a long rope-like tail. The states beautiful wilderness and mountainous terrain are prime mountain lion habitats. The large tracts of untouched rocky land and bighorn sheep populations make for pristine mountain lion habitat. Those special two were across a river just outside Glacier National Park in Montana, and consisted of a mother and two cubs (Mary saw both cubs, I only saw one, and we did so separately, as we were driving two vehicles). Penn State's Nittany Lion hide sampled for DNA sequencing, Mountain lion reports in Pennsylvania popular, but often a hoax, More Local News to Love Start today for 50% off Expires 3/6/23. Angel, her African lioness who snarls at strangers, is a big girl. Have some feedback for us? Murray has cared for four mountain lions since she took over the rescue in 1998. Florida is the only state on the east coast with a breeding population of mountain lions. a high priority. YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. And when our officers go out to investigate reports of mountain lions, or when our staff reviews photos that are sent to us, often we're able to verify some other animal mistakenly was reported as a mountain lion.". And a bit of an unpleasant one at that, as they now faced ridicule or doubt whenever they discussed their sightings. According to the Pennsylvania Game Commission, there are no wild, breeding cougar populations in this state anymore. 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. "The cougars examined in the Northeast in the past 70 years are likely released or escaped captives. 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. Hunting is legal, but the use of dogs was banned in 1996. After all, skeptics often suggest that puma sightings are just deer sightings, so it would be logical to worry that a hunter might shoot an endangered puma, mistaking it for a brown deer. Something to consider, even though we all trust the government. Scientists debate whether the large prehistoric mammals became extinct at the end of the Ice Age due to over-hunting, or rapid climate warming. See also: Some outdoor enthusiasts insist they have seen the big cats here and believe them to be naturally occurring, native animals. 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. Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. Accounts abound concerning interaction between these great beasts and people in northeast Pennsylvania, with wolves into the early 19th century and in the case with cougars, well into the early 20th century. He also noted that if the cat was here, wouldn't they be reproducing and increasing in population by now? The rounded ears, YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. All rights reserved. More Questions about Pumas in Pennsylvania Packer Hill Ave. Jim Thorpe, PA 18229. Here's more about mountain lions in Pennsylvania: If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. In only one report had an official from the Pennsylvania Game Commision, a local warden, actually agree with the person reporting the sighting. Note the size of the tail, the pointed ears, the speckled coat, the basic lack of white underneath. I'm wondering, then, if the complete dismissal of sightings of Eastern pumas (other than the acknowledgement of released or escaped pets) isn't motivated by economics. 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. The claim of mountain lions on the move was bolstered in 2009 when one was killed by a car in Greenwich, Conn. Mountain lion populations struggle to outpace the high hunting limits. Puma vs Mountain Lion: Is There a Difference? The photographer had no reason to stage the shot -- indeed, the composition and background was terrible, and not what you'd expect for something staged, but the shot wasn't perfectly clear. 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. 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? Goodrich said he once saw a mountain lion spring from a thicket and kill a sheep on a public road. Two different people told me that they, or a close relative, had seen pumas on more than one occasion. Reports of a mountain lion have come from several residents of Hemlock Farms who were hiking on. In 2015, a Pennsylvania State Historical Marker was placed near the site where the mastodon was found. Mountain lions typically eat about one deer per week, along with other smaller prey as the opportunity arises. The Cascade Mountains are an important habitat for mountain lions in the region, and a stable population lives within the state. It was definitely a mountain lion, and it had a big buck, white-tailed deer in its jaws. "While confirmed cougar sightings have occurred recently in the wild in the East, there is currently no scientific or physical evidence documenting the continued existence of a population of wild eastern cougars," according to the U.S. 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. Asa Packer Mansion Jim Thorpe. For example, leopards and jaguars, normally spotted cats, have a melanistic color morph, the 'black panther,' the black leopard or black jaguar. 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. What is the Kiboko backpack? At one time this fact almost resulted in this cat not being protected, since it wasn't a pure strain. "I'm proud to know her," Murray said of the tiger, "but I wish I didn't.". Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. There is a small breeding population in the state, despite being killed off in the 1920s. The first is the mating season which can occur during the late to early spring months. Murray also has a cross-eyed white tiger named Keisha, who crushed chicken bones with ease but delicately stepped into a metal pool to cool off. Of interestRamapough Lenape chief: National park in PA and NJ would be among 'most destructive things' since colonization. The head of the puma is small in comparision to a house cat when compared to the entire body. However, recently I saw a photo of a melanistic bobcat, as black as could be, with bright yellow eyes. You've got a mountain lion story or photo? There are controlled hunting laws in the state of Oregon. "I thought I had a sighting in the late '90s," Delaware Water Gap National Recreation park ranger Chris Kross said. The coat can be spotted or solid. A bobcat gives you a warm, that-kind-of-looks-like-my-cat-but-slightly-bigger feeling. However, if it doesn't exist, and if someone saw one, wouldn't there be a worry that it was a dangerous escapee? There are deserts, mountains, and swamps in the state of Utah, all of which are suitable for mountain lions. The last of three glaciations covered 30% of Pennsylvania, including much of the Poconos, from around 20,000-10,000 B.C. Do elk live in Pennsylvania? Mountain lions, Goodrich wrote, were more dreaded than wolves as the cat could climb over any fence that could be built. After all, how many people have pumas? I can't dismiss the eye-witnesses I've interviewed. "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. When I first discovered this fresh carcass I examined it for throat punctures, thinking that it may have been killed by a puma. In January, the U.S. Are Mountain Lions in Missouri Making a Comeback? But even without that second look there was no question that we'd seen a coyote. After a gestation period of 90 days, female mountain lions will give birth to litters of about one to six cubs. To be fair, I've also spoken with people who, at first, thought they'd seen a puma only to find, to their embarassment, that they were looking at a house cat! Apparently, this picture was really making the rounds. Imagination? "There hasn't been one solid piece of proof to believe they are here. do I get an immediate, 'Oh yeah!' One man, in the southwestern part of Pennsylvania, had seen one, at night, about 25 years ago. The reintroduction of mountain lions into South Dakota is one of the great wins of modern conservation. Imagine my surprise. The name Pocono is derived from the . Claws 'N' Paws Animal Park in Lake Ariel has two. An animal's coat can stray far from the norm. 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. The coat can be spotted or solid and varies in color from light browns, reddish and silvery grey. The Pennsylvania Game Commission is always open to review evidence, but to date only hoaxes have crossed the PGC. Geologist Dr. John Yolton made the identification. I regularly ask hunters and outdoors people if they've ever seen a mountain lion, or know of anyone that has. But this one was black, and he knows mountain lions are some variant of brown. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. 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. Please keep scrolling - ALL the Puma posts are included. I asked our Game officials about evidence, and they cite no road kills. 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. I'm a photographer, yet I've never had a chance to snap a photograph of one of these bears. Additionally, California banned the hunting of cougars back in 1972, encouraging population growth. "If my son would have been on a pedal bike, without a helmet on, that thing would have nailed him," said Walters, 44. 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. What equipment do we take in the field? 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 . Both were a threat to the farmer and family who carved a home in the ancient wilderness of 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. You know, the Penn State Nittany Lions.". 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. And yet today the debate continues: Are there mountain lions in Pennsylvania? 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). Would these ridges be declared off-limits for hunting? 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. 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. 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. One of these days, though, I'll get one that won't be, and I hope that will be soon. Have all of those who have seen a puma really seen a bobcat? Like Arizona, New Mexico is the perfect home for mountain lions. And this genetic mix has been recognized, and the Florida puma is still protected. 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. 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. Images from a homeowner's surveillance camera show a tan cat with a long body, beyond a chain-link fence. People can manipulate, enhance or combine photos and then create their own stories about the subject's origin, location and even identification. Mountain Lion in Pocono's Pennsylvania Kacie PA 7.9K views 2 years ago Mountain lion in bucks county pa or not? Perhaps one or more of these Pocono sightings represent early pioneers reclaiming their former territories. Very, very rarely, when I ask someone who would be a likely candidate (a hunter, someone who owns a camp in the deep woods, travels likely routes often, foresters), 'Have you ever seen a mountain lion?' "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. Its fur is a light, tawny brown color which can appear gray or almost black, depending on light conditions. Each year, over tha past five, I've spoken with at least one person who swears they personally saw a puma in this state. In Yellowstone, definite puma country (perhaps not ideal habitat, but pumas are found in every section of Yellowstone), I've spoken to guys on road crews and with rangers, each with 20 years of field or road experience in Yellowstone, and the ranger had only seen 2 (both road kills and together) and the road crew guys two or three in all their years. Hopefully, we'll see the real thing. I believe them. More Questions about Pumas in Pennsylvania. Remember, this one was photographed in Arizona in good puma country, although this was the first one I've recorded there. More conclusive evidence is needed: Keep your cameras handy. There are approximately 4,000 of those 10- to 40-pound cats in the state. What does a Mountain Lion look like on a game camera? Many have a desire to see some clear-cut evidence. A phantom creature has been sighted in the vast Delaware State Forest region of Pike County. 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 a puma then qualify as a native species? Mary saw the photo, too, and she immediately agreed, it was a puma. 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. As a state known for its mountains, its no wonder that mountain lions live here! "The day will come," he said, "when someone will pull the trigger on a mountain lion.". Interestingly, almost all of the people I've spoken to who claim to have seen a puma have not seen a bobcat, an animal that is common enough in Pennsylvania to support a legal trapping season! 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. Illinois can also now be added to this list a mountain lion was found on the outskirts of Chicago. 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? This ideal habitat allows for a large population of 2,000 mountain lions to thrive. I love the big cats and devote a huge amount of my field time photographing African lions, leopards, cheetahs, and in 2011, tigers. Send it to me at mkuhns@poconorecord.com. Unless I am only dealing with a lot of delusional people with little judgment, something is out there. Bo Ottman is a landscaper in Connecticut who founded an . It seems unlikely, considering captives have never shown this trait, but people are reporting big black cats. I believe that the folks that are reporting, in detail, their sightings are faced with a similar situation. 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. Caribou meat apparently was part of their diet.

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