Betty, who has had a dozen personal sightings in Rhode Island, studies mountain lion evidence and attends national conventions. 5:00 PM. We rely on readers like you to support the local, national, and international coverage on this website. We dont have extra money to do secret projects, he says. Hawley, a wildlife biologist with the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, says data dont support a breeding population of mountain lions in Connecticut. Also known as cougars, panthers or pumas, mountain lions range in color from tan to grey, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Forest Service. When you look at a state like Connecticut, with all the people we have here, all the trail cameras we have in the woods, all the cars we have driving you can imagine if we had an established population here in Connecticut, we would know about it pretty quickly. Jan. 6, 2016 Updated: Jan. 6, . Adult males typically weigh between 18 and 35 pounds and measure from 32 to 37 inches in length. Many, many times, in many different ways along its travel up through Minnesota, Michigan and to Canada, down through New York, through hair samples, blood samples, trail camera photos. Copy to clipboard. The New Hampshire Department of Justice is pursuing civil charges against two members of the hate group for allegedly hanging a racist banner in Portsmouth last summer. Weve had coyotes misidentified. "We have yet to see anything that suggests they're around here." Colin McEnroe is a radio host, newspaper columnist, magazine writer, author, playwright, lecturer, moderator, college instructor and occasional singer. Give it space to turn around without feeling threatened to get away from you and your family. Patrick's reporting has appeared on NPR's Morning Edition, Here & Now, and All Things Considered. But honest misidentifications are more common. It was a 140-pound male mountain lion, the first confirmed in Connecticut in more than 100 years. However, that doesnt mean that mountain lion sightings are all false or that there havent been roaming cats sighted. This is the mountain lion that was hit by a car in Milford after several sightings in the Greenwich area. According to Hawley, if mountain lions were present in the state, there would be evidence and not just unconfirmed sightings. Then in June 2011, there were reports of a mountain lion in Greenwich and, for the first time, a photo. They are very bold. And even the home entries are kind of changing. Do Not Approach! We get a lot of pictures sent to us, and people say, I took this picture of a mountain lion in my backyard. And Ill look at it, and to me, its clearly a bobcat, Hawley said. Hawley, a wildlife biologist with the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, says data dont support a breeding population of mountain lions in Connecticut. Using DNA and physical evidence, state environmental officials said they determined that the animal . The history of this theory in Connecticut and New England goes back long before our current era of fake news. Despite annual reports since the 1950s, no confirmed sighting was made in the state until the 1990s. Police have a warning after there were multiple mountain lion sightings reported in Woodbridge. Once at dusk driving in the Berkshires, he saw what he initially thought was a cat-like creature that was far bigger than a bobcat leap across the road. Mostly shaded. Anyone can get fooled. According to wildlife biologist Jason Hawley, the lack of evidence of mountain lions in Connecticut is the evidence. Do not run. Facebook; Twitter; Email; Copy to clipboard. These were reported to CT DEEP and though the sightings may not have been confirmed as true mountain Lion sightings, this post is to spread awareness on the issue in case youre presented with such situation. I saw one, not mistaken with a bobcat I know what bobcats look like. As far as the claim that mountain lions live in CT, as we address in the previous section, that has been debunked. I think its good he attended, Gottier said of Littell. Hey, I know what I saw. (UPDATE, JANUARY 19, 2022) The Great Falls Police Department said on Wednesday morning that the mountain lion that has been lurking around town for the last . Mountain Lions: They are officially extinct. Working in the 1980s in southern California, where there are cougars, biologist Paul Beier said that 95 percent of cougar sightings they investigated turned out to be misidentifications. Fight back. Genetic testing placed the animal in Wisconsin and Minnesota, and the cat had been sighted at several different points during its long journey east. Mountain Lions can be found in Orange County throughout the Santa Ana Mountain Range down to the foothills and canyons directly connected to them. As I rushed to meet her in the woods, she told me what she had seen. Mountain lions are also great jumpers and swimmers. Be as loud as you can paired with being as big as you can. Since May 21, three other lion sightings were reported in the Chubbuck and Pocatello areas and one in Inkom. A 140-pound male mountain lion was hit by a car and killed in 2011 in Milford, Connecticut. These tips include carrying safety equipment and walking . Betsy started as an intern at WNPR in 2011 after earning a Master's Degree in American and Museum Studies from Trinity College. Otherwise, Hawley said cats like bobcats want nothing to do with people, and they will generally prey on chickens, small dogs or cats. On June 11, 2011, in Milford, CT, a mountain lion was killed by a motor vehicle. But sometimes, instead of mountain lions, people thought they saw other creatures in the Connecticut woods, of which authorities were supposedly aware. Ive seen bobcats before, this wasnt a bobcat. And its a lose-lose situation, because theres really not a whole lot you can tell them in most cases thats going to change their mind.. not all bobcats are heavily spotted either - just to add to the confusion.. Over time, Wright became convinced Eastern cougars lived in small pockets in the deep woods. She was calling from a trail in Pootatuck State Forest, the 1,200-acre strip of nature occupying the hills above Squantz Pond in New Fairfield. State conservation officials believe this photo, taken in Greenwich in 2011, shows a mountain lion. Since then, there have been no confirmed cases here, with the state saying: People very often mistake bobcats for mountain lions. To date, no footage of a mountain lion has surfaced. So, now that youve got the answer on whether or not mountain lions can be found in CT, lets talk about which wild cats are more likely to be seen here. Its documented through track surveys, aerial surveys, trapping and collaring surveys. Typically, they will slink out of there as quickly as they can to get away from humans. As unlikely as it sounds, it was a more believable theory than some of the alternatives, among them that the cat was evidence of a breeding population in the state that was being kept secret by DEEP. However, the National Wildlife Federation notes that the mountain lions range spreads all across the Americas, from the Canadian Yukon to The Strait of Magellan, making it the greatest range of any living mammal in the Americas.. He was previously a reporter for the Danbury News-Times and the Ridgefield Press. They also want to foster the formation and protection of migration pathways for them and other animals to enter new states. Hawley: Wildlife biologists across the United States know where the current mountain lion range is. We're not aware of any more confirmed mountain lion sightings other than the one that was hit by the car many years back. ', 'Saturday Night Live' skit with Woody Harrelson takes place at Naval Submarine Base New London, Bo Hickey, former New Canaan hockey, football coach and NFL player, has died. After all, if one mountain lion had wandered here, didnt that mean that others could have? Bobcats are most frequently misidentified by the public as mountain lions, but theyre not the only animals mislabeled. Using DNA and physical evidence, state environmental officials said they determined that the animal . And there are different schools of thought about that. This post was contributed by a community member. Betty recommended that anyone who encounters a cougar should make themselves large, raise their hands and yell. And were one of the most densely populated states as far as humans. Hes even had his own false sighting. Police have a warning after there were multiple mountain lion sightings reported in Woodbridge. Sue Morse, the founder and science director of Keeping Track, a Vermont-based organization dedicated to protecting wildlife habitats, has studied mountain lions over her career as a naturalist, and says the majority of cougar sightings in the Northeast are misidentifications. Mountain Lions: Large tan cats with a distinctive two to three-foot curving tail, that can almost touch the ground as they walk. And he said, This is where the mountain lion crossed. We walked in and there were fresh bobcat tracks in there. When you look at a state like Connecticut, with all the people we have here, all the trail cameras we have in the woods, all the cars we have driving you can imagine if we had an established population here in Connecticut, we would know about it pretty quickly. Bobcats: Though technically a type of lynx, they are distinct from other species of lynx such as the Canadian lynx. Certainly, bobcats are much larger than housecats, but they are not nearly the size of cougars. More sightings that Halm deemed credible came in 2018 from Nursery, Marvin Ridge and Briscoe Roads.. Halm noted that the route between the two recent sightings appears to be straight south. Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection, Cassano Being Honored For Contributions To Manchester Children, Sandwich Giant Again Pledging Sales Proceeds To Major Charity In March, Snow Day For Schools, Parking Ban Issued In Manchester, Book Release Event: Bad Hair Day on Planet Earth, a memoir by Barbara Ruzansky, Jazz Series: Luke Hendon & Jack Soref - An Evening of Gypsy Jazz, The Curious Incident of The Dog In The Night-Time, Brady Sullivan Properties Supports Elliot Emergency Department, Public Access TV Show Focuses On Non-Profits And Community Heroes, Pairings Released For CIAC Boys Basketball State Tournaments, 4 Students Injured In 2 Collisions On UConn's Horsebarn Hill. Slowly, mountain lions recolonized North America after having retreated to warmer climates in South America during the Pleistocene ice age. You really couldnt ask for a better place for mountain lions.. According to Jason Hawley, a wildlife biologist for the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protections Wildlife Division, the department gets around 100 sighting reports of mountain lions each year, but upon further investigation, a good proportion of the sightings end up being bobcats. But the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection said Sunday that. We have people eating dinner in their kitchen, they hear a noise, all of a sudden a bear walks in, so they run into their bedroom to get away from the bear, while the bears out ransacking their refrigerator. 'Bo was a legend', Los Charros Cantina closes in Essex, will relocate to Branford, Elizabeth's Cafe in Madison to be razed for new restaurant, housing, CT fathers coaching daughters in girls basketball navigate life lessons at home and on the court, 5 CT companies hiring for 100 or more positions, Celebrity gossip and sightings in and around CT, February 2023, John Mayer to appear on Impractical Jokers Thursday, Stamford's Alive At Five concert series announces 2023 dates, Dionne Warwick, '80 for Brady producer bring music review to CT. According to the Connecticut DEEP, the bobcat is the only wild cat found in Connecticut. From Litchfield County, can confirm. Since cougars are the second largest cat in North America and a natural predator, they can pose a threat. Re (2): Mountain Lion sighting in Brookfield ct - By Ryan January 31, 2016 at 11:16:51 PM. The mountain lion is also known as cougar, panther, or puma. A fourth cougar sighting in recent days was reported near the New Canaan border Thursday, according to Animal Control officer Allyson Halm. He can be reached by phone at 860-275-7297 or by email: pskahill@ctpublic.org. These sightings are so persistent that there is a conspiracy theory that says DEEP officials know mountain lions are in the state but cover up their existence. The large cat was seen on Hoyt Farm Road not far from Route 123 near the Norwalk-New Canaan border. Then in June 2011, there were reports of a mountain lion in Greenwich and, for the first time, a photo. On a mountain lion that died on a Connecticut highway. State lawmakers have entertained bills to establish a bear hunting season for years, but so far, none of those proposals has passed. These highlights have been edited and condensed for length and clarity. Initially, officials believed it had been released from a private handler. Dashboard for displaying mountain lion reports to the public. 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