Last known Puma/Mountain Lion in NY.

[Tug Hill]

Excerpt from "NYS Forest, Fish and Game Commision Report 1902-1903."

"Dr. C. Hart Merriam, writing in 1886, says that he estimates that nearly 100 Pumas have been killed in the ADK's since 1860. Since 1871 the State of NY has paid bounties for the killing of 99 of these animals. Gerrit S. Miller Jr., writing in 1899, says the animal still exsists in the wilder portions of the ADK's . The last bounty was paid in 1894, for a Puma killed in Herkimer County. This may well be the last of these animals in NY."

I had a Great Great Uncle who killed a Puma in Oneida County before he left to fight and die in WW1. According to my Great Grandmother, He made a hat out of it. So the puma killed in 1894 in Herkimer County, may not have been the last in NY.

[jmg343]

Got one on trail cam just yesterday in Carmel, NY. Will post the pictures as soon as I can.

[jmg343]

here is what I am pretty damn certain is a mtn lion. captured on trail cam yesterday, 7/23 in Carmel, NY.

[Tug Hill]

Looking forward to your picture.

[bioguide]

Originally Posted by Tug Hill

Looking forward to your picture.

Quote:
Originally Posted by jmg343 View Post
just emailed you the pic
Pic posted on behalf of jmg343:

[Justin]

Good catch, but looks a bit blurry & inconclusive to me, and by no means definitive. Could be a bobcat, almost looks like spots & a short tail.

[poconoron]

That, my friend, is a bobcat.

[jmg343]

Originally Posted by poconoron

That, my friend, is a bobcat.

Maybe, but I have two bobcats mounted, and have seen at least a dozen in the woods. Neither have legs even nearly as long as this cats and this cat has a long tail. Visible if you look closely. Also, there are no spots that I can see on this cat and none of the bobcats I have ever seen have such black on the undersides of their feet, going up their legs. Also, hard to tell in a still photo, but I think this cat has a different gait than the bobcats I have seen sneaking through the woods early in the mornings during bow season. I havent found any tracks or hair though, so Im not certain one way or the other.

[Tug Hill]

The dark color on the bottom of the legs and feet, says Bobcat.
Plus looks like no long tail ?
Bobcats vary when it comes to spots and color.

[smr220]

Apologies for resurrecting this long debated topic, but I came across this news report:

https://youtu.be/zZsdkYrsg3I

It appears that officials are acknowledging a cougar population in Tennessee. Note that for the longest time, officials denied their existence in the Eastern US, but this suggests otherwise now.

Matter of time before DEC does the same here?

[Schultzz]

The DEC could be propagating them for all we know and as secretive as they can be. I bought a grain elevator from a farmer in Western PA who claims he sees them often. Of course DNR doesn't want to scare tourists so they continually deny their existence. I've mentioned this before but a guy who summers in Eagle and frequents the Tap Room claims he saw one on the back road coming from Raquette Lake two years ago.

[TCD]

I doubt that DEC is doing anything active with mountain lions. It's a funny idea, though, and would be a good story plot!

But there is no doubt that there is a disinformation campaign around the species. Remember the "Heart of a Lion" story, which chronicled the story of the mountain lion who passed through this area on the way to an untimely traffic death in Connecticut.

That lion had been seen and reported by many people. And the lion had been seen by a DEC employee passing through their property in the Lake George area. And, the employee had gathered fur samples, and the DEC lab confirmed that it was absolutely a mountain lion. And yet even after they had confirmed this, DEC was telling all the people who had seen the lion: "You're imagining it" and "It must have been a bobcat" and "It was a golden retriever" etc., etc..

After the lion was killed in Connecticut, all the info came out.

My guess is that there is no breeding population here, but that once every few years, a stray, probably a young male looking for a new territory, passes through the area from out-of-state. So occasional sightings are probably valid. I pretty much ignore the "official" line on this topic, as the officials have been proven to be liars.

[St.Regis]

Yeah or a story about a game farm escapee or a 'pet' that got away or some other bs that they conjured up

[montcalm]

It's probably better for the cat that the DEC deny its existence.

We already see how knuckleheads deal with bears. Imagine if we had big cats running around!

I've totally been "stalked" by a bobcat before. My size and fire are probably the only things that kept it from taking a shot at me.

[Schultzz]

TCD


My guess is that there is no breeding population here, but that once every few years, a stray, probably a young male looking for a new territory, passes through the area from out-of-state. So occasional sightings are probably valid. I pretty much ignore the "official" line on this topic, as the officials have been proven to be liars.[/QUOTE]

Well thought out and written.

[Schultzz]

My history with them has been they are shy and rarely seen but since settlements have taken over their habitat they have grown bolder and acclimated to humans. My sister lives in a populated town in southern CT and has a photo of one sitting not 20 feet from a big window in a sitting room. I always bring at least two "friends" with me when venturing out for a walk. Mr. Smith and Mr. Wesson.

[montcalm]

Originally Posted by Schultzz

I always bring at least two "friends" with me when venturing out for a walk. Mr. Smith and Mr. Wesson.

While that might help if a cat faces you down, most likely if it wants to mess with you it's gonna stalk you, climb a tree, pounce on your back and bite your neck. Your chances of shooting it are gonna be pretty slim.

If you actually face one down, I doubt it would do anything but run.


From what I can surmise from areas out west where there are still lots of lions, this would be exceedingly rare. Carrying a gun to protect against something like that here would be like carrying a lightning rod to protect from getting struck by lightning.

[Tug Hill]

Montcalm, I think many people in Alaska grizzly country, would disagree. I have a friend who was mauled by a grizzly in Alaska and fought it off with his hunting knife. He was severely injured but survived. To this day he regrets leaving his handgun that day in his spike camp.

[montcalm]

I'm sure they would...

I'm not a gun guy, but there are certain areas of the world I would carry one - and Alaska is one of them.

I was speaking of threats here in the east. You're more likely to be mauled in the city.

[Schultzz]

Montcalm

Guns can alert others if some disaster happened to you. Three consecutive shots has always meant SOS to me and got my full attention. Another series of three shots will bring me running or riding my quad to help. Heart attack? Snakebite?, break or sprain your leg? A rabid animal attack. Cell phones have a habit of not working in many places in the park.