lionsandtigers

I think its pathetic that people on this site have so little to do with their time that they spend it like middle school students by posting sarcastic replies to people seeking genuine answers to questions. Are these adults? I guess some are stuck in perpetual adolescence.

The smallest one looks like a raccoon rather than a cat. None look like mountain lions to me although I believe they are more common than many have suggested-these just don't seem to be at all similar to mountain lions.

"Wildlife officials in most eastern states claim that the cougar or, mountain lion, as it is also known is mostly extinct east of the Mississippi. Apparently, all of the cougars haven’t gotten the memo because there continue to be reports of the big cats in the east. Recently three cougars were seen outside of Baltimore, Maryland. Just prior to those sightings, a cougar was reported in the suburbs of Washington, D.C. There have also been other reported sightings in Virginia, Massachusetts and New York."

It is still 2013 "A cougar has been shot and killed in Illinois. The animal was killed by a wildlife official and is reported to be between five and a half feet to six feet in length with a weight of over a hundred pounds." but it was really the ghost of the mountain lion that was killed in CT a couple of years ago, That was a captive cat let loose and run over by a car. If there were real mountain lions in Illinois, ct or NY we'd see them.all these are mirages or people mistaking children for mountain lions.

"The Missouri Department of Conservation has confirmed the sighting of a mountain lion on private land in Shannon County approximately nine miles west of Eminence. The confirmation is based on this trail camera photo taken Sept. 29, 2013. The name of the landowner and the property location are not being released at the request of the landowner" Obviously the DOC is mistaking a small child for a mountain lion. They both have eyes nose and mouth so that must be why they are so confused!.

There are no mountain lions in Illinois. There may be pics on trail cam but it is one lone mountain lion that was traveling from Missouri to Ill to get into pictures. It is a released captive cat because there are no mountain lions in Illinois. If there were any, we'd see them.

It is now 2013. There are no mountain lions in Missouri. There are photos of mountain lions taken this year in Warren, Carter, PUlaski, Shannon, Reynolds and Midison County but it is probably really just one lone mountain lions who gets around, if you know what I mean. If there really were mountain lions in Missouri we would see them.

It is now 2012. There are no mountain lions in Missouri. Verified pictures, video and sightings have been reported from Reynolds, Grundy, Shannon Ripley, Taney, DeKalb, Carter and Warren County but there are no mountain lions in Missouri. Those sightings were probably all the same mountain lion released from captivity.

It is now 2011. There are no mountain lions in Missouri. If there were, we would see them. Yeah there were confirmed sightings and pics from mtion activated game cameras-at least 13 this year-but that was a mirage and a mistake. There are no known mountain lions in Missouri.

It is now 2010. There are no mountain lions in Missouri. People reporting them are really mistaking small children for mountain lions. Yeah their are photos (2 in 2010; 2 in 2006) but if there were really mountain lions around we would see them. Yeah there was one killed in 2002 but that was probably just a captive one let loose.

It is not 2001. There are no mountain lions in Missouri. Well, there was a video taken in December 2000 and a photo the next year but those were only captive lions let loose. If there were mountain lions we would see them. There would be dead ones in the road and pics.

It is now 1999. There are no mountain lions in Missouri. Well there was a lion treed in January but that was probably a mountain lion raised in captivity and there were a few earlier but same thing. There are no resident mountain lions in Missouri. It there were, we'd see them. They are all bogus reports. people see a squirrel and think it is a mountain lion. Again, there are no mountain lions in Missouri.

It is now 1997. There have been no confirmed reports. Well, there was one in January but it was one that was raised in captivity and let go. There are not mountain lions in Missouri.

There are no lions in Missouri. There hasn't been a sighting since 1994. If there were any we'd see them.

Also WNYBuckHunter, You are correct. I don't know what various unusual animals look like. I still don't know many. Now I know the ones that were on the original list that the dispatcher told me. After she told me that the animal was no longer there, I asked her what it could have been. So, she listed about 10 animals that could be red (orange, tan, tawny-similar to the color of some orange tabby cats). I took the list and googled each one looking for features that matched the ones I knew were present. Long tail that did not taper, round face, etc. Before I did that, I had no idea what a lynx or a bob cat or a mountain lion looked like. I cared only to the extent that I did not like having seen something i could not identify. That is a very unsettling feeling. So, I looked every one of the animals she mentioned up on google images even the ones I was pretty certain I knew. Fox, for instance. Well I was pretty sure that a fox would not have those features-but maybe there was a variant that did. So I looked them all up. So, I certainly acknowledge that I did not immediately think I saw a mountain lion. Nope. In fact, when the dispatcher started to list the animals I initially laughed because some seemed absurd. I was not inclined to jump at the idea that I saw a mountain lion because I did not know any of those animals were anywhere in this country except the zoo. Lynx, bob cat mountain lion, are you kidding me? So, all were equally implausible to me. I knew that there were bears in the area because a few years before there was a problem in Vestal with bears. They were getting into garbage and were hanging out in some of the newer developments on South Mountain. But, nobody had ever mentioned that there were these other things roaming out there-like bob cats and lynx. Anyway, I did not immediately identify the name of the animal I saw and I am willing to believe I did not exhaust all the possibilities. But, they have to match-round face with cat like features reminding me of a raccoon due to the markings, But I simply could not find anything else that had the features that I saw. The tail was unmistakable because it was noticeably different from a tabby cats. I do know a lot about domestic cats.

Really WNYBuckhunter, why the accusations? I have no reason to lie for goodness sake. I am trying to contact people who may have seen what i saw or who may be interested in looking at that area. I would have no reason to lie since that would make what I want less likely not more. I am also not looking for anything besides information. I don't usually read hunting or nature sites but have followed google links anywhere they take me in search of someone who may know something about what I saw. I want to be as accurate as possible-something would increase the odds that someone who did see what I saw will come forward. Lying would do the opposite. I don't care what it was but I want to hear from others who saw it. What, do yo think I am looking for fame or fortune? What in the world would lying do for me? Can you not tell that I really want to know the story behind what I saw? It is really bothersome to have seen something so odd and not be able to find out anything-thus the time I've spent on something I acknowledge is absurd-trying to figure it out. In terms of how fast I was going. No I did not lie. Why would I. I was not going too fast. I an a more careful driver than most on 81 who fly by me. I don't' have a radar gun. There are tons of cops on 81. So, I'm not whizzing by. I go under the speed limit usually. Always, no, But usually. I was not going too fast to see what I reported. I was on I-81 driving a car.Next time you are driving on a straight road (recall my sighting was on a straight stretch of 81-before 81 goes through the rocks of Whitney Point) identify something in the distance on the shoulder of the road. Now, as you approach it going 65, notice how long a time you are able to see the item and how much information you are able to encode. it is pretty substantial. it is true that you will miss some detail. I am sure I did. Did I conjure up detail. No. But, I could not say that I am certain the animal was solidly colored. Maybe there were stripes or dots. But i was passing it, And, in terms of its face and everything else, I was only a few feet from it when I passed it. Since it was so much larger than any cat I'd ever seen before, something that captured my attention as soon as it was at all visible to me, I was watching it from the first glance until I was past it. There was nothing obscuring my view. I would have to be brain damaged not to have been able to see such obvious features as what the tail looked like or if the head was round or oblong. If motivated to lie, I'd make my descriptions much more similar to the usual pictures you see of mountain lions. But the face was far rounder than any pictures I have seen. So, if there is something out there that has the other features I mention but has a much rounder face than a mountain lion, I'd say it was that and not amountain lion. But, I did not conjure up a tail, for instance.Ithought the tail had gravel on it. Now that I have seen pictures I imagine that the gravel could really have been the coloring but, that was not how I interpreted what I saw the first time. I thought it was probably soiled by tar and gravel. In terms of it being a bob cat. I assure you that would have impressed me much more because of how odd it is. I would have been much more impressed with the truncated tail that the bob cat has if I had seen that. I don't think I had ever seen anything like that until I started to look up all the animals that the dispatcher mentioned to me. What an odd looking animal-much more so than a mountain lion. Believe me, if I had seen such an odd looking thing I would have noticed it and been able to distinguish it from a mountain lion. Again, I don't see why anyone would be motivated to lie about seeing a mountain lion if they had really seen a bob cat. If you wanted to impress me, either cat would do.

Actually the cat had been around a long time and in many different communities before it was hit. Dozens of people reporting sightings in other communities were told that they were mistaken but later the DEC reported that the CT ML had traveled through the communities of those who had reported sightings. Officials apparently neglected to tell the Lake George folks that they had a visitor!

oops I meant 2013!

I will also add that, until recently, threads just like this one were posted about Missouri. Not any more. Have you seen the camera images. They went from denying the possibility of sightings to the usual "no reproducing..." to hey we have loads of um. From 1927-1993-nothing. A total of four throughout the entire 1990s. Then 14 confirmed in 2011 and 2012 is off to a roaring start! Why don't you believe that the same thing could be happening here? Odd that some people are so freaked out that there could be mountain lions out there that, even when confirmed sightings are increasing exponentially in other states, they can't bring themselves to believe it could happen here. What difference does it make? There are now tons of black bears-in places like Vestal. Why be strung out about mountain lions?

Yes I as probably going about 65. I did not think that very fast but the speed limit until I saw the thing. I am not sure why people would prefer me to say that I saw something the looked like a bob cat because I'd be just as happy to learn it was a bob cat-so I could stop trying to find others who saw it---but one of the distinguishing features was its thick tail. And, yes I have posted all over. I am looking for anyone who saw it or who has seen similar or who may be interested in exploring the area. Why in the world would I be motivated to lie. If you told me a bob cat had a long tail, I'd be fine with saying-good, its a bob cat. Why does everyone prefer it to be a bob cat. At this point, I am sure it was a young (and maybe very young) mountain lion. I was traveling fast enough that I may have missed details so if there are other animals similar but with different characteristics I may have missed because I was passing it too fast, I'm fine with that. But, the thing had a thick long tail that did not taper like a domestic cat. I am really just looking for others who may have seen it--and don't really care if you believe me or not because it makes no difference to me whether you do or don't. I just want to locate others who may have seen it or know about it. And, Tuckersdaddy-no it wasn't a bob cat because it had a long tail. I would like to see a bob cat but this wasn't one. They don't have tails that would clear the hind legs to mid-torso.

big Red 44, I just googled Newfield. You are not far from this area. You could explore it easily. Another hunter said he'd keep an eye out and take pics if he sees tracks. I am sure that there was a resident lion. The other guy who saw it a year earlier was very credible. i talked with him on the phone. It was almost exactly a year earlier- at the same place (well, very close-between the same 2 exits). Let me know if anyone is interested in exploring this. thank you

sorry about the gray shading. I copied and pasted and that appeared.

To Biz-R-OWorld, I wasn't interested. This is hard to explain. As I approached, I saw a large red/tan/orange thing on the side of the road. I thought initially it must be like a large doll/stuffed animal or something like that because nothing fit my, how to put this, cognitive schema? It was visible to me very far from when I finally passed it. It was mid morning when there is not much traffic. I wasn't going very fast and I toyed with stopping but was indecisive and knew I was running late and would have problems if I was further delayed. I am not a hunter and I didn't know much about mountain lions. I had no idea what I had seen. Once I got off 81 I called police and reported what I saw-figuring they would pick it up and I'd call later in the day and hear about what it was. well when I called later in the day the dispatcher said she was so curious about it she went during her lunch time and it was gone. Now that made little sense to me. I called her midmorning. Wouldn't she have sent a crew out to pick it up-at which point obviously it would be gone? Would she have simply waited a couple of hours without sending a crew so she could get a look at it? So, after she said she went herself and it was gone, I asked her what it could be. Note, I did not tell her that I saw a mountain lion because I had no idea what they were. All I knew was that it was a red cat looking thing with a long rope like taill that swung around the legs of the thing to about the mid torso. I thought that the tail had gravel mixed into it but now realize that the tails may be black-so what I thought was dirt and gravel may have just been the color of the tail tip. The face was very round. Regular cat like ears. Then the face had some markings on it that were racoon like (but the face was round and not like a raccoon at all). So, the dispatcher listed a bunch of possible animals while I wrote them down...and she mainly listed animals that would be a similar color. Her list surprised me because I did not know any of the animals on her list existed outside a zoo or Africa. So, then I took the list and started to google (using images) each one. The only one that had all the features and that actually looked like what I saw was mountain lion. So, it was not a matter of me seeing something out of the corner of my eye and jumping to the conclusion it must be a mountain lion. I wouldn't have cared what it was as long as I could identify it. There was one aspect of it that did not seem to be correct. The face was very very round and it had a kind of double chin-of like a slight bulge round the very round face. When I look at pictures of mountain lions, the actually don't have a round face-it is sort of elongated with the snout being sort of boxy or rectangular-so it would not have that buldge around its neck because the face would be too narrow. This is hard to describe. Anyway, I did not take picture because never in my wildest dreams would I think that I would find that something I saw was deemed impossible to see by some people. I figured I'd call the police and they'd pick it up, or even if they didn't they be able to say "it was an X" And that would be it. Who knew there was controversy about what sort of animals are roaming out there. Now I know. But, if you told me a year ago I'd be writing some long post to someone convinced I did not see what I saw, and that I'd be writing it on a hunting discussion site I'd have thought you crazy. Anyway, I have no reason to lie and I don't really fit the scenario that has been described all over-that is of someone who jumps to the conclusion they saw a mountain lion but probably saw a bob cat which moved too quickly to see clearly. I may have missed details of what I saw because I was moving-so there is information that I dont' have-but I am not adding detail-long thick tail that doesn't taper and goes mid torso, very round face with markings reminiscent of a raccoon but not a raccoon (not sure exactly why the markings reminded me of raccoon markings except maybe the black color), tan/red/orange with a thick heavy look to it-I think the thickness/density of the fur made me think of a heaviness to it. The fur on the tail was longish but not long and bushy like a long hair cat. More like one of those red tails you used to be able to get at fairs-I guess the fur is just very dense. I have no reason to make anything up. This is really actually bothersome to me. I know others had to have seen it too. I wish I could find some of those people. I have talked to the person who saw the cat a year earlier but nobody who has seen one more recently. This is what I posted at the time on various web sites and the other poster's post is there too: (also, this is November of 2011: In November I was driving from Syracuse to Binghamton at 10:30 am. Soon after I passed the Whitney Point exit, but well before Castle Creek, I saw a very large dead cat on the left shoulder of the road. The face was rounded-a cross between a raccoon kind of face and a domestic cat.-sweet and round. Height wise it was about the size of a St. Barnard but it was thin and it build was more similar to, say a Great Dane. It had a very long tail that had fur that was straight (not fuzzy or curly) and the tail was rope-like and it curved around to the front of the animal. The legs were long. The color was very close to the red you would see on a domestic red cat-solid color not spotted and not merely tan with redish tint-but clearly orange red. I would say its back would have been about 2-3 feet off the ground had it been standing. It was thin and the fur on it was not fuzzy but short. I was traveling at 65mph and by the time I had processed what I saw it was too late to easily pull over. I was late too. I called the police (I think Castle Creek but can't recall-maybe Broome county sheriff- not sure.) and the dispatcher showed interest. She said she would have someone check it out. I called her later that day. She said she was so curious about it that she went herself during her lunch hour but by then it was gone. She said someone probably took it for the fur. Then she started listing the kind of animal it could have been. Now, I know nothing about wild animals but was surprised by the animals she listed because they were the sort of animal I assumed existed only in places like Africa (I've got the suburban NY-view of the world) or the zoo. I began to google the various animals she suggested to compare to what I saw. What I saw was clearly most similar to a mountain lion. But, the face was round and did not have the long muzzle that the pictures show. So, I think it was probably young-although the pictures of the young mountain lions suggest that they are not solid in color. Maybe there is an adolescent period when the body becomes solid color and the face is still round? It was only after I looked at pictures of all kinds of animals that I started to read about Mountain lions in NY. I had no idea there was any controversy about whether they exist or not. (I add this because I have no vested interested in proving that they do or do not exist) I did not know they ever existed in NY. In fact, I would have been quite surprised to hear that they existed in this country at all..anywhere. So, when the dispatcher mentioned things like mountain lions and panthers I was very surprised. I posted a description of what I had seen on Topix in the hope someone else had seen it and could let me know what it was. All I got was a few snide comments. Then I started to google more seriously because it began to bother me that I could not figure this out. At that point I found this post "05-05-2011, 06:48 PM #1 Crokit crokit Join Date: Dec 2010 Posts: 158 Mountain lion sighting First, let me state that I have all my faculties, excellent eye sight, and am not given to exaggerations. Today, while traveling south on Interstate 81, between Syracuse and Binghamton, I saw a Mountain Lion / Cougar/Panther, pick your noun. !! 100% positive, absolutely no doubt. There is ZERO chance that it was anything else. The only other thing it could have possibly been { other than a live mountain lion/cougar/panther } is a full body mount of a mountain lion/cougar/panther and someone pulling a prank. It was less than 100yds off the West side of the road, sitting on top of a section of rock/cliff that the highway had been cut through. It was sitting on it's haunches, leaning forward, ears forward, looking down onto/across the highway. It was about 30-40 feet above the highway. Just before the " Castle creek 1 mile " highway sign. When I screamed " holy F%^K, a mountain lion, scaring the S#$T out my buddy who was driving almost lost control at 75 mph. An absolutely beautiful animal, well muscled, excellent specimen. Up until now, when ever I've seen reports of sightings, I've taken them with a grain of salt. No more! Anyone know of any other recent reported sightings in that area? Wldnerness: Can you put me in touch with any of the state Dec/Rangers/etc from that area?" And my post on Topix was as follows: Justwondering East Syracuse, NY 1 huge red fox, moutain lion or lynx on I-81 (S) near Castle Creek Nov 9, 2011 Did any see a dead huge cat like animal on the southbound side of I-81 about a mile closer to Syracuse then the exit for Castle Creek. It was on the left lying an its side, obviously dead and huge. If you did see it, or heard someone else talking about it, what was it? It looked like it had a body like a mountain lion, a long tail with long fur-not bushy and a face that was rounder like a lynx.Its color was pretty uniformly red-not mixed or strips or anything like that. I was moving too fast and, once I had processed what I saw, I had gone too far to see it. Apparently someone picked it up, probably for its fur, because it was gone soon thereafter. I saw it at around 10:40am Tuesday morning. If you did not see it but are familiar with the wild life around there, any ideas? Any information would be appreciated. What do you think? These two sightings are at identical places. I do not believe that they are both mirages. Also, if the one I saw was young(I'dsay it was the size of a great dane-maybe a little shorter but thin like a dane rather than like a , say, St. Bernard) , it would not have been as visible to a driver on I-81 6 months earlier. The one I saw was not so big that it would have been very visible to drivers if it were on the top of a hill. That means that the one I saw could have been the adolescent offspring of the one seen by the earlier poster. If so, maybe there is a den nearby. I know exactly where I saw the dead animal so a wildlife person or ranger could easily investigate. If the other poster saw the parent in May and I saw a dead adolescent one in November I bet that there is one that has set up a resident in the area. What do you think? Thanks

The oddest thing about these threads is the presumption by so many people that others are motivated to lie about seeing a mountain lion is worth a second of time. Who would lie and why? What possible motive would they have. Oh, or are you one of those who believes the public is just ever so confusing and so they hallucinate? I saw a dead mountain lion on the side of the highway on I-81 in Nov 2011. I will never foget it. I have no reason to lie. I am a researcher. I am used to recording observations. I have no reason to lie. I'm not claiming I found a pot of gold and someone took it-so I want it back. I'm not claiming that somebody else hit my car and ran (perhaps to avoid rise in car insurance). There are loads of things that people have reason to lie about but I can't think of anything gained by lying about whether or not you saw a mountain lion in the woods. Nowadays you don't hear people accusing others of lying in Missouri and the DEC is notably restrained there now. Why? Because the cameras mounted in the woods(ostensibly to track deer) are recording images of mountain lions. The officials were also quiet in CT and Lake George. After the cat was killed in CT, I called the officials in Lake George who had, up to that point, denied the Lake George sightings. If you have ever been to Lake George you know the people there are not prone to exaggeration or wild imagination. If they were, it would be the destination as a tourist site instead of being economically depressed. No, by and large, they are generally down to earth sensible people. So, after the Ct slaughter of the ghost mountain lion, the officials near Lake George admitted that they had collected evidence of a mountain but had not analyzed it. Instead, they denied the sightings without letting the public know that they had analyzable data but had failed to bother. Had the cat not been hit in CT, they never would have analyzed the data-something they admitted to me (too much backlog). Once they had denied the sightings in Lake George and had the dead mountain lion from CT, they admitted a mountain lion had traveled through Lake George. Notice in their quotes, however, they have failed to be explicit. The cat was similar to the one killed in CT but was it the same cat? They have the material to analyze and probably have the answer but they have not answered that question. My guess-no. They were not the same cat. They were both similar to ones the have been seen in the Dakotas but they were not the same cat. In sum, I don't think there is a compelling reason for the lay public to lie about sightings nor is everyone confused about the differences between mountain lions and bob cats. The only people reliably found to be deceptive are the officials paid for by state or federal tax dollars.

Hello. Do you travel on I-81 between Pa and Syracuse? Let me know! anyone want to meet up by Whitney point and look for tracks?