On a mountain lion that died on a Connecticut highway. In another version, its about habitat protection and the onerous federal regulations the state would have to follow if we found a mountain lion within the state. McEnroe: Scientifically, this is a case where absence of evidence is kind of evidence of absence, right? Anyone can get fooled. Top Speed: 50 mph. 2 Last 5 Years. The map from that publication is shown below, with the current mountain lion range in green and confirmed mountain lion locations as black dots. 4:30 PM. But a high-profile sighting in 2011 stirred up renewed interest in the animals here, when a mountain lion from South Dakota was hit and killed by a car on a Connecticut highway. What would motivate DEEP officials to do this isnt clear. Colorado and California have the highest estimated populations of mountain lions in the United States. Beautiful trail! Most mountain lion sightings are reported without any evidence other than eyewitness descriptions. When we lived in Suffield, we had MANY Mountain Lion sightings.probably 4-5 sightings (which qualifies as many to me) and they were definitely not Bobcats, @Craig, what town is Wtn? It used to be that a bear would go into a house when someone wasnt home. Thats only a fraction of the supposed sightings. They are very bold. (https://wildlifeinformer.com/what-to-do-if-you-encounter-a-mountain-lion/). These highlights have been edited and condensed for length and clarity. A harvest is kind of twofold. Have a map downloaded. Weve done a lot of work over the years investigating sightings. . 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. Im no wilderness expert, but it sure looked like a mountain lion to me, he said. Connecticut Public Radio | He drove me out to the spot. New Hampshire Public Radio | Fight back. The current editor of the publication, which is based in New Hampshire, explains why the job is worth sticking around. Facebook; Twitter; Email; Copy to clipboard. 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. Hawley says that they would be finding carcasses of mountain lion prey and mountain lion tracks if these animals had recolonized the state, and this simply isnt happening. On another large animal that is most definitely here: bears. Join as a $8 per month sustainer and get our brand-new owl umbrella! A lifelong Connecticut resident, Nicole has a degree in Communications from Fairfield University. Bachelder says he didnt have his phone on him, so he couldnt take a picture or video, but describes his backyard visitor just like what you see in the stock photo provided by the Woodbridge Police Department. Dont Run. Abbott believes it is possible that more mountain lions such as the one that was killed in Milford in 2011 could migrate here. So theres fresh mud. building a betterand more civilConnecticut to live, work, and play. Weve had housecats misidentified as mountain lions and even deer, Rego says. A mountain lion in winter. But what about the sightings in Connecticut that are made by experienced outdoorsmen and women, people who know the difference between bobcats and mountain lions? She served as the Senior Producer for 'The Colin McEnroe Show' for several years before stepping down in 2021 and returning to her previous career as a registered nurse. This post was contributed by a community member. But honest misidentifications are more common. Its quite an uphill challenge for us to manage that situation right now. It had rained previously. Patrick's reporting has appeared on NPR's Morning Edition, Here & Now, and All Things Considered. 4 . His mentor, Aldo Leopold, a prominent wildlife biologist, also believed this, but felt if people learned about these populations, they would be hunted to extinction. These tips include carrying safety equipment and walking . Image credit: Wikimedia Commons. Do not run. But as Eastern cougar search efforts became more organized and still there were no concrete signs of the creatures, many became more skeptical. She didnt claim to see the mountain lions long tail, but optical illusions can lead people to think theyve seen a tail. Hunters and property owners have also set up tens of thousands of trail cameras at various locations throughout the state. Massachusetts and several other New England states have bear hunting, or harvest, seasons, which proponents say help control populations. My heart was saying, Maybe this is it,. Im Shelton Lively, a Connecticut resident, and an avid outdoors person. They reside in all eight counties, however, they exist in greatest number in the northwestern corner of the state. According to one internet source, there are 3 types of wild cats that can be found in Connecticut mountain lions, bobcats, and lynxes. According to DEEP the bobcat is the only confirmed species of wild cat in CT as of 2022. Each sighting involved cougars that are not native to New York. Body length: 3-4 ft. Tail: 2.5-3 ft. Breweries in New Haven, CT you MUST Visit! If needed, throw rocks, sticks, etc. They can be seen at any time of the day or night, but are most active at dawn and . For decades afterward, there were reported sightings of the mythical creature prowling the woods around town. Be as loud as you can paired with being as big as you can. DEEP sightings: Where the bears are in CT. Jim Shay. Many people do not realize how large a grown Bobcat is. To learn more about "lion country" in Colorado check here. Anyone can get fooled. Hawley:Were sort of stuck between a rock and a hard place right now. Jason Hawley says his office gets lots of calls about mountain lions each year. Connecticut Dept. Bobcats, also, only hunt small prey. Icould hear the panic in my wifes voice. Pepper spray has also been proven as an effective weapon against the animal. But that doesnt stop people from seeing them. This might serve as proof to some that there, in fact, might still be mountain lions in CT. Here are the Winter Storm Anthony snowfall totals so far, Melting Pot restaurant in Darien closes down. Hear the full interview: Megafauna mania: our obsession with mountain lions and other large predators. Mountain Lions are the largest predators currently in Rocky Mountain National Park. As a scientist, lack of evidence is very good evidence. He was previously a reporter for the Danbury News-Times and the Ridgefield Press. Even so, for decades, skeptics dismissed mountain lion sightings in Connecticut out of hand, pointing out that if the cats were here in anywhere close to the number of reported sightings, there would be DNA and physical evidence of their presence, not to mention photos and videos. of Energy and Environmental Protection. 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. They also generally have spots on their fur. When we lived in Suffield, we had MANY Mountain Lion sightings.probably 4-5 sightings (which qualifies as many to me) and they were definitely not Bobcats. Mountain lions went extinct in Connecticut during the 1800s, but bobcats are still seen regularly. Seeing a wild cat can be both frightening and exciting, and its common for people to make mistakes in identification, as all most people are used to seeing is the common housecat. Height at shoulder: 25-30 in. Bobcats don't shy away from human habitats, while mountain lions tend to only be found in very isolated areas. However, the captive lion theory was also wrong. Rego says that the way bobcats stride when they run, often times a rear leg is kicked up in the back and that could be mistaken for a long tail.. Are there any mountain lions in CT? Multiple people in North Stonington claim they've spotted a mountain lion roaming around. Therefore, there are no western and eastern species to differentiate between. 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. As a carnivore biologist, Hawley says he would love it if mountain lions were here. Bobcats are found across Connecticut, but even fully grown they are much smaller than what she was describing, only weighing between 18 and 35 pounds. There is also something appealing about the idea that there is an animal out there so cunning that it has escaped our notice and the eyes of our cameras. There is a big difference between Tuesday when none of us saw a moose in our region and then Thursday we did, Morse says. Slowly, mountain lions recolonized North America after having retreated to warmer climates in South America during the Pleistocene ice age. They also have facial ruffs and ear tufts on the tips of their ears, as well as shorter tails. But the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection said Sunday that. But its also a great story that lays out how an animal this large, at 150 pounds, traveling through even rural areas, leaves signs and is detected. Adult females typically weigh between 15 and 30 pounds and measure from 28 to 32 inches in length. But Bachelder stresses he knows what he saw. Reports of mountain lion sitings in Matunuck and the Great Swamp Management Area date back to at least 2004, but have never been confirmed by state officials. The upper mile is pretty overgrown in a pretty way. Conserving Tolland President and founder Roseann Kellner Gottier said that the issue has become important for the region and is glad the lecture was well-attended. We have rolling hills, and more importantly, 200,000 white tails. The Division also collects carcasses of road-killed bobcats as part of the study. Weight: 160 lbs. 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Betty later showed maps covered with dots, each of which represented sightings of mountain lions in Connecticut and the rest of New England. No, there are no mountain lions in CT, and there havent been for quite some time. A mountain lion is a wild cat ranging from two to three feet tall, with females weighing up to 120lbs and males up to 200lbs, making it the fourth largest cat in the world. 60-108 inches. That had to be a mountain lion. Mistaken reports of mountain lions are most commonly bobcats. You know, weve had so many home entries this year. Almost every state has some sort of legend of something thats hiding somewhere, he says. By, March 2023 Fund Drive Rules and Regulations, Persons with disabilities who need assistance accessing NHPR's FCC public files, please contact us at publicfile@nhpr.org. Im always amazed at the sheer volume of people who are interested in cougars, more even than wolves, she says. Time changes all and Im not going to shut the door on the future and say that a breeding population of cougars is not here because the day after tomorrow they could be here its just a matter of time., Though a deer hunter herself, Morse is opposed to the way mountain lions have been hunted in the western U.S., where they are found. Mountain lions are also great jumpers and swimmers. to scare it off. I couldnt tell you how happy I would be if mountain lions were actually recolonizing the state of Connecticut, Hawley says, but its just not happening., Hawley spoke about bobcats, mountain lions and bears on The Colin McEnroe Show: Megafauna mania: our obsession with mountain lions and other large predators.. Adult males can be around 8 feet in length and weigh between 130 and 150 pounds, while adult females can be 7 feet long and weigh between 65 and 90 pounds. Im watching it, its big, its got the body, and the thing that really gave it away was the tail, had that mountain lion long tail that goes down to the ground and comes up at the end, saw that and was like, thats a freaking mountain lion.. Bobcats are most frequently misidentified by the public as mountain lions, but theyre not the only animals mislabeled. Bobcats: They are are the only wild cat found in the state and the most common in North America. 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. Patrick Skahill is a reporter and digital editor at Connecticut Public. I've damn near run over the things. Register for a user account. Bobcats dont shy away from human habitats, while mountain lions tend to only be found in very isolated areas. Rumors of their hidden presence persisted. State conservation officials believe this photo, taken in Greenwich in 2011, shows a mountain lion. Fight back. Its extremely rare for a person to see a wild animal and to underestimate its size. 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. It's 8:02 p.m., according to the timestamp at the bottom of the image. Bobcats: Whiskered face and are gray in the winter and tan in the summer, with black spots on their fur that are not always visible. Mountain lions, however, arent seen much in the Nutmeg State, even though several have reportedly been spotted around the Woodbridge area this month. Mountain lions inhabit the badlands and Missouri River breaks regions of North Dakota. It lowers the population in a way thats not going to affect the long-term population. DEEP believes their numbers have increased in recent years. My wife is not a wildlife expert, but is not prone to flights of fancy. This can trigger a chase. The police department decided to put out a warning to those in town. Sport hunting for cougars is not sustainable and shouldnt be allowed to go on. Then in June 2011, there were reports of a mountain lion in Greenwich and, for the first time, a photo. According to Hawley, if mountain lions were present in the state, there would be evidence and not just unconfirmed sightings. So, now we know what DEEP says about mountain lions in the state and we know that many people mistakenly believe theyve sighted one but its still possible there are some in CT, right? For more information on cougars in Connecticut, visit theCougars of the Valley siteor theConnecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection. Hawley: I feel strongly that we need a harvest here in Connecticut. 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