Experts Warn Residents to Take Precautions After Recent Mountain Lion Sightings By Bay City News Published June 11, 2021 Updated on June 11, 2021 at 6:50 am NBC Universal, Inc. Roadkills can be reported to 860-424-3011. Hawley: That animal was documented. Bobcats: They are about two to three times larger than their distant relative. If it really comes down to it do what you have to do to deter it from following you. Those are the two closest populations that we have here. Sighting of this animal also occurred in Michigan and New York. A 140-pound male mountain lion was hit by a car and killed in 2011 in Milford, Connecticut. Stephen Gencarella, professor of folklore studies at the University of Massachusetts and a Connecticut resident, says, The government coverup is only the latest version of something that could stretch back in the oral tradition to precolonial times. He notes that supposed mountain lion sightings spiked in the late 1800s and early 1900s shortly after the animals disappeared from New Englands woods. The state says no, theyre extinct, that cant be. What we do not have is a secure predator corridor.. And were one of the most densely populated states as far as humans. She didnt claim to see the mountain lions long tail, but optical illusions can lead people to think theyve seen a tail. I agreeI am a person with very good knowledge of animals and know the distinct differences between closely related species in some cases Prior to becoming a reporter, he was the founding producer of Connecticut Public Radio's The Colin McEnroe Show, which began in 2009. So, there you have it an answer to the question of whether or not there are mountain lions in CT. Hes even had his own false sighting. Weve got a growing bear population. There are mountain lions in connecticut. His mentor, Aldo Leopold, a prominent wildlife biologist, also believed this, but felt if people learned about these populations, they would be hunted to extinction. 3. In some versions, state officials dont want to alarm people about the feline predators in their midst. Mountain lion fur is unspotted and tan-brown . South Windsor resident Stafford King is sure that he saw a cougar on his land three years ago. Police have a warning after there were multiple mountain lion sightings reported in Woodbridge. Put your arms over your head with a jacket or sweatshirt. Initially, officials believed it had been released from a private handler. Breweries in New Haven, CT you MUST Visit! Mistaken reports of mountain lions are most commonly bobcats. And the last confirmed sighting prior to the 2011 instance would be a couple hundred years ago, according to Hawley. Abbott, of the Housatonic Valley Association, is equally skeptical of the vast majority of mountain lion sightings. Im not an expert on human psychology, but if youre looking for something, you have a greater chance of actually seeing it. 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. The main habitat requirement for mountain lions is stalking cover to successfully hunt prey. He has also reported for the Marketplace Morning Report. The history of this theory in Connecticut and New England goes back long before our current era of fake news. Mountain Lion Sightings in CT. Was the animal a pet set free? So all the other states in the Northeast that have bear populations have a harvest on their bears. People often get very emotional about it, Hawley says. It provided absolutely irrefutable proof that a wild Mountain Lion, at least occasionally, can make its way to New England. Here are the Winter Storm Anthony snowfall totals so far, Melting Pot restaurant in Darien closes down. Arms over your head, with a jacket or sweatshirt. Many, many times, in many different ways along its travel up through Minnesota, Michigan and to Canada, down through New York, through hair samples, blood samples, trail camera photos. Adult males may be more than 8 feet long (from the tip of the nose to the tip of the tail), and can weigh between 130 and 150 pounds. 3 Last 10 Years. As far as the claim that mountain lions live in CT, as we address in the previous section, that has been debunked. Get started. 6. According to one internet source, there are 3 types of wild cats that can be found in Connecticut mountain lions, bobcats, and lynxes. So theres fresh mud. Even so, Abbott has heard of mountain lion sightings from what he deems reliable sources and believes its possible that other animals have made the difficult, some say almost miraculous trek, from the West to Connecticut. These highlights have been edited and condensed for length and clarity. The last confirmed mountain lion sighting in Connecticut occurred in 2011. When we lived in Suffield, we had MANY Mountain Lion sightings.probably 4-5 sightings (which qualifies as many to me) and they were definitely not Bobcats. When it comes out that there are mountain lions in Connecticut where all these people who denied them apologize to the people who know they saw them? I feel a little bit like Roy Scheider in Jaws, you know, youve got to shut down the beaches, he said. The current editor of the publication, which is based in New Hampshire, explains why the job is worth sticking around. Bobcats are found across Connecticut, but even fully grown they are much smaller than what she was describing, only weighing between 18 and 35 pounds. Adult females typically weigh between 15 and 30 pounds and measure from 28 to 32 inches in length. Even in parts of the country where there are documented breeding populations of mountain lions, there are still many false reports. Rumors of their hidden presence persisted. And Im assuming whatever were doing right now, its not working. 1 Last 365 Days. Since cougars are the second largest cat in North America and a natural predator, they can pose a threat. He also quoted the work of geneticist Melanie Culver, who has proven that all North American puma species are genetically virtually identical. So its this gathering storm. Hear the full interview: Megafauna mania: our obsession with mountain lions and other large predators. Hawley: I feel strongly that we need a harvest here in Connecticut. Betty displayed several maps of Maine and New Hampshire, demonstrating the trend. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate. Colin McEnroe is a radio host, newspaper columnist, magazine writer, author, playwright, lecturer, moderator, college instructor and occasional singer. Connecticut Dept. He drove me out to the spot. 5:00 PM. My buddy told me he saw one in our hometown (in litchfield county) 10 or so years ago and I called bullshit. Tolland resident Loren Gerber said that he and his wife have both seen cougars in the area. It is also the most common wild cat found in North America. Hear the full interview: Megafauna mania: our obsession with mountain lions and other large predators. 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? 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(Throughout history, people have had a deep fear of these creatures, hounding and hunting them mercilessly.) community-supported public media service, Connecticut Public has relied on donor support for more than 50 years. Mountain Lions can be found in Orange County throughout the Santa Ana Mountain Range down to the foothills and canyons directly connected to them. Despite annual reports since the 1950s, no confirmed sighting was made in the state until the 1990s. If you follow local news outlets and local social media pages, youll notice a common theme when it comes to wildlife sightings people often mistake one type of animal for another. Despite frequent claims, there has only been one confirmed mountain lion sighting since the late 1800s here. She was also the voice behind the weekly Connecticut Real Estate newsletter by CT Insider. They certainly have, you know, lower levels of conflicts and home entries than we do here in Connecticut. Mountain Lions:They can have similar coloring and their tails can look alike, which has lead to some house cats being mistaken for them, even though mountain lions are much, much bigger. According to the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, mountain lions became extinct in Connecticut in the 1800s, and bobcats are the only large wild cats found in the state. 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 New Hampshire Department of Justice is pursuing civil charges against two members of the hate group for allegedly hanging a racist banner in Portsmouth last summer. Be as loud as you can paired with being as big as you can. 75-170 pounds. More sightings that Halm deemed credible came in 2018 from Nursery, Marvin Ridge and Briscoe Roads.. Halm noted that the route between the two recent sightings appears to be straight south. McEnroe: It is an uphill challenge. According to Hawley, if mountain lions were present in the state, there would be evidence and not just unconfirmed sightings. Many people do not realize how large a grown Bobcat is. of Energy & Environmental Protection. They usually either don't disperse at all or they'll kind of overlap their mother's home range, or they'll disperse very short distances.. But honest misidentifications are more common. These sightings are so persistent that there is a conspiracy theory that says DEEP officials know mountain lions are in the state but cover up their existence. He can be reached by phone at 860-275-7297 or by email: pskahill@ctpublic.org. 4. And follow us on Facebook and Instagram @connecticutmagazine and Twitter @connecticutmag. Hawley: Yeah. Im watching it, its big, its got the body, and the thing that really gave it away was the tail, had that mountain lion long tail that goes down to the ground and comes up at the end, saw that and was like, thats a freaking mountain lion.. You really couldnt ask for a better place for mountain lions.. On a mountain lion that died on a Connecticut highway. McEnroe: Scientifically, this is a case where absence of evidence is kind of evidence of absence, right? From family fun to restaurants and everything in between, everything you need to know about CT is right here. Sign up for our newsletterto get the latest and greatest content fromConnecticut Magazinedelivered right to your inbox. Make noise-- be as loud as you can while you make yourself as big as you can. Skip to content. Those are the two closest populations that we have here. Meanwhile, a family in Redwood City has shared footage of a big cat seen recently in Its extremely rare for a person to see a wild animal and to underestimate its size. Mountain lions would have inhabited all of what is now Nebraska, roaming the hills and plains as an apex predator, hunting deer, elk and other large game. Running joke in the family when we see one is "But of course it wasn't a Mountain Lion, because there are no Mountain Lions in CT". Using DNA and physical evidence, state environmental officials said they determined that the animal . Eastern Cougar Sightings Mountain Lions in New York. The Mountain Lion is a large, slender cat with a smallish head and noticeably long tail. They also generally have spots on their fur. Canton and Simsbury have also had about 70 sightings. The state adds bobcats are often active this time of year, making sightings much more likely. Betty recommended that anyone who encounters a cougar should make themselves large, raise their hands and yell. We rely on readers like you to support the local, national, and international coverage on this website. But what might be his most compelling argument is that since this is Connecticut, the budget is too limited. This is a carousel. As a carnivore biologist, Hawley says he would love it if mountain lions were here. "I was hoping for tracks after the rain, but the area was not conducive for it," Halm said. According to authorities, the mountain lion was reportedly seen on Friday including on. It used to be that a bear would go into a house when someone wasnt home. Also known as cougars, panthers or pumas, mountain lions range in color from tan to grey, according to the U.S. Department of Agricultures Forest Service. Patrick Skahill is a reporter and digital editor at Connecticut Public. So, now we know what DEEP says about mountain lions in the state and we know that many people mistakenly believe theyve sighted one but its still possible there are some in CT, right? According to authorities, the mountain lion was reportedly seen on Friday including on Salem Road and near Pease Road. A quick Google search reveals that the theory is not limited to Connecticut and similar tales are told throughout the Northeast. However, the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEE. Joseph Uscinski, professor of political science at the University of Miami, and a conspiracy theory expert, says these types of theories are not uncommon. Theres also the lack of visual evidence, more glaring each passing year as so many hikers and hunters now carry phones with cameras. But its also a great story that lays out how an animal this large, at 150 pounds, traveling through even rural areas, leaves signs and is detected. Therefore, there are no western and eastern species to differentiate between. This was maybe a decade ago. Wright, however, didnt agree with his mentor and began writing publicly about mountain lions in the East. 47 6 thatphanom.techno@gmail.com 042-532028 , 042-532027 For decades, wildlife experts should have been seeing occasional scat and paw prints in the winter. While Betty had plenty of evidence to support a mountain lion population, the Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection still lists the mountain lion as extinct under the Endangered Species Act. They are also known as . Hawley:Were sort of stuck between a rock and a hard place right now. So all the other states in the Northeast that have bear populations have a harvest on their bears. 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Mountain lions have been dispersing away from these population areas, and researchers recently mapped all confirmed mountain lion observations from 1990-2008 (LaRue et al. The map from that publication is shown below, with the current mountain lion range in green and confirmed mountain lion locations as black dots. State lawmakers have entertained bills to establish a bear hunting season for years, but so far, none of those proposals has passed. The sightings havent been confirmed by the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP), and there are no videos or photos. Based on this blurry photo and pawprints, DEEP confirmed it was likely a mountain lion. Now the bears, they dont even care if people are home, theyll go right in the house. Hi! I frankly have lost faith in some government institutions for this very reason. building a betterand more civilConnecticut to live, work, and play. Wait a minute--there was a sighting in New London County a few years back, and my wife read an article about a mountain lion or cougar being struck by a vehicle in Milford a few years back. Sign up for our newsletter to get our latest and greatest content delivered right to your inbox. Description. Weve done a lot of work over the years investigating sightings. Booth DEEP and local authorities around Connecticut have confirmed that the majority of mountain lion sightings in the state turn out to be sightings of bobcats. Most mountain lion sightings are reported without any evidence other than eyewitness descriptions. A 140-pound male mountain lion was hit by a car and killed in 2011 in Milford, Connecticut. An adult male bobcat can reach four feet in length and 35 to 40 pounds. Jason Hawley says his office gets lots of calls about mountain lions each year. Now the bears, they dont even care if people are home, theyll go right in the house. We know that the closest established breeding population is in either the Everglades of Florida theres a small population down there and then out in South Dakota and Nebraska. She was calling from a trail in Pootatuck State Forest, the 1,200-acre strip of nature occupying the hills above Squantz Pond in New Fairfield. Mountain lions were hunted to extinction near the end of the 19th century. This might serve as proof to some that there, in fact, might still be mountain lions in CT. I've damn near run over the things. On a mountain lion that died on a Connecticut highway. On the idea of bear hunting in Connecticut. I know the difference between bobcats, lynx, & mt lions. In the 1930s, Bruce Wright, an influential wildlife manager from New Brunswick, Canada, began gathering reports of sightings of mountain lions in the East and searching for their tracks. We're not aware of any more confirmed mountain lion sightings other than the one that was hit by the car many years back. Five summers ago, a mountain lion made regional headlines after it was photographed in Greenwich and later struck and killed by a motor vehicle on the parkway in Milforda young male that DEEP officials determined through DNA evidence had traveled east all the way from South Dakota. Were getting more and more home entries every year. (My wife didnt get a look at the tail.) The last confirmed mountain lion sighting in Connecticut occurred in 2011. Almost every state has some sort of legend of something thats hiding somewhere, he says. Seeing a wild cat can be both frightening and exciting, and its common for people to make mistakes in identification, as all most people are used to seeing is the common housecat. 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She served as the Senior Producer for 'The Colin McEnroe Show' for several years before stepping down in 2021 and returning to her previous career as a registered nurse. (Throughout history, people have had a deep fear of these creatures, hounding and hunting them mercilessly.) When you look at a state like Connecticut, with all the people we have here, all the trail cameras we have in the woods, all the cars we have driving you can imagine if we had an established population here in Connecticut, we would know about it pretty quickly. Adult males typically weigh between 18 and 35 pounds and measure from 32 to 37 inches in length. Wright, however, didnt agree with his mentor and began writing publicly about mountain lions in the East. Are There a Lot of Spiders in Connecticut? Reports of mountain lion sitings in Matunuck and the Great Swamp Management Area date back to at least 2004, but have never been confirmed by state officials. Register for a user account. That had to be a mountain lion. Mountain lions are also great jumpers and swimmers. Well also go over what types of wild cats can be found in Connecticut. In the decades that followed, many cougar enthusiasts came to share Wrights conclusions, at least at first. Bobcats: Though technically a type of lynx, they are distinct from other species of lynx such as the Canadian lynx. Its documented through track surveys, aerial surveys, trapping and collaring surveys. However, that doesnt mean that mountain lion sightings are all false or that there havent been roaming cats sighted. Massachusetts and several other New England states have bear hunting, or harvest, seasons, which proponents say help control populations. "We get calls about mountain lions all the time, but they turn out to be unprovable," Brown told the Independent in March. COMPARED TO A HOUSE CAT Bobcats: They are about two to three times larger than their distant relative. On another large animal that is most definitely here: bears. Using DNA and physical evidence, state environmental officials said they determined that the animal . While the state says it was likely a bobcat, one of the people who reported the sighting says it was unlike anything hes ever seen before. 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.. Mountain lions went extinct in Connecticut during the 1800s, but bobcats are still seen regularly. Im not an expert on human psychology, but if youre looking for something, you have a greater chance of actually seeing it. Employees from the state DEEP, as well as Tolland Public Safety Supervisor John Littell attended the event last night. Eastern cougars (mountain lions) do not have a native, self sustaining population in New York State. So why does the conspiracy theory that theyre here in significant numbers persist? They also want to foster the formation and protection of migration pathways for them and other animals to enter new states. Hawley, a wildlife biologist with the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, says data dont support a breeding population of mountain lions in Connecticut. Mountain Lions: cougars, pumas, panthers and catamounts. mountain lions in washington. They are also known as pumas, cougars and panthers. A 140-pound male mountain lion was hit by a car and killed in 2011 in Milford, Connecticut. The views expressed here are the author's own. Peter Yankowski is a breaking news reporter for Hearst Connecticut Media Group. The next week, on June 11, the cat was hit and killed by an SUV on the Wilbur Cross Parkway in Milford. In 2016, a woman reported seeing a mountain lion on a Fox Run Road property in New Canaan, though state officials said they were unable to confirm the sighting based on paw prints left by the animal. Almost daily, there are claims of mountain lion sightings in CT, though. 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