Cougars are "Back"
In the latest copy of Canadian Geographic Magazine, there is an article reporting DNA confirmation of an Eastern Cougar (Puma Concolor Courguar) in Ontario. Surprisingly, it was near Port Colbourne, in the south. http://www.canadiangeographic.ca/magazine/nd07/default.asp
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_American_Cougar
It was 1938, that the last confirmed case of a cougar being know to be in Ontario. Over the years, there have been many tantalizing reports of cougars, many by knowledgeable people but no widely accepted hard evidence. This is not only true of Ontario but also Eastern Canada and the Eastern United States bordering on the Appalachian Mountains as far south as the Carolinas.
http://www.easterncougar.org/ http://www.fws.gov/nc-es/mammal/cougar.html http://www.adirondackexplorer.org/scoop.cougars.htm
There numbers are very low, some feel they are in fact extinct.
Sightings are often thought to be escaped animals from private game farms or zoos.
Recently, around North Bay Ontario there have been sightings of a dark cat. One explanation it is really a panther escaped from a private owner or one that has cross breed with a wild cougar.
Without any firm evidence it remains conjecture and adds to the mystery of this animal.
If the cougar is making a modest comeback, after being hunted to near extinction, one of the reasons my be the abundance of deer, a major food source.
I have long been interested in the restoratation of the Eastern Cougar and read with interest accounts of sightings, particularly here in Northern Ontario. It would be thrilling to see this top predator join the other big cats in Ontario, the Lynx and the Bob Cat. There should be a place for this wonderful animal in our environment.
posted by Tossing Pebbles in the Stream @ 7:21 a.m.
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8 Comments:
Here's hoping.
Philip,
About 5 years ago, there was a cougar roaming in the north end of our city where they had just torn out a wooded area because they needed to build more homes. It was seen several times and they speculated that it had moved south from up north where food was scarce.
About 30 years ago, a cougar roamed the rural area where my parents lived. Game wardens speculated it had escaped from a private zoo about 30 miles east of my parent's house. I do know it was there. We saw droppings, prints and could hear it at night. It sent shivers up and down my spine. Interesting enough, it sounded much like a baby's cry, but really eerie.
I do hope these animals do make a comeback. They are gorgeous.
Blessings,
Mary
A comeback of Cougars sounds exciting. We had Bobcats and the occasional Mountain Lion in the foothills of the Ozarks where I grew up. But a genuine Cougar...wow! (Might be a bit tough on the farmers' calves and other animals though!)
Beautiful photo of a beautiful animal. We have some cougars here, and black panthers. To keep them off the highways, there are tunnels (large pipes) built under roadsays to encourage them to cross that way. Crossing my fingers for your cougar
Tagged you here. Hope you don't mind, but I like reading what you have to say.
Philip,
Please stop by my blog, I have a little award for you.
Blessings,
Mary
That would be really exciting news! The picture you have is beautiful. We have Bob Cat's, and there has been talk of cougar sightings around here. But I think it's wishful thinking, for the most part.
Interesting blog entry!
Renie
I think the cougar is a beautiful animal.
I remember one year when I was young.my Dad took me up in the swamp when he went to get wood from our wood lot.he had a big tent up there and it had a wood stove inside.
he told me to stay in the tent cause Id be worm.and not to go out cause he had seen a bob cat a few days before.
he stooked up the fire and I was sitting onthe floor playing with my toys I had with.I heard a loud scream like a woman,s.and my Dad came running back to the tent.
he hadnt gotten very far from the tent when the bobcat screamed.he said its out side in a tree I cant leave you here alone.
so we headed back home.by the time I came out of the tent with him Dad said it was gone.
Dad showed me what they look like.
and they are pretty to.but I am glad I didnt become its lunch.
I love to see wild life,but stay far enough away to be safe.
cougars can kill people. a few women in the west have been killed by them. a jogger was running in one of the big parks and one killed her.
we have not seen a bobcat for years around here.and I live in the midwest.
Oh I did the accent thing and they say I am inland north.
but I have o many things in me its hard to say what accent I have.
german,french canadian,Irish,English,and more.so I just say Hinz 57 when anyone asks.
have a great day.
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