First-light Posted January 28, 2011 Share Posted January 28, 2011 Well I know one thing, that animal would tear you to pieces in a second! One thing I have to say, we talk about proof and maybe some trail camera picts. How often do we have trail camera picts of Bobcats? Some of us do get pictures of them but the percentages are very low. So compare the population of the Bobcat in NY and a few mountain lions, I would think you wouldn't have a picture as proof of their existence. http://www.dec.ny.gov/pubs/42763.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WhiteTailBuckDeer Posted January 28, 2011 Share Posted January 28, 2011 They should be called Ninja-Cats lol... Sooo many have seen them but could never get a picture... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doewhacker Posted January 28, 2011 Share Posted January 28, 2011 I wonder when they started to hover to get around leaving tracks? I ain't never heard of flying cats. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cwhite Posted January 28, 2011 Share Posted January 28, 2011 Anyone who has ever been to the bars in Northern NY know that there is a huge population of cougars roaming the state. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Posted January 28, 2011 Share Posted January 28, 2011 Guy's a few years ago I was in my pickup driving down a country road .It was near the town of Fremont Center in Sullivan county. It was pretty wooded on both sides of the road, as I looked ahead in the distance I saw an animal tan in color, the long tail and it had a long body . I thought to myself that I saw a ml or were my eyes playing tricks on me. Never mentioned it to anyone because everyone says there not in our area. Just like the bobcats they are hard to see any time of the year. In all my years of hunting I only say one in the woods in 40 yrs. But they are there. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Posted January 28, 2011 Share Posted January 28, 2011 this was in my back yard. I had to do it sorry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pygmy Posted January 28, 2011 Share Posted January 28, 2011 Okay... I have talked to a few people whom I know to be reliable who say they have seen them....I really believe that that have seen what they THINK were cougars... I have also seen some pictures on the net that people thought were cougars that were obviously bobcats or even housecats.. One good friend of mine, who is a retired state trooper, and whom I would trust with the life of my DAUGHTER, showed me a picture of one that his brother in law took.. It was BLACK and had a red collar....To him it was a radio collared black panther...To me it was very obviously somebody's large black housecat with a red collar... I hang out in an American Legion post where people talk of seeing them on a regular basis.. If you challenge them, you may get your nose flattened.. I'm sorry to be a skeptic, but I need to see a carcass before I am convinced...The last one that was authenticated in New York was in 1894, except for perhaps a couple of DECLAWED cats that were determined to be released or escaped domestic cougars... I don't intend to insult anyone on this forum, but I must say that the great majority of people that have told me that they saw cougars were not experienced woodsmen, but people that would not know a cougar from a bobcat or a fisher if they saw one.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nyantler Posted January 28, 2011 Share Posted January 28, 2011 I agree Pygmy.. until someone shows me some real evidence.. I am going to continue my scepticism as well Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
covert Posted January 30, 2011 Share Posted January 30, 2011 I wasn't going to let this out because I don't want to deal with all of the reporters, but I have proof that they are in NY and were released here by/at the urging of the insurance companies to cut down car/deer accidents. I got a picture on my trail camera last summer in the Adirondacks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
covert Posted January 30, 2011 Share Posted January 30, 2011 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fasteddie Posted January 30, 2011 Share Posted January 30, 2011 Here is a pic of a couple Cougars that I got on my Trail Cam ..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Posted January 30, 2011 Share Posted January 30, 2011 thats my wife Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Posted January 30, 2011 Share Posted January 30, 2011 So, just out of curiosity, does anyone know what state or province has a documented breeding population of mountain lions closest to NYS's borders? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pygmy Posted January 30, 2011 Share Posted January 30, 2011 thats my wife Which one...??...The one on the left looks like my EX wife... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bubba Posted January 30, 2011 Share Posted January 30, 2011 damn it I tore my aluminum foil hat. I need to go to the store. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WNYBuckHunter Posted January 30, 2011 Share Posted January 30, 2011 Oh boy, this old nonsense again... : Anyone remember the story the newspaper from the southern tier ran last year or the year before about a ML sighting, complete with pictures? Some of us commented on the story on the paper's website saying they should check deeper into the claim, and it turned out it was a house cat? Supposedly these people that took the pic were 100% it was a big animal. Riiiight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fasteddie Posted January 30, 2011 Share Posted January 30, 2011 Soooo , does anyone have any actual verification of any Mountain Lion / Cougar sightings in NYS ? Folks were telling that there was a "big cat" sighted in South Bristol around Hawkes Road but I think it was BS ! No pictures / no verification .......... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
growalot Posted January 31, 2011 Share Posted January 31, 2011 Say what ever you want...but we had a DEC officer hear 10 + years ago when yotes killed our goats...and he told us point blank at out kitchen table that the DEC released bkl panthers from the south here...Now if he was lying why...we told him we saw the yotes in ? I live in Blk bear country.....they actually tag them in dens not far from here...I had one walk past my pic window 16 yrs ago...do I have Proof...nope...any on my cams nope......bags of scat in my freezer nope....but they are here and in #'s big enough to tag them in dens every year and had to shoot a injured one 2 yrs ago one rd over...are we seeing a point here? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveB Posted January 31, 2011 Share Posted January 31, 2011 Say what ever you want...but we had a DEC officer hear 10 + years ago when yotes killed our goats...and he told us point blank at out kitchen table that the DEC released bkl panthers from the south here...Now if he was lying why...we told him we saw the yotes in ? Don't know why, but he did not tell you the truth. Black ml, cougars or whatever you what to call them do not exist anywhere, even where montains live in huge numbers. Scientifically impossible for them to exist. Are you saying they are tagging bears or ml's in dens? Not real clear from your post. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WNYBuckHunter Posted January 31, 2011 Share Posted January 31, 2011 "Black Panthers" are a color phase of Jaguar, not Mountain Lions. Black Mountain lions dont exist anywhere. Black bears are nothing too uncommon in NY. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
growalot Posted January 31, 2011 Share Posted January 31, 2011 Actually they do have a substantial population of panthers in Florida...blk or not...and if he lied...well I nor my husband can surmise the reason... The Blk bear part of post was to point out that just because ppl don't have proof ...doesn't mean that an animal isn't in the area.....When I saw my 2nd Blk bear here ....many years ago ...I had a woman knock on my door ...She said are you the bear lady? ??? ...yes I saw a blk bear walk past my pic. window....she got tears in her eyes and said thank you....they have been calling me crazy for months...because I saw one too and had no proof!..are you kidding? I've seen blk bear 4 different times in our area...and the first sighting 5yrs before we even lived here....but back then the DEC was saying nope there are none....Just like Letchworth state park....back in 1979...DEC said none were in the park...but my Samoyed broke away from us and chased one...when we finally got to him his coat was smeared in crap that smelled like pig manure...bear crap I'll also say that I worked in the pet industry for a # of years...and there are or where auctions held in different southern states where a person could bid on and buy all kinds of "exotic" animals...I'm talking from kudamundaes(sp) to giraffes....was transporting these across state line legal...I don't think so...but ppl were doing it all the same....Back then there was also a thriving breeding program going on with African Serval cats ...and I'm sure there still is...kinda like pot belly pigs...great idea until you own one : ...I'd put money on there being those out there..either escaped or dumped.....and just one more thought....feral cats...we all know they are out there....how many do you have on cam....me...not a one... but I see them all the time So does the DEC lie...one way or the other....I have to say yes....reasons...who the hell knows....should a person sarcastically dismiss another persons experience? ...Well life's taught me no...so there ya go... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WNYBuckHunter Posted January 31, 2011 Share Posted January 31, 2011 Black bears have been in the southern tier for a long long time, they used to wander up into this region from time to time, and have taken up residence up this way. There is zero doubt that bears are here, plenty of trail cam pics, sightings, videos, etc. As for Mountain Lions, there are no trail cam pics, videos, or other evidence other than hearsay and rumor, which are not dependable. Every supposed picture of one in this state that I have ever seen has been proven to be something other than a Mountain Lion. The Panthers in Florida are actually Cougars or Mountain Lions. They are a slightly different breed than the normal Mountain Lion you see out west, and the only member of that family of cats to live east of the Mississippi. They are tan, not black. All of this stuff is easily found via Google Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
growalot Posted January 31, 2011 Share Posted January 31, 2011 First you missed the point I was making... second ...the first bear sighting I had in our area....you weren't even born...and the DEC was saying there were no blk bears here...and ppl my age and older could attest to that... Third....If I can't get you to see the point I was making so be it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveB Posted January 31, 2011 Share Posted January 31, 2011 Actually they do have a substantial population of panthers in Florida...blk or not...and if he lied...well I nor my husband can surmise the reason... From the website: http://www.panthersociety.org/faq.html The estimated FL panther population in 1995 was 30 to 50, it is now estimated at 50 to 70. While this is good news, reintroduction into appropriate portions of the panther’s historic range is still necessary to ensure its long-term survival. Doubt they are, or ever have been capturing them and releasing them secretly (except for a DEC officer telling people at kitchen tables). They are a higher protected sub species - as WNY said. Also from the site: Is there a “Black Panther”? The term 'Black Panther' is quite often used in connection with large black cats - however there is no one distinct species of wildcat called a 'Black Panther'. Over the years it has become used as a common name that can be applied to any large black-coated cat. When you see a picture of a 'Black Panther' it is most likely that you are looking at either a Leopard or possibly a Jaguar with Melanistic coloration. The term Melanistic is derived from melanin, a dark colored skin and hair pigment. In cats, melanism results in the fur of the animal being very dark or black in color. In many cases the usual markings of the animal can be faintly seen through the dark fur, especially at certain angles in bright sunlight. Melanistic cats are commonly born into mixed litters along with normally colored siblings. (Note: There is no documented evidence of the existence of a melanistic Florida Panther. Information in this answer is from the web site Big Cats Online. ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WNYBuckHunter Posted January 31, 2011 Share Posted January 31, 2011 First you missed the point I was making... second ...the first bear sighting I had in our area....you weren't even born...and the DEC was saying there were no blk bears here...and ppl my age and older could attest to that... Third....If I can't get you to see the point I was making so be it... Wow, way to make it personal eh? Seeing as you never gave your statement a date, how would I know what year you are talking about? : FYI, there have been reports of bears wandering through the area I am from for far longer than I have been around. My father has told me many times about them. I see the point you are trying to make, sorry that the facts just dont verify the rumors. If there was some verifiable evidence presented of a wild population of Mountain Lions in NY, I would gladly admit to being wrong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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