It screeched really loud. We got a glimpse of the cat early this morning, as it paced back and forth, squaling every breathe, on the other side of our riding ring. Authorities say there have been reports of . I went on line and llistened to mountain lions and cougar screams and it sounded exactly like that. Cougars, also known as mountain lions, were once common here and they have left a legacy of place names throughout the state indeed, the entire Southeast. The mountain lion is one of the coolest and most elusive animals in North America. I am concerned since that pond is a source of water for my horse. I think I may have seen a fully jet black cougar around 2230 just by the cement plant north of Roanoke Va but Im not sure. Suitable habitat is available now, but for decades it was not. And I am not sure it was a cougar. From a wildlife biology perspective, though, its going to take more than a storyno matter how convincing it may beto determine whether these cats are there and where theyre coming from. Other interests include hiking, songwriting, and spending time in the mountains. Back home in Indiana a buddy of mine and I jumped one in the earlier 2000s and told a DNR officer who told us we were seeing things lol. Even though we still didnt have any physical proof we were excited because this was the first time wed had an adult verify a cougar sighting here. As a result, multiple sightings across different time ranges could be attributed to the same cat. Rockingham Co., va Her views represent another twist in the ecological controversy. They prefer deer.. At the base of the cliffs lived a mountain lion named . In Nebraska, the mountain lion is the largest carnivore. zdf. I got a couple of pictures of paw prints. Its ribs were showing like it hadnt been well nourished in a while. One night our mules and horses had broken through the fence. My guess is that it might have escaped from the zoo on route 522 where they have not native animals and do breeding. Im thinking they are here though. By 2011, U.S. Many mountain lions used to roam the West Virginia wilderness. Game and Fish had to come and put him down. I can definetely say that there are mountain lions in Shenandoah National Park. Approximately 4 feet long near Midlothian. While he was sitting his tail came to his front side and swept the ground floor back and forth. What is this. Ralph Maughan, webmaster. No good road kill presented to VDWR or local newspapers, none trapped by hunters or researchers, none seen by professional naturalists or captured by wildlife photographers. Growing up, my parents always warned me about mountain lions whenever I went hiking, and everyone in the area accepted them as fact. Sadly, mountain lions no longer live in Virginia. "They've been found as far east as western Tennessee," Fies said. We got a phone call last night that one of our neighbors (in Midlothian, VA) saw a lion in the back yard. After that two sets of very large eyes started following me. We know what we saw. The West Virginia Wildlife Center . Full grown, the bulls can weigh up to 700 pounds, so be sure to keep a respectful distance should you see one of these beautiful creatures! It was early morning on the first occasion and nearing dusk on the second, but both times there was plenty of light and no doubt whatsoever that the long-tailed cat was a mountain lion. The bobcat is the only existing only wild feline predator in the state of Virginia at . I recently sent a comment asking if anyone has seen a wolf in Virginia. The Florida Panther was also listed as a separate subspecies, Puma concolor coryi. Mr. Lutz do you have internet picture of the Virginia cougar that you show arround? The tail was furry but with short hair like the rest of the body that I saw and was round kind of curving down and out like my house cats tail when he hunts birds. https://www.whsv.com/content/news/Mountain-lion-attack-reported-near-Humpback-Rock-385246261.html. The photo in question popped up over the weekend on a local Bigfoot enthusiast's Facebook page, which prompted some discussion. Fish and Wildlife Service declared the eastern subspecies extinct. I, a CPA, saw one 15 years ago. I wouldnt be surprised by any scenario pointing to encroachment and/or incidental release. soon after, a report appeared in the wash. post about a squirrel-hunting ranger/game warden who spotted 2 pumas. Oftentimes, I camp and merely live in the outdoors. Yes, it is a cougar, but could the picture have been taken somewhere else??? He and Jackie Johnson Maughan wrote three editions of "Hiking Idaho." We were standing near the barn about 10 AM when we observed a disturbance about 400-600 yards off in a field near the tree line. This is a stones throw from Skyline Drive and backs up to a mountain where we live. And my car lights revealed a 3-year-old or so male Mountain Lion. There's a whole world to learn about and Colby is content to spend his life learning as much as he can about it! There is an abundent population of squirl, deer and turkey. He was a beauty! Each year, deer-car collisions kill approximately 200 people.7, the Eastern Cougar was extirpated by excessive hunting pressure, as well as severe reduction in their prime food source of white-tailed deer When I was young they killed a cougar at Stone Mountain. Mountain lions have many names, including the puma, mountain lion,panther, catamount, American lion, and mishibijn. They were last seen in 1882 and have since been killed off. A neighbors cat was outside and I could see that she was visibly frightened and crouching under a car. I went outside to feed my cat and in the silence of the night, early morning I heard the eerie sounds of coyotes across the hill. The mountain lion (Puma concolor) is sometimes called cougar, puma, catamount, and panther. You can also count Randolph, Upshur, and Webster countys in W.VA. My dad, his dad, and myself can vouch for those three. The cats do appear to be expanding their range eastward in recent decades, the DGIF said. Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. I stopped the truck and did the did I see what I think I saw routine. Are there mountain lions in the Shenandoah Valley? Native to most counties in Virginia, the bobcat is a . My husband saw it too. Press J to jump to the feed. As I slowed the cat took notice and turned. "The original photo was taken by an Oregon State University forestry student named Hayden England. The other ignored us. Then what? I was like baby look at that big ole cat! I called the wild life biologist at the Game and Inland Fisheries to report the sighting and they basically blew it off and asked me if I wasnt sure that it wasnt a large house cat! I saw one questionable critter a few years ago but I cant say 100% it was a lion. It screeched two more times then seemed to move off. I met with Michael Fies, Wildlife Biologist with the DWR, and we spoke about the history, extinction, and sightings of mountain lions in the Valley. By Rick Steelhammer. The DGIF is adamant though that the species is not found in the Commonwealth, although it is possible the western subspecies could be moving east. 21 years ago Nancy Hugo published an article in Virginia Wildlife Feb 1987. In fact, they are the fourth-largest cat species in the world, behind tigers, lions, and jaguars. Hellol. Near the paw print I found tracks of a small deer moving very fast (tracks far apart and just the point of the hoof.) I work with someone who says that on his familys farm in Virginia (not sure exactly where, but can find out) he said there are wolves. We disturbed something that ran off into the woods. Dr. Ralph Maughan is professor emeritus of political science at Idaho State University. Early this morning (5am, Oct 3 2007) I heard a very distinctive cry coming from the wooded area in front of my house. Fies, however, thinks it's a matter of time before one actually does show up in some eastern state. There are only quick sightings around town of the large cat known as the mountain lion. There has been speculation of the cougars being in Rockingham county so I am very excited to hear from the commmunity on any other possible sightings. She was never spotted, but that sound is something that you never can forget or confuse for anything else. I believe he sat to hear where that cry was coming frompossibly. I saw a friend while out to dinner two weeks ago and he came up and said, You will never believe what I saw last evening at my place. I said, What did you see? Although there are no more eastern mountain lions, there is a small population of Florida panthers that live in the swamps of Florida. This area is on the Abingdon end of South Holston Lake. I have helped skin and mount wild cats before and definitely know the difference. No one has since today, reported seeing one. From the next room, another person chimmed in my neighbors have been seeing one. This all occured three weeks after I had a full-grown Red Wolf walk up near me while blackberry picking in my mother-in-laws pasture (in the city limits.) There are a lot of instances of someone trying to mess with us, or theyre messing with a buddy, and the buddy sends it to us thinking its real, he said. the cougar tail almost sweeps the ground and might have some markings on the tip of gray/white, the rest of the tail looks like short hair and is not bushy. Spotted a lion last night around 7:30 pm. Officials captured the escaped mountain lion and found a second one that had also escapedoutside of Harrisonburg, harassing turkeys on a farm. So about three blocks from my turn onto our road I spotted Eye shine crossing in front of our car. The species can adjust to different habitats anywhere from mountains to forests to swamps. Motion-sensitive infrared cameras have been deployed near Appalachian Trail to try to determine whether cougars are back. Both went into the woods without any fuss. The US Fish and Wildlife Service listed the Eastern Cougar as Endangered in 1973, since it was considered to be a distinct breeding population separate from the western population. Lystrosaurus was one of the few terrestial species that survived the permian extinction. They dont know that, theyre not genetically testing these animals.. July 25, 2019 edition, Do you have some interesting wildlife news? The Mountain Lion will return to feed on the prey for up to 10 days. In October & November of 2007, my dogs got to barking. He was a Western Watersheds Project Board Member off and on for many years, and was also its President for several years. me and a budy were spotlitting for deer [no guns i might add we were coming down off cold mountin fields saw two solid black cats run up some rocks both were about 60 to 70 pounds aim sure it was cougars i hut these mountains all of my life bear hunt coon hunt deer and evret thing eles but i thing its a small population and they move around travling from parts of amherst nelson trew shandoua park and west va beleive me or not i also told peple thre were coyotes in these mountain 26 year ago and peple thout i was crazy. When it turned around thats when I saw its long tail almost to the ground. Imagine what a difficult time the authorities would have had explaining that accident! Their conclusion: "Sir, you don't have a mountain lion.". I have a friend who claims to have had one cross the Parkway in front of him near the Peaks of Otter earlier this year. It was just too big to be a bobcat nor did it have bobcat coloring. A little more certain, I took a kodak camera along and started taking pictures. We coundnt believe what we saw. Cant say what it was and hope to never see again. By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. Dec 27, 2022. Those eyes I will never forget as the cars lights stunned it for a moment.. Last night i was driving back to college from home. We slowed down the cat looked back and a little cub came running after its mother. There was no mistaking the color and the face we saw very clearly not to mention its slim tail that was still visible on the edge of the road. Its been dry. My mother lives in Orange, and has seen a mountain lion in the past couple of weeks, as well as several years ago. Someone is trying to instill fear about mountain lions on the loose in Virginia, though the Department of Game & Inland Fisheries says it's fake news. So, i think that there are sightings that no one ever hears about. http://www.cougarnet.org, I LIVE NEAR PATRICK CO VA AND WORK NEAR ROCKINGHAM CO. NC. Well we finally made it out of there. The boys and dogs went back to the old beaver pond. The 1982 Eastern Cougar Recovery Plan defined the establishment of one population containing at least 50 breeding adults as the threshold for moving the Eastern Cougar from "endangered" to just "threatened." If any would like to see the pictures that was with this E-mail. I saw a mountain lion, and thats just the way it is, said Marchibroda, a dentist in her 60s living in Afton, Virginia. At first I thought it was human screams. Does it make a circle on a set time period or does it travel randomly? They are also known as . Sadly, these animals were killed because they were viewed as a threat to humans and livestock. She believes that North American mountain lionsincluding the Florida panther, which she said is protected because they are considered a distinct population segment via the Endangered Species Actare essentially all the same, without enough genetic distinctions to justify differentiating the western and eastern subspecies. They acted like I had schizophrenia though admitted there have been other reports.even though they do not officially exist here. I have a call into the animal control (only to find out if there were others who reported it) and hope to hear back from them tomorrow. Eastern cougars are not a distinct species genetically. The deer have been congregating down there. I failed to mention the eyes looking at us! Hmmm, but then we have pictures of bear in the local paper sometimes. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. He thought it was just another call of mistaken identity, but in fact he was face-to-face with a legit mountain lion under a family's porch. I THINK IT IS AMAZING WHAT MAY BE JUST BEHIND THE TREES WHEN YOU RIDE BY A WOODED AREA. Since my reported sighting of a perhaps cougar several local farmers have told me of similiar beasts they have seen. In Rockingham county virginia, my father, family friend and I go bow hunting for 1 week every year in the GWNF. First, the nature of the mountain lion is to be elusive. A few months later we saw another where route 740 (Sinkhole Road) intersects route 8 a few miles northwest of Stuart, VA. On both occasions it was mid-afternoon and we had a view (from a car) of the animals as they strolled 70 to 80 feet across open spaces. I was backpacking on the tuscarours trail and set up camp right after the overall run connector. Bobcats generally live away from humans, preferring places like the Great Dismal Swamp and the mountains. So that is all the details I can think of except I didnt mention that the cat was tan with dark fur higlighting its face, looked like pictures Ive seen of them really and I figured due to its size and the fact that it had no spots left that we could see it was almost grown. I remember it freaked my dad out a lot because he had several small children. I couldnt find any paw prints. I knew we a small population of bobcats in this area and asked her if it could have been that. They are moving Eastward, theyre now found in Western Tennessee. Michael told me. OK. 2 Sept about 12:30 maybe 12:45 I was jolted out of a good sleep by what I first thought was 2 cats fighting below my 2nd story bedroom window. For the first time in years, these cats are on the rebound and extending their range further into their historic regions. ", "These cats are moving east looking for new territory," Renee O'brien posted on Facebook. THE BOBCAT: on the other hand actualy has a more shrill high pitched terrified scream that sounds like a woman being murdered much like on a horror film or somethng like the screams at that halloween fright night you may have been to. They didnt waste a bit of meat, it was all consumed in about 1.5 hours and then the buzzards came in to scavenge what they could. D. Racey I dont think you have to worry about your horse at all. It Had a very long tail, and had a light brown coloring with black spots. 421, I watched a black cat come from under a concrete bridge and jump into the woods when it saw me. Victim of animal attack treated for rabies. Source: Public Domain Pictures, Ancestors of the cougar (also known as catamount, mountain lion, bobcat, puma, panther, painter, wildcat, and ghost cat) crossed into North America roughly 8 million years ago, and the species Puma concolor evolved around 400,000 years ago.1. I got to see 4 coyotes run down a mature doe and brutaly slaughter her. Fish and Wildlife Service has declared the eastern population of cougars extinct, but based on numerous sightings and . FYI: I have reasearched wild animal sounds to the point now that I could be an expert. We were tracking a deer one night and ended up lost for 6 hours and found a small field. Admission is $6 for ages 16 and over, $2 for kids 6 to 15 years old, and free for . Fish and Wildlife Service removed eastern subspecies of cougars from the endangered species list last year and declared them extinct. https://www.whsv.com/content/news/Mountain-lion-attack-reported-near-Humpback-Rock-385246261.html Its been confirmed by by fish and game. I tried taking a picture of it with my phone but it jolted away. So, if anyone knows who I can contact please let me know. Also the Coyotes up there are getting out of hand in my eyes. No mountain lion sightings, but Im convinced I once saw a wolf on Reddish Knob outside of Harrisonburg. Diana Marchibroda and her miniature schnauzer froze in their tracks when the mountain lion stepped out of the woods last May. This seems strange for late in the summer. Though they are pushing steadily eastward from the Rockies. Species number one is the bobcat, and species number two is the Mountain lion. That is if it is still around. I don't think we're real close to that.". About 30 years ago around Christmas, he received a call that a mountain lion was spotted in Grottoes. This is not the same picture withe the cat dragging the buck. If I knew how, Id post the picture here. I quit taking my solo walks in the woods after that!!!!!Leen. Hello This evening (15May 07) I think I chased up a cougar. I think I have now seen a mountain lion! It was the first time I could see it clearly. Although they still live in North America, there arent any wild populations (save for one) on the east coast. Tried to track it with the game warden but never found it. Wow, those sure are sneaky and stealthy cats out there..maybe they received covert training from the CIA. Saturday 27 Sept 08 I found a large paw print in the mud from the recent rains. And yet there are numerous reports of hikers and residents spotting these creatures, especially in the mountains. I will have to go back, & look to see if it was an eight point deer, but I did see the rack. He didnt rule out the possibility of an individual wandering into Virginia, as that has happened before. In the 1940s and 1950s, people were paid bounties for mountain lions, according to Jim Williams, regional director for the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks and author of "Path of the Puma." In recent years, sighting reports are becoming more and more common. Wolves once thrived in Virginia, but due to the harm they inflicted on farms and livestock, they were hunted by the settlers of Jamestown and eventually became extinct. I bearly got a glimpse, thought at first it was a deer. Above post by Rob about a Lion in Wise virginia is a hoax! One question, which seems to be a big possiblilty based on some of the posts, is that at least some of the sightings are of escaped/released pets. Unless of course you already know this and are relieved to know that it is not that of the great puma . It was standing in front of my car. We have spotted a mother black bear and cub over by the damn while hiking, scary sight but very awsome. I would guess that the overbundance of whitetail deer could have contributed to the return? of the puma. It stoped for a moment and watched us and then moved on through the woods. There have been 121 mountain lion sightings in Virginia since 1970. I thought I might be crazy a first, and I didnt know if black mountain lions existed; so started researching them and came to this site. Virginia is home to a bounty of beautiful wildlife, including some magical animals that any of us would be lucky to spot. They produced over 20 kittens, expanding the gene pool successfully.5, the Eastern Cougar is prefers a habitat with trees 111 1. Thanks for any help, as plenty claim they are here also. It was about 18+ inches tall at shoulder, about 24 inches from hip to neck. If you have any similiar stories let me know please. A lifelong Virginia resident, Beth loves exploring different parts of the world and currently resides in Alexandria. Today two of us saw a very large cat with a rabbit in its mouth run across the golf course from forest to forest. Fish & Wildlife Resource declared the eastern cougar extinct, LaRue said. Area is on the tuscarours Trail and set up camp right after the overall run.! A Western Watersheds Project Board Member off and on for many years, and spending time in the mountains population... Never see again motion-sensitive infrared cameras have been 121 mountain lion and found second! 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Receive notifications of new posts by email schnauzer froze in their tracks when the mountain lion be attributed to return! Very large eyes started following me sure are sneaky and stealthy cats there! My horse around Christmas, he received a call that a mountain stepped! Little cub came running after its mother the truck and did the did I see what I think I now! Today mountain lions in virginia of us saw a wolf in Virginia, as that has before... An individual wandering into Virginia, the DGIF said several years determine whether cougars are back was and to. I remember it freaked my dad out a lot because he had several children! Stealthy cats out there.. maybe they received covert training from the recent rains sitting his tail came his. What MAY be just behind the TREES when you RIDE by a WOODED area a circle on a set period... Photo was taken by an Oregon State University sure are sneaky and stealthy cats out there.. maybe they covert... 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