Author Topic: Cougar found in Upper Peninsula (Read 2048 times)

Lucky Joe · « **on:** November 09, 2009, 04:02:44 PM »

Petemi - Have you seen this. How close to your back door?

http://www.uppermichiganssource.com/news/story.aspx?id=372123

Doublebass73 · « **Reply #1 on:** November 10, 2009, 02:25:24 AM »

I'm surprised that they actually confirmed it. Here in NH our fish and game dept. constantly denies the existence of cougars even though they are spotted all the time.

PHATINJUN · « **Reply #2 on:** November 10, 2009, 02:46:00 AM »

With all these cameras in the woods it's just a matter of time before they get Bigfoot to pose for a snap shot

Our DNR has finally acknowledged couger in IL and WI also. Kurt

SoundDude · « **Reply #3 on:** November 10, 2009, 03:03:50 AM »

Here in AZ there are plenty of cougars in Scottsdale - just go into any night club. Oh, wrong kind of "cougar"!

Lazermule · « **Reply #4 on:** November 10, 2009, 03:29:06 AM »

I have a cabin in Webster, WI and the DNR never would admit to cougars being in the area until some guys treed it with dogs while hunting bobcats. I have some real good close up pictures of it. This is just over an hours drive from Minneapolis / St. Paul.

Lazer

petemi · « **Reply #5 on:** November 10, 2009, 06:17:42 AM »

Joe, my wife, Patty, had one cross the road 50 yards in front of her car at about 9 am on her birthday, October 8, about 6 or eight years ago. DNR told her she was mistaken. We live about halfway between Bruce and Gulliver, and a little north. If you made a triangle from Newberry, where the last one was killed in 1906, and over to Bruce, to Gulliver, and back to Newberry, we'd be smack in the center. I've found tracks in the snow on my place that I KNEW were cougar, but they were too rotted to attempt to convince DNR.

Thanks for the post.

Pete

necchi · « **Reply #6 on:** November 10, 2009, 06:44:31 AM »

Quote from: Lazermule on November 10, 2009, 03:29:06 AM

This is just over an hours drive from Minneapolis / St. Paul.

Ditto here, a young male was road kill near Bemidji just a short time ago. DNR is getting lot's of calls about sightings near Walker, MN. It's good, maybe they'll start taking out the over-populated wolves!

peternap · « **Reply #7 on:** November 10, 2009, 06:57:39 AM »

Same thing here/ The DGIF refuses to admit it even though there are lots of reputable sighting. I may mistake one for a Bobcat one day since there are no cougars, and shoot it.

skifastchad · « **Reply #8 on:** November 10, 2009, 07:27:38 AM »

Quote from: Lucky Joe on November 09, 2009, 04:02:44 PM

Petemi - Have you seen this. How close to your back door?

http://www.uppermichiganssource.com/news/story.aspx?id=372123

It couldn't have been within 500yds of Pete's back door... Its still alive.

petemi · « **Reply #9 on:** November 10, 2009, 10:26:01 AM »

Chad, ..S.S.S.....shoot...shovel....and shut up

What cougar

Dey aint in dees parts

Seriously, Bear, wolves and cougar are the reasons I let no one out back without a bear stopper.

Pete

Austin1 · « **Reply #10 on:** November 10, 2009, 10:46:20 AM »

I live in Cougar/ lion country, we know they are there but to see one is a differnt story. I have only seen two in at least 30 years of being in the woods. I cut some very large Cougar tracks in Dec Wile cutting fire wood ya I am a red neck that heats with wood lol. But five minutes after, a guy pulled up with a truck full of hounds my Golden was fast to greet them and the guy said that's a hunter! I took great pride in that comment, He said if you want your hound can run with mine the guy just new what a hunter he was by looking at him I felt so proud. But I kept him at my side wile he got his hounds ready for a chase I wanted to leave soon not two or three hours after!.
I talked dogs with the guy for a wile and felt bad about how aggresive my Golden was he is not like that normally, but the guy his name was Rick same as me. Just said he was a fine hound to make his dog back down like that that's why he new he was a hunting dog and not a sissy his words not mine.
But on his quad he only carried a old single shot .22 coey rabbit gun with a 16'' barrel. The man spent thousands of dollars with his dogs and stuff and only wanted some pics of the beast. My hat's off to him I bump into him often as I cut dead standing wood in the middle of winter and have a soft spot for lions/ cougars after all I married a cougar lol. The big cat's do fine fine here they made it on new's on T.V a few weeks ago and the UOC had some good game camera pic's of them in S.W Calgary.I live in the country so no News to me.

moorepower · « **Reply #11 on:** November 10, 2009, 12:50:25 PM »

In Nebraska, where very few have been seen, "cough,cough" one was shot out of a tree by police in Sioux City, near a daycare center, one was hit by a car IN Omaha and another seen in Omaha by police, and one was shot by a deputy, about one block from the grade school in St. Paul. Also one was shot by a rancher while raising cain with his dog in his front yard. That was the court case in Nebraska where it became legal to defend yourself or your property from a cougar. The judge deemed people of more value than a big cat, which is in itself a little rare these days.

jacksrbtr46 · « **Reply #12 on:** November 10, 2009, 01:36:29 PM »

They are here in Shreveport/Bossier City, Louisiana. They tranqualized one last year in a subdividsion inside the city limits. I have seen them on our lease in Pleasant hill, La. also. I had one run across the road in front of my truck on the way home from work when I was on the night shift. He was crouching beside the road and got up and ran across the road in front of me. I got a good look at him and was glad I didn't hit him because he was huge.

Jack

mike@nds · « **Reply #13 on:** November 10, 2009, 03:14:48 PM »

There was a deer kill in Shakopee Mn (southern suburb of MPLS) behind a grain elevator. One of the workers put up a game camera and got pics of a pair feeding on the carcass.

I have seen wolves while deer hunting also.

When the critters don't get hunted they will breed and expand their territory. Then some soccer mom will get attacked on the bike path.

c1skout · « **Reply #14 on:** November 10, 2009, 03:21:39 PM »

We don't have any here in PA either. Even after a man was attacked by one last year. He shot it before going to the hospital. They didn't find the cat and said the blood and tracks were inconclusive

zackyholdem · « **Reply #15 on:** November 10, 2009, 04:37:47 PM »

i live in south west michigan, and a couple of years back there were multiple cougar sightings, and one of the cougars were seen about 10 miles from my house, so the cougar could easily move 10 miles and be in my backyard. ever since then i carry glock 21 with me when i'm hunting, better safe than sorry

jedman · « **Reply #16 on:** November 11, 2009, 01:56:08 AM »

My wife and I live in NW Ohio. About 6-7 years ago my wife spotted a cougar as she was getting off a exit on the Ohio Turnpike on the way to work one morning.
The cougar was just on the outside of the fence the turnpike has near the exit ramp, my wife pulled over and watched it for several minutes while it moved slowly along the fenceline.
When she got to work she called the State Highway Patrol and reported it, they just kinda blew her off as a nut so she tried to get a hold of a game warden. At the time she had to leave a phone message about the sighting and never got a reply.
There were other sightings that year but it seemed nobody ever got any good pictures of the cat so I guess people tend to forget about it quickly but my wife brings up her sighting every time we are in that area and she is not some nut that seen a large house cat. Jedman

gendoc · « **Reply #17 on:** November 11, 2009, 02:49:54 AM »

last summer, a friend had a small goat killed in his pasture by kiyots
he noticed it by buzzard's circle'n above.
he went to see if he had a dead steer and found small remains of the goat and 2 dead
kiyots???. he called me to come and look at this because he did not understand what happend.
some testing proved the goat was killed by the kiyots during the past night and they were killed by something that bites thru hair when feeding.... a CAT !!! also razor sharp claw marks on the head and necks of the dogs.. plastered some tracks and took to work with me the next day.
from what i've seen in the swamps around here and the plaster print proved it was one of them
"BIG BLACK KITTY'S" (panther). i have never seen one in daylight, but have been around them and
heard them at night. some say it was a bobby...with a print the size of your hand, i doubt it!!!
anyway a bobcat and panther prints are not even close to each other.

i have seen alot of livestock killed by panthers but not nearly as much as kiyots...

ripped and tore hide, to get to the edible stuff is common of feeding animals
but to bite right thru the hair and eat !!! thats a big kitty !!!!!

we don't have cougars around here, and the only bears we have are small black (honey) bears.
and bear tracks are a whole different thing

Lazermule · « **Reply #18 on:** November 11, 2009, 02:50:20 AM »

Here are the pictures from the cougar in Webster, WI. I know the guy who took these pictures so they are legit. The DNR tried to trank this big boy but kept hitting too much fat and finally just left it alone. This was in Feb-march 2009. Interestingly enough, the first spotting of this cat was VERY near an area that the DNR lists as a rendesvous point for timber wolves...I hope he is eating wolves.

Sourdough · « **Reply #19 on:** November 11, 2009, 04:54:38 AM »

I have seen reports of Cougars in many states where the local DNRs say they don't exist. Well just because DNR has no solid proof, (a dead animal) does not mean they are not there.

We have had reports of Cougars here in Alaska. People laugh, but the area around Wrangle and Ketchikan are not much different than the areas where Cougars are found inn Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington State. They can follow the mountains along the coast all the way around to the Kenai Peninsula. I've heard reports of Cougars being sighted in Valdez, and Homer, Alaska. People who are used to seeing Bears and Wolves are sure to be able to tell the difference between them and a Cougar.

Since they are protected through out most of their range, their numbers are growing. So the young ones need to find their own range and move on. They can turn up anywhere.

GeneRector · « **Reply #20 on:** November 11, 2009, 06:44:53 AM »

Howdy! We have mountain lions in Texas. They are not protected and can be shot anytime. There are at least one or two living near where I live and they maybe on my land somewhere. I have two confirmed sightings lately by close neighbors. I don't ever go into the woods here without a gun.
Always, Gene

Lazermule · « **Reply #21 on:** November 11, 2009, 08:41:18 AM »

I don't know much about them, but I hear that they attack their prey quickly from above or behind? I guess I have to walk backward?

LAZER

moorepower · « **Reply #22 on:** November 12, 2009, 11:56:41 AM »

The chances of getting attacked are slim to none, but I don't want to be the one in a million that gets chewed on!

Westbound · « **Reply #23 on:** November 13, 2009, 08:22:29 AM »

Quote from: GeneRector on November 11, 2009, 06:44:53 AM

Howdy! We have mountain lions in Texas. They are not protected and can be shot anytime. There are at least one or two living near where I live and they maybe on my land somewhere. I have two confirmed sightings lately by close neighbors. I don't ever go into the woods here without a gun.
Always, Gene

Agreed. For years there have been sightings around my grandparents place southeast of Waco.
Every great now and then a calf will get killed. Games Wardens said it was coyotes last time.
If the coyotes are growing claws like we saw in the damage to a calf then we're in trouble!

Noreaster · « **Reply #24 on:** November 13, 2009, 08:29:53 AM »

Doublebass73 F&G just confirmed a sighting here in NH. They sent a biologist to a town to disprove the sighting and the biologist also saw it. F&G now says it must be a pet released, couldn't be wild!

dpe.ahoy · « **Reply #25 on:** November 13, 2009, 01:19:17 PM »

We have a pretty good population of them here in Montana. I have come back from a hunt and seen tracks on mine on the way back to the truck. That really gives a guy the willies. I ALWAYS carry a handgun when out in the country, they have even been spotted here in Billings, MT. With the large deer population we have here in town, a young one was seen passing thru a couple of years ago. I worry more about them than grizzly, moose or wolves when out. DP