In the spring of 2008 I wrote an article on this blog addressing the issue of wild mountain lions in Virginia and other eastern states. My hypothesis was that they are here and are breeding, and that they originated from escaped pets rather than a from remnant population of the eastern cougar subspecies.
This morning I checked back on that old entry and saw that there have been 46 comments posted to it and that a large proportion of those comments are from people who have personally sighted a cougar in a place where they allegedly no longer exist. Some of these sightings were prolonged events in which there was ample time to determine that the animal was not a bobcat.
I beg that anyone reading this blog in the future who feels moved to make a comment about their own sighting will provide some type of contact information. You can always email me personally at jack dot landers at gmail dot com if you don't want to put that sort of thing in a publicly visible comments area.
For the love of all that is holy, take a picture when you see something. Most people seem to be walking around with a camera-equipped cell phone in their pockets these days. Pull it out and take a picture. This goes for footprints that you spot as well. Take the picture and record the exact place and date and time on which you took it. Document this stuff. Without documentation, even a photograph can become meaningless.
The internet is full of real photographs that are forwarded around with captions or labels that have no relationship to the contents. Here's one example. This one of a dead lion in a garage is one that I personally spent a couple of days tracking down the origins of after being told that it was hit by a car in the Shenandoah Valley. The mule deer antlers in the background were a pretty good clue that the photo was probably taken out west and it turned out that this was in fact from Arizona.
Some people have alleged that DGIF is secretly releasing mountain lions in rural areas of Virginia. No. This is a ridiculous conspiracy theory that has been leveled at the game departments of many different states. The theory makes no sense, as such action would usually be against what these agencies see as their goals. Nor is there ever any actual evidence offered in support of these theories.
The cougars are probably out there. We just need some evidence. So get out there and take some photos already. If you live in an area with frequent sightings then please make sure that you know how to use the camera feature on your phone. Take the picture, document it, and then do not send it to 500 of your closest friends. If you do that then it is going to end up like all of these other mis-labeled pictures with murky origins and you might not be able to prove that you were the one who took it. Take it straight to a local journalist, or to a professional field biologist in your area, or if you don't know what to do for sure then you can get in touch with me and I'll help to get the photo some place where it can serve as good evidence.
Note that I am not interested in being emailed with random photos of cougars that someone forwarded you. Nearly all of those will be impossible to track down the origins of. I only want photos that you personally took and can personally vouch for where and when the picture was taken.
[Photo courtesy of the USDA]
6 comments:
i seen a pic of one today from new kent va
While returning home about 8PM on 10/7/10, I saw what appeared to be a very large feline shaped animal who had just crossed the road on front of me, and was just entering the woods. Animal appeared to be at least 4' in body, 18-20" in height, and long swag type tail. As it was close to dusk, could not determine color, but appeared to be light to medium tan or brown.
Forgot to add location on the immediate posting. This was in Orange Virginia, on Monrovia Road, approximately 3 miles south of Route 20.
That's perfect because my best friend was there and he told me he was almost eaten for a tiger I don't know how he could overcome to that situation.
two days ago I was in Montebello Virgina, very close to the Blue Ridge Parkway, in the mountains, at a camp. At 5 30 a mountain lion or cougar ran in front of my car. I stopped. It ran about 20 feet up the hill and stopped and looked at me. I was stunned. Just as I grabbed my camera, it took off up the hill. I saw it for about 10 seconds. It had the face of a tiger and was about the size of a medium to large dog. Obviously a young one. Yes, they are here. I have never seen one before in all my years of backpacking, hiking and camping. I wish I could have got a picture....
I live on 10 acres in an area named " Kinderhook " below the Blue Ridge Parkway. It is about 15 miles from Stanardsville Virginia. This June, 2011, I saw two large looking cats walk through our property. One was alittle bigger than the other. I have seen picures of mountainlions and that is what they were. I was standing right at the door which is all glassed. One walked through, then another one came behind him/her. Just today, a neighbor that has a farm said that a mountainlion ate 12 of her chickens and 5 of her cats. There are other people in this area of Kinderhook and Fletcher that have reported seeing a mountainlion.I do not want to beleive it but I think that it is true. I am afraid to walk to my truck now.
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