By Lorelei Goff
North American Cougar:
Photo by Baranov E / Shutterstock
A phantom haunts Appalachia. Blurry trail camera pictures and occasional eerie screams in the forest keep the debate about the Eastern cougar’s existence alive among scientists and lay people, even after the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service unoffically declared the elusive ghost cat extinct in 2011. This was followed by an official proclamation in 2018.
The Eastern cougar, Puma concolor cougar — also known as ghost cat, catamount, puma, painter, panther and mountain lion — once roamed Eastern North America from Canada to Florida. All but the Florida Panthers were wiped out by the early 1900s. Hunting by European settlers, loss of habitat and a decline in the white-tailed deer population — the cougar’s favorite meal — all played a part in its demise.
Myths surround these tawny predatory cats, which can grow up to 8 feet long and weigh in at 200 pounds. One is the notion that they are man killers. The truth is, a fatal accident with a white-tailed deer is many times more likely than a fatal cougar attack, according to The Journal of Wildlife Management.
“The chance of a cougar encounter is incredibly rare, much less, a fatal attack, even where there are established cougar populations,” says Joy Sweaney, a wildlife biologist with the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency.
Cougar sightings east of the Mississippi River often turn out to be misidentifications of other wild animals or house pets, wandering western cougars, or captive cats that have escaped or been released. Ironically, whether or not the Eastern cougar ever existed as a separate subspecies is now a subject of scientific debate. The question of a distinct genetic profile, or even whether the cat is extinct or not, does not impact their protected status, however; hunting or trading any native species is still illegal unless a state management policy says otherwise.
Cougar Facts
• These unspotted, light brown to tawny cats range from 5 to 8 feet long and weigh 100 to 200 pounds, with a tail one third the length of its body.
• It’s impossible to visually distinguish an Eastern cougar from any other subspecies of cougar.
• Female cougars bear one to six kittens after a three-month gestation. The cougar lives approximately 12 years in the wild.
• The cougar’s vocalizations include screams, hisses, whistles and growls.
• Cougars can leap 15 feet.
• Established breeding populations of the North American cougar remain in western North America and South America.
Wildlife agencies in southern and central Appalachia receive a number of reported cougar sightings every year, which often turn out to be misidentifications or deliberate hoaxes. There have been some confirmed sightings, however, including a widely publicized 2014 report from a farm in Bourbon, Ky. After the farmer’s neighbor called the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife, an officer from the agency shot the cat, believing it posed a threat to the public.
Mark Marraccini, information officer at Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife, doesn’t believe the Bourbon cougar arrived in the state on its own. According to Marraccini, the cat was too well fed to be wild and probably escaped or was released by its owner. DNA tests were withheld while a criminal investigation for illegal trade was underway, fueling a long-standing theory that state agencies have covered up evidence of cougars in the region. Doug Markum with Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency says the conspiracy theory is really just a matter of miscommunication.
“When somebody asked us about cougars, we didn’t say, ‘They’re not here,’” Markum says. “We said, ‘There’s never been good evidence that cougars are here.’ And then they misconstrue that to say, ‘The agency said there are no cougars here.”
DNA testing later revealed that the Bourbon cougar traced its genetic origin to the Black Hills of South Dakota.
Recent sightings have been confirmed in Obion, Humphreys and Carroll counties in western Tennessee. DNA tests from a fur sample show that the Carroll County cougar is a female, also with genetic origins traced to the Black Hills in South Dakota and Wyoming. Biologists believe it is possible that all three sightings are the same cat migrating further east.
Photo by Emmanuel Keller
Does the recent increase in sightings mean that a breeding population of cougars may one day inhabit Appalachia? Many folks hope so, including Tennessee State Park Ranger Tim Pharis.
“The way I look at it, if there are any resident cougars, they’re probably the ones that are wise enough to stay away from people,” Pharis says. “If there aren’t, this ecological niche is open. If they’re in West Tennessee, they’ll probably eventually be here, too. It’s just a matter of time.”
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I have seen a cougar twice at Biggs Branch in Olive Hill Kentucky. Where we live has large hills with rock cliffs along Tygart Creek. There is also 300 or 400 acres of bottom land. In November 1996 I was deer hunting on top of a large cliff watching an open spot below me. I saw something to the right of the opening moving in the brush. The wind was hitting my face so I knew it couldn’t get my sent. I got a large tree between me and the animal and started walking closer toward it just a step at a time almost motionless. I keep watching it in the brush I put my scope on it thinking it was a deer and to see if it was a buck or doe. I could see it wasn’t a deer through the brush. I said heck it must be a large dog. It came out of the brush and I was amazed it was a large cat about 6 or 7 feet long and its tail was almost as long as it was. It had small ears and its color was not brown like the cougar picture I have seen. It wasn’t black either like the cats my grandmother used to tell me about it was kind of grayish brown. I watched it moving and stretching like it was in slow motion. Then the wind changed and I felt the wind at the back of my neck and as the wind changed it looked straight at me took a couple steps and leaped the entire open spot and was back in the brush. I went off the hill and called the game warden and asked if I could get a permit to hunt the cat he told me no it was protected. I never saw a cat again until this hunting season I was watching one of my bottoms to see if any Deers were crossing heading to Tygart and a cougar came out of the swampy area in the field, crossed the field and disappeared into the brush along Tygart creek. I wouldn’t want to hunt the cat now I am older and I wish we could see more sightings of the big cats. I never reported this one or told anyone about it. I think I will set up a deer camera and see if I can get a picture.
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“When somebody asked us [the authorities] about cougars, we didn’t say, ‘They’re not here,’” Markum says. “We said, ‘There’s never been good evidence that cougars are here.’ And then they misconstrue that to say, ‘The agency said there are no cougars here.” Yes, that usually means they are doing their best to control and hide information. An officer from the KDFW shot and killed a Puma thinking it was a danger to the public: umm…yes, it is a WILD animal, they can be dangerous to human. Goodness, how mindless. It doesn’t mean you can kill wild life just because you think it’s dangerous, which would mean we would have NO bears, wolves, coyotes, alligators, wasps, hornets, poison spiders, in the USA. It’s not a wild animals’ fault they can be dangerous: it’s their nature and we must live with it.
I saw a mountain lion cross the street just outside of Boone yesterday evening. Not too far from where friends of mine have captured pictures of 2 adult lions on their deer camera. They are here and undoubtedly reproducing.
I’ve saw a total of three Mtn lions. First one was in Bear den camp ground in Avery county NC in 2003 or2004. It was full grown and about 10 feet from my tent digging through leaves my girlfriend had dumped fried fish grease in. I got in my car and shined my head lights on it the cat crouched down but didn’t leave. Finally after about the third time I honked my horn it ran off. The other two were a mom and cub across the creek from where my family and I were camping. I spotlighted them watching us with a strong flashlight. I called my parents and friend over and we watched them stalk back and forth checking out our camp for about 30 minutes. They eventually started moving further down the creek. That was at the head of Bollins creek trail below Mt Mitchell in Yancy county NC September 2007
2 years ago I was standing on a porch in the house I was renting along ft small wood rd pasadena M.D. this large dark cat I would say 6 foot long from nose to tail jumped out of a bush and turned sideways watching 3 deer cross the road and a nother ran by like a bullet heading for the edge of wood it was a light drizzle I was say holy shit because I’ve walk those woods by my self have done that sence.
Saw one in 2001 at Leatherwood Mountain in NC….It has been spotted several times in recent years by different people.
I saw one a few years ago, crossing the road directly in front of my headlights. Tawny colored, erect ears, long tail (longer than its body). Two bounds and it was gone! I reported it, but was told it was probably an escaped wild pet. Davie County, NC.
I hope these sitings are true..but in a world where everyone is carrying a cell phone..no one happens to have one or think to pull it out to corroborate their stories.once people do that then there can be no debate.
Saw one this morning on golf course in Charlotte NC. Hard to believe but true.Lots of recently cleared old forest and dozens of deer. Will try to set up some trail cams.
I saw one on my remote road when I stopped for the mail. We stared at each other through the windshield. Then I had to start my car and it leapt across the road and up onto a bank – wow!
A friend had a footprint in the snow, she kept it in the freezer – and one day the power went out.
We’re in central VA.
My wife and I spotted a cougar crossing a local road in broad daylight in the Banner Elk, N.C. area. As it turn to go into the brush we saw it’s very long tail! We feel very lucky to have seen one!
I saw a cougar/panther in Washington County, Virginia about 5 years ago when visiting an old family cemetery high up on a hill away from the main road. It was moving away from the cemetery, making its way into the woods while looking back at us as we pulled up in our vehicle–tan with a long tail that curved down then up, darker at the end. Someone had hit a panther/cougar with a car and killed it not long before that on nearby Walker Mountain. They are around, for sure.
I think it is so good that Cougars are living in the Appalachian mountain ranges. We have to respect and protect them, and ALL of our precious wildlife. Please make sure these animals do not get poisoned, or trapped, as they are vitally important to our ecosystems and landscapes. Every species of wildlife benefits every other species of wildlife, it has been proven. We need to leave our wild animals alone so that they can breed and flourish once again.
We saw a young cougar, long tail, tan with spots,in deep woods near Panthertown Valley, Jackson Co. NC in 2003. It was real, and it was awesome.