Are There Hidden Populations of Cougars In The Eastern United States?

[@shutuplige6524]

growing up in wv i've had many reputable people say they've seen these but the state always denied they were there

[@mdleweight]

Another reason to question everything the state tells us.

[@michaelgomez3044]

Cougars were never wiped out in the East. Considerably thinned out but not gone. They are incredibly elusive.

[@phild9813]

If every sighting was legitimate, there would be a higher density of lions than anywhere else in the country. There aren’t many, and there isn’t some secret, contiguous population in the eastern US. There will likely be one day, but there isn’t right now.

[@dannydixon9077]

I am from the Southwestern tip of Virginia in the Appalachian Mountain region. I know of at least 10 to 12 reputable sightings of cougar in our area. While I have not seen one myself, I did find a very typical cougar kill of a deer and am comfortable that the sightings I mentioned are from people who got a good look at the animals they saw and knew what they were looking at. In only one case was there more than one animal in the sighting.

I'm from the same region. In the 1980's we had one with two cubs that stayed under the ridge behind my house. When they allowed a company to come in and strip the mountain for rocks, the folks all around and myself even took pictures and videos of the cats in hopes that we could stop the destruction of our mountain. The VDGIF testified in court that "there were no lions nor evidence of them in the region" in spite of our photos (and even offered to take them there to see for themselves) and the company stripped our hill. We did manage to reclaim the mountain after several years, but our cats were never seen up there again. We still catch them from time to time on our trail cams, but the VDGIF and TWRA still insist that there are no breeding populations in either state.

[@robinblankenship9234]

I can vouch that the Eastern Cougar is alive and well. I married one.

[@thomassmith2605]

That's freaking great 😂

[@mdleweight]

They even have been seen entering stores on 5th avenue in NYC.

[@gregswank547]

I was working around Augusta, GA in the late 1990's early 2000's. One night, for lack of anything better to do I took a drive out through the county and down a dirt road towards an industrial looking area. In the head lights ahead of me, a cougar crossed the the road and disappeared back into the forest. Now folks, I am from the Northwest and damn well know a cougar when I see one, and I saw one that night. I called the wildlife folks the next day and told them what and where I saw it and they foo-fooed it off.

[@phild9813]

Most sightings are BS, so it’s understandable. If they can’t confirm it with an image or tracks, then it’s meaningless because of that fact.

[@JeffTrentham]

We had a case where a guy shot a Cougar at Westpoint Lake GA.Georgia DNR tested DNA,and determined it had traveled all the way from south Florida.The idiot who shot it was fined 10k and banned from hunting for life.

[@Oldclimber1]

Turkey hunting in the spring about 10 years ago, I ran across a cougar twice. One while I was calling from a raised flat area with my back to a tree. I heard a a huff from behind my stand and turned to see a figure running, but couldn't make it out. I continued hunting, and calling sporadically from different positions until I got a gobbler calling continuously, and in a stressed manner, from a trail uphill from my stand.. So I moved to the trail and called as I was stalking forward. It came out of a small thicket along side the trail I was taking and flowed over the ground, going away, like I have never seen before. .So I know they are occasionally here, that's in Beaver county, Pennsylvania, just 10 miles or so from Pittsburgh.

[@aaronsanborn4291]

I've seen 2 in Maine in my lifetime both about 10 miles apart and about 20 years apart. There was no mistaking either being a cougar. The "wildlife experts" in Maine aren't the sharpest bunch.

[@TakeMetotheRiver.]

ive seen one in eustis while canoeing on the north branch of the dead river it crossed in front of us and saw us when it was in the middle of the river. i got a picture of the print in the clay on the river bank

[@mdleweight]

Experts, especially government-proclaimed ones are oxymorons.

[@larryreese6146]

Well, I would have agreed there were no cougars in my state of Oklahoma until about 3 weeks ago, despite a fellow stopped in the middle of a 2 lane highway trying to take a picture of one. We rounded a curve and almost hit him. As we passed he was yelling, "cougar, cougar," and pointing. But 3 weeks ago while traveling that same road I noticed a bay colored animal crossing the highway, not any taller than a large dog but longer bodied. It turned and faced us as we sped by. It was just on the other side of the road next to the guard rail and I could see the black hair on the sides of it's long tail. The face was unmistakably that of a cougar. Yeah, they are around..

[@Ryan-mx3rx]

There are elk in PA, kentucky, West virgina, Tennessee, and orher states nearby. There are mountain lions as well.

[@MichianaWildlife]

When I was 15, walking in a random field during the day, I watched a group of deer running away, thinking maybe I spooked em. Seconds later, I saw a huge animal hauling a$$ after them. I declared it to be a mountain lion. This was NOT a coyote and WAY bigger than a bobcat. The tail and fur is what sold me. The tail was very long and it ran like a cat, not a dog. This was in Northern Indiana where it is heavily agricultural and little woods, no forests. My mother and now wife are the only ones to believe me to this day.. but I can assure you from my time in nature, this was a mountain lion. Possibly traveling but no way there is a population around these parts.

[@mdleweight]

In 1966 at the YMCA Camp Potawotami in Lagrange County, one of the guys in my cabin claimed to see one very early in the morning on the baseball field, right at dawn. He said he followed it onto a trail and it hid in the brush and growled as he approached. His story sounded credible and I even remember asking him about the size in case it was a bob cat or house cat. He confirmed that it was big, the right color, had the right tail, walked like a cat, not a dog, and growled like a cat.

[@gregkerr725]

There have been a growing number of validated and DNR confirmed cougar sightings over the entire length of Michigan's Upper Peninsula.

[@Paul-fq4mm]

Have seen a cougar in the wildlife refuge in Savannah GA when driving through. Walked in front of my car and into the woods.

[@len6482]

There seems to be a few sightings every year in southern ontario as well. I have a few friends who have seen them.

[@Mycomagician420]

I live in the Northern Lower Peninsula of Michigan, and I have seen two of them while out mushroom hunting. There have been several sightings in the area in the past 10 years. Beautiful animals, but a little bit spooky to see in person!

[@davidhart7721]

I'v seen one, more than once, in the Eastern Upper Peninsula. One killed a dow in my neighbor's front yard, now he is always armed.

[@rayclark6406]

They here in southern illinois

[@tonybarnes1592]

Cougars have been spotted and pictures exist in western NC for as long as I can remember and I used to here the older people in the family talk about them so they are here

[@johnhill7585]

Difficult to understand how anyone can mistake a cougar for something else.

[@rayclark6406]

I live in southern Illinois back in 2000

[@williamcoale2210]

I saw a large cougar January 2005 west of Henryetta Oklahoma on I-40 ...

[@jvfreedom9956]

Ya that South Dakota cougar got hit on the parkway next to my town in Orange CT. It tried to sneak up behind me and pounce on me when I was attempting to weed wack my bosses property. Had a minute long stand off with him until I finally scared him off… no one believed me until he got hit on the highway an hour or two later.

[@Bass_Fishing_101]

Wow

[@mdleweight]

Like the moose we had running around in Easton some years back. It hung out for a day and was also it on the parkway that afternoon. The driver of the car was critically injured.

[@karlsmith945]

You are repeating what you heard and don’t live here, when you see a cat with a long tail and larger than a bobcat,you will know they are here,even in Alabama

[@mdleweight]

In the mid 1960's a friend of mine claimed he saw a cougar in northern Indiana. He said it growled like a cat and he was close enough to see it was much larger than a bobcat.

[@markhansen3111]

With so much prey available in eastern states I think the cougars are here.

[@ISeeYouToo-Ido]

Northwest Alabama has no shortage of cougars, especially in Marion Co., Lamar Co., and Winston Co. There are also a few black jaguars, referred to as black panthers. DNR denies their existence, yet have placed strict laws forbidding the killing of them. One cougar dispatched just north of Haleyville, AL, weighed 225lbs. A black jag (panther) was taken near Hamilton, AL. It was around 200lbs as well.

[@craigcarlin2918]

The lack of photo evidence despite tens of thousands of trailcams in the East makes it unlikely but not impossible

[@craigcarlin2918]

I would love for them to stage a comeback though.

[@JimJanowiecki]

Trail cam pictures of cougars in Michigan.

[@phild9813]

Lions aren’t trail camera shy from my experience in Wyoming. There would be tons of confirmed sightings if they were all over.

[@TakeMetotheRiver.]

​@phild9813 most avoid humans at all cost and there are way more trees to hide around on the east coast. like a fuck ton more

[@TakeMetotheRiver.]

​@@craigcarlin2918 ive seen one in maine and then i bought 15 trail cameras to try and prove it but they arent called the ghost cat for no reason

[@janemarkham4133]

THERE ARE COUGARS HERE IN THE BLUE RIDGE MOUNTAINS OF VIRGINIA !!!! THEY ARE BEAUTIFUL !! LEAVE THEM ALONE !!!! COUGARS HAVE RIGHTS TOO !!

[@amishpat5201]

I saw them in Tennessee, Southern Illinois and Missouri in the late 80's. If there are deer and corridors ( forests, rivers, canyons) they can make it. Dogs are the number one problem, then cars.

[@rodbelding9523]

I'm in PA and my entire life people have been telling me they're here, though I've seen no credible reports or evidence lol. I'm a skeptic to say the least.

[@cavemancavemanog]

There is an overpopulation of cougars in the west. Daily sightings in California, young man was killed by one recently. They have also been slowly migrating east for the past 40 years.

[@DanielWeimer-vl5ml]

This is what inspired me to first want to become all about nature and wildlife a few years back in Nashville North Carolina which is the piedmont section of the state it was broad daylight my parents see a big cat black in color jump over the gate I turn my head to see a long tail slithering over the gate and running off which was definitely a black “panther”/cougar they have even been seen far more up as Maryland

[@howardmurphy2841]

Actually i see one everyday my wife is a cougar,shes only 9 months older than me,but i let her have it

[@shyguysanimations6358]

I’ve seen cougars in ct and vt, they are definitely out there. My bet they say the cougars are not in the east is because the wildlife agencies don’t want to go through the work of new laws and such.

[@blackjackmusic1107]

In Missouri the Dept. of Conservation, when black bears were being spotted they at first claimed they were only wondering males. Now they say, ya we have bears in the Ozarks. We now have "wondering" black bears in western Kentucky. Same will most likely be true of Cougars in the east

[@quinkats]

I've had 2 encounters with them and knew of a few from friends back in high school the wildest was one friends uncle had one climb a tree not knowing he was in the deer stand set up in it, as well as hearing about a few other sightings over the years. the only reason wildlife agencies don't recognize them and most likely cover up data on them is they don't want to deal with them most of these states have a hard enough time managing newly introduced wolf populations dealing with an even more elusive animal with a bad reputation is a nightmare. in there eyes better unknown than a problem.

[@madtownangler]

About fifteen years ago a horse across the street from my parents had claw marks on it. Guy swore a mountain lion had clawed his horse. The Wisconsin DNR swore it wasn't one. A week later about ten miles away someone hit and killed a mountain lion. They go up and down the Wisconsin River area near my parents house. They had a bear a few years ago rip down some bird feeders was the second time in twenty years that happened. The next morning it was messing around and my dad grabbed the 410 shotgun to scare it and my mom banged some pans together and scared them both.

[@ericglasgow1616]

Yes i live in Ohio and i have seen two in the last 5 years

[@richardverbal4158]

Seen several here in southern Illinois over the years. Been a couple shown that were hit and killed by vehicles !

[@Daddyjohn1971]

Years ago there were verry few in eastern ky and south West Virginia. Only occasional sightings. The local news paper did a story with a poto of one that spent most of the day in a tree by a strip mine. Forestry service said it was fake. I live in seco ky and have seen at least 5 on my property. Sure am glad they don't exist.

[@EricWoodyVariety59]

Cougars have been seen by Shenandoah Park rangers in the 1960s and 70s way before you were even born. We saw a cougar kitten on a wall at a overlook when I was a kid. My dad had family in the Mountains of Virginia and knew every wild animal in those mountains. I talked to a cousin who told me he was driving on a Rd In the mountains and saw two young cougars cross the road in front of his vehicle and again people that know the difference between bobcats and cougars know what they see. City people like you don't believe because your not from the East Coast.

[@jeff5281]

Pennsylvania game commission will not admit to it.., we also have pigs

[@andreafong9952]

They are cats. The eastern woods are a perfect habitat with all the people and small animals, heat from homes, trash, buildings, rats,mice etc. There’s always something to eat with all the domestic animals. I think they are more stealthy than people imagine and live a lot closer to us than we think. You don’t find what you don’t look for right?

[@EricWoodyVariety59]

Virginia, and Maryland have also have sightings.cougars are secretive. Also eastern cougars still exist in eastern Canada so eastern cougars are not extinct. Facts.

[@davidmckinney8931]

I ve seen one in Delaware my self it was caught and put in the Brandywine zoo

[@lavern007]

I saw a cougar cross the road in front of me in 1976. The game warden said that was impossible but what looks like a Siamese cat that is about six feet frm nose to tail. I saw it about 20 feet in my headlights while setting stopped.

[@lavern007]

Northwest Missouri

[@gwenwheeler1248]

Ive seen one in broome County ny, also one in Chenango County, ny! Ten years apart

[@LiterallyOverTheHillAdventures]

Almost all the verified sightings of cougars in the east have a number of trail cam photos showing them. The one that was killed in Georgia a while back basically was documented on trail cams for a good bit of his journey from southwest Florida. There are trail cams in most woods in the east now. An example of how good trail cams are, just last year a new Jaguar was identified due to trail cam photos in southern Arizona though nobody had seen it nor seen any sign of it.

[@hikewithmike4673]

the urban sprawl in the east is horrific, especially in Florida...I highly doubt that there are larger populations of panthers, most reports are probably bobcats, panthers need lots of wildland expanses which is rare in the east!

[@DanielWeimer-vl5ml]

You can research sightings in North Carolina there is video proof of them out here and the state is so big with a lot of habitats to offer for them and people have had sightings all over

[@haroldferguson1483]

We definitely have many sightings in Upstate New York

[@michaeldill7620]

Wasn’t there few shot in Ny state in the last decade?

[@josephmclennan1229]

They are in Southeast Olkahoma mountains . Plus in Mena Arkansas , Bogota , Texas.

[@sstrongman1667]

I have trail cam photos of one just off the Mississippi River in Louisiana.

[@gwenwheeler1248]

Pa, dec told me there are no wild pigs in northeast pa! Bad part i was standing over a dead one side of 88 going into pa

[@jamesjacobson3966]

I recall there was a lot of theorizing following the death of that cougar in Connecticut a while back. The fact that “ authorities” had been tracking that elusive cat all the way from S. Dakota was a hotly debated subject. Seems a little unlikely IMHO without a radio collar or gas & restaurant/hotel credit card receipts LOL. More likely either federal or state agencies acting alone or in cooperation are conducting some clandestine transplanting from western populations to suitable areas back east. Not saying Connecticut fits that later description but perhaps Maine or upstate Vermont or New Hampshire and it wandered off? When wolves were transplanted to Yellowstone it caused and continues to feed a shitstorm from aggrieved parties including ranchers & hunters. Some discussion has been made about transplanting Grizzlies to Wa state’s North Cascades with concerns raised here about public safety. Cougars are known to attack and kill people especially small children. Plausible denial “who not us!” from Wildlife associations to avoid possible lawsuits or criminal charges for introducing a danger to the community would explain the secrecy.

[@BryanRichardson-s3v]

Since th 60 s michigan sightings all over north & south , I have too laugh at michigan dnr says no breeding !

[@Superbowfin60]

I saw a mountain lion back in the 90s in the town of cahoonzie ny .

[@rodneybender6865]

Cougars or Panthers as they were called are definitely in West Virginia. eaatern Panhandle. I know for a fact as I have seen one jumping across the road 50 yrds in front of my truck. NO it was not a bob cat, coyote or big kitty cat. I spent 60 years hunting and I know what a bob cat and especially a coyote looks like. A taxidermist friend of mine has a big dumpster he puts the unused remains of his work in. He captured a very Large Panther on trail cam near the dumpster and a few days later saw the animal jump out of the dumpster. Another friend captured one on his trail cam during full daylight. DNR refutes this and maintain no panthers cougars mountain lions are in the state

[@alexanderlapp5048]

That would be frightening to see a cougar jump out of a dumpster.

[@kingofallmediums2123]

Puma, Catamount, Mountain Lion, and Cougar? 😅😅😅😅😅

[@oldsarj]

I don't believe that there are breeding populations of cougar in the Eastern Unites States--yet! Give them time. They'll be back!

In the 1980's there was one with two cubs that stayed under the ridge behind my house (Southwest Va). If not breeding, then she carried them a mighty long way in a very short time.

[@joyous-b8j]

Due to the whitetail deer population in the Eastern States it would make sense for cougar's to be those states!! Plenty of Rock/ cliff bands for dens in the Appalachian mountains from Maine to Georgia!! No reason why a few haven't migrated from Florida!! Living in Colorado I saw 5 !! "HERE KITTY KITTY, PSPPSSP😻😽😺😸

[@CecilSavage-iq9zq]

Lived in cougar country all my life, Black hills, in the heyday of the massive deer herds of the 70's and 80's lions every where! Very very rare to lay eyes on one. Quiet and nocturnal and reclusive, the great bands of trees all over the East could carry many many cougar and most people would never know.

[@michaelgrosscup]

Trail cams don't lie.

[@robertandersen2318]

The cougar has always been in the north east, i lived here for 68 years and see them often. Not interested in your & dec's false statements 👎

[@howardmurphy2841]

Seen one in NH fr

[@washguy5982]

In the early 90’s I was shown some large cat tracks in the mud, Round Pond, Pittsburg. Looked legit to me, was working for NHDES at the time.

[@brians2733]

Here kitty kitty.

[@erickort1987]

cougar or mountain lion?

[@craigcarlin2918]

Different names for same thing. Also called puma, panther and catamount.

[@loquat4440]

This is a very poor AI presentation. In recent years that are numerous game camera pictures of them throughout the southeastern USA. They have been present in my area of northwest florida for many years. the big debate is if there are 'black' panthers in the USA. The Biologists say it is not possible.

Well, panther just means "black cat" and can refer to a number of different species.

[@EricWoodyVariety59]

You are absolutely wrong..

[@chasepirtle8662]

🤙

[@ericglasgow1616]

And just so you no i no what i seen and it was not a bob cat we see them all the time no i dont have a pic but i did get a good look at it for at least 10 min so i no what i was lookking at and not to make someone mad but next time there will be a body for every one to see if there not here than i cant get into shit for doing it

[@mikehygj9221]

Love this topic! So cougars have slowly but surely been moving east , from the Rockies to Dakota’s , plain states and now east of the Mississippi . There will be sustained breeding population in the southern Appalachian area probably northern New York and New England . Upper Midwest ( Michigan , Wisconsin , and Minnesota probably already have breeding females there . I just a matter of time before these beautiful and deadly top predators reclaim some of their former range ,,,… ☝️👌👌 Side note; Florida subspecies is making an amazing comeback now breeding females north of the Caloosahatchee river for first time in over about 50 years! Numbers in Florida are steadily growing

They've always been here in the middle Appalachians. Had 3 that stayed on the mountain behind my house in the 1980s (a female with two cubs). And my papaw had a picture of him and one he killed back in the late 1940s in Eastern Kentucky.

[@phil4487]

I've spent my entire life in the woods of Pennsylvania..myself and a handful of people I've talked to over the years have seen the mountain lion here. Game Commission denies it.

[@robinblankenship9234]

I can vouch that the Eastern Cougar is alive and well. I married one.