mountain lion in ct 2020

. my husband tapped my leg and asked what is that crossing the road It was a Cougar tan in color long tail which had a slight curl upward .I wish I had my camera to prove it but I know We saw it. She adds, I think its because a lot of people are fascinated by wild cats; they are the embodiment of the wild.. 10186. Having retired from a career at General Dynamics, he devotes many of his waking hours to cougar research, a passion hes cultivated for nearly twodecades. And follow us on Facebook and Instagram @connecticutmagazine and Twitter @connecticutmag. The photos were time-stamped December 7, 2020. Apr 20, 2020. Several years ago, I saw what was definitely a cougar walking along a street. But other hard evidence of the big cats presence is elusive. I think I may have pissed her off since I was up in that area X2 this week. A trail runner in Utah experienced a terrifying encounter with a mother mountain lion that stalked him on a trail for six minutes, lunging him at least three times . They certainly have, you know, lower levels of conflicts and home entries than we do here in Connecticut. I must have looked doubtfulwe were within spitting distance of a heavily trafficked road and only 12 miles from downtown Hartfordbut both Ottmann and Betty told me that cougars actually prefer more populated areas, since thats where deer tend to congregate. Mountain lions are solitary animals, traveling alone except during mating season or when a female is supporting young. Wed be seeing more carcasses of prey we would be seeing at least some carcasses of mountain lion prey. The big cat traveled some 1,100 miles before his life came to a tragic end after being hit by a SUV on Route 15 in . Once at dusk driving in the Berkshires, he saw what he initially thought was a cat-like creature that was far bigger than a bobcat leap across the road. Facebook . One cat will leave more than 10,000 tracks per day. Mountain lion spotted in East Haddam - YouTube 0:00 / 2:17 Mountain lion spotted in East Haddam 6,872 views Apr 27, 2012 22 Dislike Share Save WTNH News8 135K subscribers A Mountain lion. In 2011, genetic testing confirmed that a mountain lion originated in South Dakota and traveled more than 1,500 miles before being struck by a car on the Merritt Parkway, according to Reuters. The big cat on the ground before him, motionless, yet somehow still embodying that particular feline litheness, as if, with the flick of its tail, it might bound to its feet and disappear into the woods. Fear is actually one of the most powerful ecological forces we know, and its a really important management tool., According to Laundre, the problems caused by a relatively fear-free ecosystem are not always obvious, in part because they can take decades to fully manifest. We even had a sighting someone here at DEEP, in my office, was convinced they saw a mountain lion. Friends that go backcountry skiing in Vermont have reported seeing tracks to me many times and I have seen pictures of the pawprints myself that look overwheming like a mountain lion. Action Alerts. If you dont think cougars are coming to the East, think again, she said, leaning forward for emphasis. Especially when pictures are blurry which happens a lot in trail cameras or youll get pictures taken at night or something on Ring cameras that hind leg really does often look like a tail kind of curling up behind the animal.. Was INCREDIBLE! People like you are the problem and cause of extinctions. They are there and thriving!!!! A month after the cat was struck and killed, researchers confirmed it had traveled more than 1,500 miles from the Black Hills of South Dakota. And DNA analysis shows us that felis concolor is genetically the same across the USI think it is irrelevant, but interesting. The one thing that jumped out at her the tail. As livestock farming came to dominate the landscape, pressure on the big cats slowly mounted on two fronts: The number of farmers wanting them dead was increasing, while the rapid transition from forest to farmland meant their habitat was shrinking. Below are some of the first-hand. She favors plaid shirts, green Dickies work pants, and hiking boots, and she chided me for shaking her hand too gently. Tim Abbott, the regional land conservation and greenprint director for the Housatonic Valley Association, says that during a lecture on mountain lions last winter at Housatonic Valley Regional High School in Falls Village, when the speaker asked if anyone had seen a mountain lion, half of the roughly 400 people in attendance raised their hands. But a high-profile sighting in 2011 stirred up renewed interest in the animals here, when a mountain lion from South Dakota was hit and killed by a car on a Connecticut highway. They also have facial ruffs and ear tufts on the tips of their ears, as well as shorter tails. Its extremely rare for a person to see a wild animal and to underestimate its size. The tail, I said. And thats a surprisingly complex question, because it hinges on numerous factors: policy and politics, culture and conditioning, habitat and, frankly, hubris. On the idea of bear hunting in Connecticut. October 12, 2020 10:47 pm ET. The states beautiful wilderness and mountainous terrain are prime mountain lion habitats. It was definitely a cougar. Our hunter friend was hunting in central NH when they came upon an adult deer carcass way up in a tree. Not really, Rego says. Ive heard some biologists say it is not a distinct subspecies. So, traffic had been slowed from both ends for a good 3-5 minutes. Another important difference: bobcats are found in Connecticut while mountain lions are not. Patrick Skahill is a reporter and digital editor at Connecticut Public. The debate rages in Maine, where the last confirmed cougar kill occurred in 1938, and in New Hampshire, where the last confirmed kill was in 1885. Massachusetts and several other New England states have bear hunting, or harvest, seasons, which proponents say help control populations. There was the vaguest of trails, crisscrossed by deadfalls and a sharp-thorned bush that soon drew blood from Ottmanns right hand. They also generally have spots on their fur. Honestly, leaving this out of your article would seem to perpetuate the notion that there is a conspiracy to keep us all in ignorance. McEnroe: It is an uphill challenge. They are much larger than bobcat and lynx, young adults can still have spots too. The discussion of whether federal lands should be a place to subsidize cattle ranching is another question. It was a 140-pound male mountain lion, the first confirmed in Connecticut in more than 100 years. "There's no evidence of breeding pairs," he said. He drove me out to the spot. A 140-pound male mountain lion was hit by a car and killed in 2011 in Milford, Connecticut. He wore red suspenders and a baseball cap. Also known as 'cougars' or 'pumas,' mountain lions are reclusive creatures that feed mainly on deer, raccoons, rodents and various small mammals, experts say. Hunt By Species: Mountain Lion | Montana FWP Hunt Species Guide: Mountain Lion Download the 2022 Mountain Lion Hunting Regulations Download now Current Quota Status for Mountain Lions Check Status Find Harvest information for Mountain Lions Harvest Reports Mountain Lion Identification Program Learn More > Automatic Notifications Still, sightings are common. When a cats around, its not hard to find evidence. Its closest living relative is the cheetah. Mountain lion facts. Based on this blurry photo and pawprints, confirmed it was likely a mountain lion. With all the thousands of trail cameras in the woods of New England, one would think that there would be at least one picture taken of a catamount. Patrick Skahill is a reporter and digital editor at Connecticut Public. I lived in great Barrington mass and I took photos of tracks in a field in April of 2009 (and of course lost them). This is the second mountain lion sighting in North Texas in less than a month. No doubt of what it was; size, color and recognizable tail. I think of Aldo Leopolds Thinking Like a Mountain essay about how deer decimated the forests and died of starvation because of humans incessant desire to kill. She still produces shows with Colin and the team when her schedule allows. Much as I liked Ottmann and Betty, and much as I found some of their evidence compelling, I was struggling to reconcile their more provocative claims with the restraint expressed by the many other experts Id spoken with. Peter Yankowski is a breaking news reporter for Hearst Connecticut Media Group. Because while male cougars eventually strike out on their own and occasionally wander far from home, females are, as Morse puts it, hardwired to remain close to their mothers home range. Colin McEnroe is a radio host, newspaper columnist, magazine writer, author, playwright, lecturer, moderator, college instructor and occasional singer. An attack is verified only when a physician, law enforcement officer or CDFW personnel determine the injuries were caused by a . By now, I knew the answer to that one. And theres another school of thought, Well, no, there just are too many of them probably we have to reduce that population somehow. Where do you fall in that whole continuum? The average annual population estimate from 2004-2020 of 2,876 total mountain lions, based on the statistical population . Based on this blurry photo and pawprints, DEEP confirmed it was likely a mountain lion. Lizzie Post Would Like Your Attention. Rumors of their hidden presence persisted. About six years ago, my mother and step-father were traveling some back roads down to New Boston, NH to visit my sister where she lived in an extended care facility. Mountain lions inhabit the badlands and Missouri River breaks regions of North Dakota. UConn women's basketball's Dorka Juhsz, Amari DeBerry play 'word sneak' at press conference, Fight breaks out after CT high school basketball game between Bassick, Wilbur Cross, Amanda Bynes, Steve from 'Blues Clues' to appear at 90s Con in CT, Connecticut paranormal convention coming back this spring, Bridgeport woman competes to find love on Paramount+ dating show, Self-taught pianist Serene to perform at Grace Farms. However, the population declined in the early 1900's due to unregulated hunting and bounties were placed on mountain lions until 1966. Osage County leads the list with seven, followed by Cimarron County with six. So long as the tails there, that is. A month after the cat was struck and killed, researchers confirmed it had traveled more than 1,500 miles from the Black Hills of South Dakota. The guide told him earlier in the summer he and a couple clients had watched a moutain lion come down to the bank of the Deerfield River just upstream and take a small deer, fawn, drag it into the woods and it kill it, they could hear the screams of the deer as the cougar finished the job. Well, I KNOW there was at least one mountain lion in NE because years ago (maybe 35 or so) I lived in Longmeadow, MA. These highlights have been edited and condensed for length and clarity. Vermont-based naturalist SueMorse has spent decades studying, tracking, andphotographing cougars outwest. 60-108 inches. To Betty and Ottmann, the dominant narrative of the occasional itinerant cougar from the West is not particularly relevant to the facts on the ground. They can subsist on one deer a week, though they will also hunt coyotes, raccoons, rodents, elk, feral hogs, and even porcupines.. We hadnt seen a cougar, nor any evidence to suggest a cougar had traveled these woods recently. I couldnt tell you how happy I would be if mountain lions were actually recolonizing the state of Connecticut, Hawley says, but its just not happening., Hawley spoke about bobcats, mountain lions and bears on The Colin McEnroe Show: Megafauna mania: our obsession with mountain lions and other large predators.. LOS ANGELES (AP) A mountain lion that was part of a National Park Service study was fatally struck by a vehicle on a highway near Southern California's Santa Monica Mountains. Theres something in human nature to overestimate the size of wild animals we see, especially if we get a brief glance and if the animal is moving. He adds, Bobcats can get pretty large and some people believe they should have pretty visible spots and very often theyre pretty uniform in color. This is especially true in the summer, when my wifes sighting occurred. It used to be that a bear would go into a house when someone wasnt home. Officially, there are no mountain lions in New England, although there is a good possibility the big cats could be here, Tate said. Because they are.. are larger and heavier than females (60 to 100 lbs.). There were pine cones on window sills, a well-used hatchet and a variety of animal figurines on display, and, near the television, a stack of videos including Life of a Predator and The African Lion. September 16, 2020. in Bethlehem, Environment, News, Towns. Within six weeks, he continued, I was getting off the plane in Jackson Hole for a national mountain lion conference. Mountain lions, however, arent seen much in the Nutmeg State, even though several have reportedly been spotted around the Woodbridge area this month. - YouTube Multiple people in North Stonington claim they've spotted a mountain lion roaming around. Mountain Lions: Large tan cats with a distinctive two to three-foot curving tail, that can almost touch the ground as they walk. He is a consummate storyteller, and he wears on his sleeve his affection for the region and the hard-working, commonsense people who inhabit it. Hawley: That animal was documented. There were pine cones on window sills, a well-used hatchet and a variety of animal figurines on display, and, near the television, a stack of videos including. Mr. Betty and Mr.Ottomans passion and efforts are impressive. Indeed, in 2011, a male cougar was hit and killed by a car in Milford, Connecticut; through its DNA, wildlife biologists were able to trace the cat back to South Dakotas Black Hills, some 2,000 miles distant. Morse, 70, comports herself in a friendly and no-nonsense manner. If a young male Cougar disperses East, instead of West, they're going to keep walking because they're going tokeep looking for an area where they can find a mate, he said. Mountain lions usually retract their claws when walking. But, I think with education and planning, we should reintroduce wolves and cougar in the Northeast. Guns n' Gear), whose first name is Mike, is a United States Air Force and Army Veteran who uses his "experience on a . Fight at end of CT high school basketball game involving Middletown, Weaver second in as many days, How UConn women's basketball forward Amari DeBerry landed on ESPN SportsCenter's Top 10 plays, Connecticut boys hockey top performers / games to watch (Jan. 17), Goggles? In the decades that followed, many cougar enthusiasts came to share Wrights conclusions, at least at first. We hope their support inspires you to donate so that we can continue telling stories that inform, educate, and inspire you and your neighbors. For mountain lions in Connecticut, a lack of evidence is very good evidence. While recent mountain lion sightings in Connecticut have not been confirmed, if someone suspects they encountered a mountain lion, they should not run away, as it might spur a chase. More recently, unexplained animal sightings in Connecticut and other states became more and more associated with mountain lions. Lets learn to live alongside this very large animal is one of the schools of thought. Betty folded his arms across his chest, where they rose and fell and rose again with his breathing. Weight: 70-170 lbs. (Throughout history, people have had a deep fear of these creatures, hounding and hunting them mercilessly.) The bobcat population has since recovered due to improving forest habitat conditions and legal protections. Abbott, of the Housatonic Valley Association, is equally skeptical of the vast majority of mountain lion sightings. Bill Betty of Matunuck, a mountain lion expert who spoke at the South Kingstown Land Trust barn Oct. 30, thinks there is ample evidence pointing to the existence of a mountain lion in Matunuck. Mountain Lion Sightings in CT Was the animal a pet set free? MLF. That maybe, just maybe, what my wife and others saw wasnt a bobcat that seemed bigger in the thrill of the moment, but a real, honest-to-goodness mountain lion, a long-lost ghost of the forest. The reason why experts wont admit to a breeding population existing is that there is NO PROOF. Our wildlife biologists and enforcement agents are mostly political bureaucrats who dont often venture more than 100yards from the truck. We witnessed a mountain lion stalking a herd of deer. McEnroe: Scientifically, this is a case where absence of evidence is kind of evidence of absence, right? Well, theres no difference between Maine and New Brunswick, anyway, said Betty. Mountain lions in Eastern Connecticut? There, too, is Crowells photograph, grainy and old: the hunter leaning against a tree stump, his head propped casually on his left hand, elbow to stump, shotgun cradled in the crook of his right arm. Before I departed the Old Well Tavern, Bo Ottmann offered to lead me on a walk into an adjacent stretch of woods, where, he assured me, cougars might be found. #3. Its not a bear, not a dog, not a deer, not a bobcat. Today, nearly 60% of Connecticut is covered in forest, and bobcats are regularly observed throughout the state. P.O. The journey is chronicled in the 2016 book Heart of a Lion: A Lone Cats Walk Across America by William Stolzenburg. Adults are a uniform tan or tawny in color, with a white or cream-colored chin, undersides and inner legs. You could have 50. There are many officials in denial up here, but we know what we saw and there are too many sightings by the local folks to be ignored. Megafauna mania: our obsession with mountain lions and other large predators., Megafauna mania: our obsession with mountain lions and other large predators. However, many of their claimsespecially Mr. Bettys contention of roughly a dozen personal sightings in New Englandare hard to take seriously. Patrick's reporting has appeared on NPR's Morning Edition, Here & Now, and All Things Considered. Listen & Learn. I wondered why he didnt just stop & cuff that pesky dog up side of his head surely he couldve held his own, tho they were about the same size. Wright, however, didnt agree with his mentor and began writing publicly about mountain lions in the East. In my mind, I went through all the nots. Height at shoulder: 25-30 in. An expert said it was probably a basking shark. If its not, you just thank the person and say good-bye.. I do this shit.. At least once a year thered be a story from somewhere, but I only ran the absolute best, he told me. As a scientist, lack of evidence is very good evidence. Harrigan nodded. Emaileditor@connecticutmag.com, or contact usonFacebook@connecticutmagazine orTwitter@connecticutmag. Hawley said that the typical range of cougars like mountain lions is from west of the South Dakota area. This is part of the cougar business. There are an estimated 3,000 - 7,000 Mountain lions in Colorado. She IS, perhaps, the most knowledgeable and experienced person in this arena and I listened intently to her presentation (Richmond, VT 2018). Hes even had his own false sighting. What we do not have is a secure predator corridor.. The range of a Mountain Lion may cover 25 to 785 square miles. When I accepted the assignment to write about my quest to uncover the truth regarding the existence of cougars in New England, I had little idea what I was agreeing to. Height. The main habitat requirement for mountain lions is stalking cover to successfully hunt prey. It was a bright sunny summer day. Ask people who spend time outside Connecticut cities and you will hear firsthand or secondhand accounts of mountain lions. community-supported public media service, Connecticut Public has relied on donor support for more than 50 years. There are no mountain lions in Connecticut, so why do we keep seeing them? [The catamounts] movements were so noiseless that Mr. Crowell found himself in this dangerous proximity before he was aware of it, and it was only by great coolness and daring that he severely wounded the animal and perhaps saved his own life, reads a placard attached to the display case. The next week, on June 11, the cat was hit and killed by an, on the Wilbur Cross Parkway in Milford. But that doesnt stop people from seeing them. However, Hawley noted that Eastern bobcats tend to have very few spots compared to bobcats that are out west or even in the Midwest. If they have spots, they are typically in the white, underside part of the bodies or on the insides of their legs. 11538 W MOUNTAIN LION Ct, Surprise, AZ 85378 $404,055 Redfin Estimate 2 Beds 2 Baths 1,289 Sq Ft Off Market This home last sold for $236,000 on Mar 31, 2020. Spatz and Sue dont want to go where were going.. Prior to becoming a reporter, he was the founding producer of Connecticut Public Radio's The Colin McEnroe Show, which began in 2009. State lawmakers have entertained bills to establish a bear hunting season for years, but so far, none of those proposals has passed. I live in Hopkinton, NH and saw one coming up from the Contoocook River one misty morning. We dont have extra money to do secret projects, he says. Mountain lions are nocturnal hunters, mostly going after deer. This article appeared in theNovember 2019issue ofConnecticut Magazine. The first time was in the yard which was surrounded by woods. Published: Dec 17, 2022 SACRAMENTO - Governor Gavin Newsom issued the below statement today after the California Department of Fish and Wildlife announced that mountain lion P-22 has been humanely euthanized following a comprehensive medical evaluation that found severe injuries and chronic health problems. Mountain Lions: They are officially extinct. There were caribou antlers mounted above the front doors, and the interior walls were covered in row upon row of books; a long table was piled high with still more books in seemingly random arrangements. He soon developed a five-question litmus test: How far away were you? The Department of Energy and Environmental Protection receives 50-100 reports of mountain lions each year, says Paul Rego, a wildlife biologist with the department. And were one of the most densely populated states as far as humans. Were getting more and more home entries every year. In their estimation, the presence of a breeding cougar population in New England would likely stem from our proximity to Canada, where, as they rightly point out, DNA analysis has resulted in 19 positive identifications across Quebec and New Brunswick since 2001 (although some of these were shown to be of South American lineage, suggesting escaped pets). How big was the animal? The mountain lion occurs throughout the Western Hemisphere and has one of the most extensive ranges of any land mammal, from the southern tip of Argentina in South America to northern British Columbia in North America. As a carnivore biologist, Hawley says he would love it if mountain lions were here. So theres fresh mud. We clearly have migratory male cougars coming through. The females are where its at, she said. Bobcats: Though technically a type of lynx, they are distinct from other species of lynx such as the Canadian lynx. 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