vermont mountain lion sightingsvermont mountain lion sightings

But it also sort of instills that fear, a healthy fear of humans and bears. Lucky the house cat got away. Johnny Lutz It crossed the road just below where the Jaquiths lived. Its important not to rule any possibilities out, including the chance of a mountain lion, according to Bernier. And identifying which is which is all in the tail, according to Bernier. Massachusetts, Virginia, Vermont, and Wyoming. It was his great coolness and daring (either that, or fear) that enabled Crowell to shoot the animal at a distance of one rod only (roughly 16 feet), first hitting it in the leg with his shotgun, then dispatching it with a bullet to the head from a borrowed rifle. Occasionally 3 times a year, I send out news-letters telling of latest reportsby concerned persons collecting such data.. Given the long, shared border between these provinces and New England, along with plentiful evidence that other species cross this border regularly, it seems entirely possible that cougars would also engage in international travel. What else could it be so big I thought it was a deer with a long cat tail? She still produces shows with Colin and the team when her schedule allows. She will also discuss the latest confirmations of cougars in the East, including the recently documented suitability of a substantial amount of wild habitats from Manitoba to Louisiana and Maine to Georgia. Body coloration can range from tan to gray and cubs are usually covered with blackish brown spots. TPWD Confirmed Mountain Lions. Its closest living relative is the cheetah. Theres probably 100 in Connecticut, Ottmann interrupted, rolling a cigarette as he spoke. Put bluntly, Morse does not believe that New England is home to cougars. 26M views, 14K likes, 2K loves, 8.1K comments, 19K shares, Facebook Watch Videos from VT: This mountain lion is about to turn a vacation into a nightmare. Prior to the mid-1990s, the late Wildlife Professor Harold Hitchcock of Middlebury College, became Vermonts Official Big Cat hunter, who sought evidence of the Big Cats across the Maple State. I know it wasnt a Bob Cat, as I have seen them a few times in the wild, while hiking in the woods in southern Connecticut. As a carnivore biologist, Hawley says he would love it if mountain lions were here. I met with Morse at her home in Jericho. I swear that is what I saw this morning at about 4 am in my drive. So theres fresh mud. Maysville, WV 26833 Eastern bobcat. I did not see [the cats], but I did talk to the guy. The females are where its at, she said. . McEnroe: Scientifically, this is a case where absence of evidence is kind of evidence of absence, right? They set the stage for the exotics to move in, and this has a huge impact on our ecology, he said. I doubt it but it could be a mountain lion. And yet there I was, on a Saturday in early November, crammed into a booth with Bo Ottmann, 48, and Bill Betty, 72, of Cougars of the Valley, the organization that Ottmann founded in 2007 to gather evidence of and alert the public to the big cats living among us. Since then, there have been a handful of confirmed mountain lion sightings in the Northeast, although most have been thought to be escaped captive animals. Please make your sighting as detailed as possible. Nowhere in New England is the matter definitively settled. We live pretty much in the midst of the Green Mountains in the town of Andover. It was broadside to my headlights, paused to look me directly in the eyes, its magnificent tail as long as its body. Sincerely, John Lutz, 99 Beagle boots Lane, Maysville, WV 26833 or epuma@frontier.com, Hellomy husband and I were at our Vermont vacation home taking a furniture delivery. Curious if anyone has spotted any cougars in the area? Bill and I are full-throttle. In 1994, scat collected after a sighting in Craftsbury, Vermont, was found to contain cougar hair (the animals are prone to ingesting their hair while grooming), and the commissioner of the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department circulated a memo with the following line: Harrigans interest in cougars was sparked in the late 70s, after he took ownership of, Perhaps, then, the ultimate question isnt whether cougars are among us, but rather how we can encourage them to settle here, After 20 minutes or so, we turned and stumbled our way back to the parking lot. It can run at speeds of up to 50 mph. Box, city, zip-code, so a copy can be sent in early April. I can unsubscribe any time using the unsubscribe link at the end of all emails. I was in Waitsfield on the common rd when it happened. Glad to hear that they're not gone. Prof. Hitchcocks experienced led him to believe, a minimum of 10 wild cougars, inhabited the various forests of Vermont. I noticed that there were many great websites, blogs, and discussion boards devoted to mountain lion sightings in other states of New England, but not one just for Vermont. Waterbury Roundabout is an online news site launched in May 2020 as a volunteer effort in collaboration with the University of Vermont's Reporting and Documentary Storytelling program to cover local news in and around Waterbury, Vermont. Before I departed the Old Well Tavern, Bo Ottmann offered to lead me on a walk into an adjacent stretch of woods, where, he assured me, cougars might be found. Betty, for instance, has presented on Eastern cougars more than 300 times, gathering many hundreds of sighting reports in the process. Adult males may be more than 8 feet long (from the tip of the nose to the tip of the tail), and can weigh between 130 and 150 pounds. I did not run but walked briskly away looking back cat was following me and it did so untill i was half way to the house. The presentation promises to be a magnificently illustrated introduction to cougar biology and ecology in the broad diversity of habitats where Morse has studied them, from Alberta to the Mexican border. Though not native to Vermont, Canada lynx occasionally make their way down into Vermont. I started this blog for people to discuss mountain lion sightings and reports in the Green Mountain State of Vermont. I am pretty sure that I saw a mountain lion yesterday around 9:00am just on my way out of Glover, Vermont heading to East Hardwick. Hi Cris, Originally I began in the Mid-Atlantic States, but widely expanded my collection to include all the New England States, at the suggestion of the late Prof. Harold Hitchcock of Vermonts Middlebury College. Mountain lions are not likely to pass through Vermont, according to Fish & Wildlife biologist Chris Bernier. The date was June 17 at about 1 pm. See more at:Here, Phone & Fax: So all the other states in the Northeast that have bear populations have a harvest on their bears. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); aint seen none yet, them wind turbines scarin em off, I have been following the eastern mountain lion mystery since the mid-1960s, in every state, east of the Mississippi River. He honked his horn to scare them off, and the cats made their way into Snows yard. In many cases, what people may think is a mountain lion is actually an Eastern bobcat, a species with a breeding population in Vermont. But that was OK. Bo Ottmannknew they were out there. She favors plaid shirts, green Dickies work pants, and hiking boots, and she chided me for shaking her hand too gently. Fish and Wildlife Service in 2011. Another big cat look-alike in the area is the Canada Lynx, distinguishable from Eastern bobcats by their large feet. Its on the property that we own over there. My partner and I walked much closer to it (about 50-60 ft away). Fax: (802) 422-2395, Mailing address Hawley: That animal was documented. You were the first person I thought of after I calmed down enough to think straight! I told family and close friends as I was very excited about it .I have hunted deer my whole life and had seen bobcats and lynx but there was no mistaken this catamount! I was aware, too, of how a certain mythology surrounding the animal had taken root in Vermonts culture and even its identity: The University of Vermonts athletic teams, for instance, are known as the Vermont Catamounts, and their logo features a snarling cat lunging through the cleft of a V., I met with Morse at her home in Jericho. One time a found a perfect mt lion print in the soft silt by the bull run stream only 70 yards from my front door. Tickets at the door will be $10 until sold out. On Friday July 8, 2022 there was a few reported Mountain Lion sightings the last few days one actually involving an encounter with one's family in their lawn. Ive seen more field evidence in a couple of hours tracking out west than Ive seen in 100 years on the East Coast, he said. The Spatz and Sue Ottmann referred to are Christopher Spatz and Sue Morse, two of the better-known and arguably most experienced cougar skeptics in the Northeast. Your email address will not be published. Morse, 70, comports herself in a friendly and no-nonsense manner. The way that people see [bobcats] in the woods, when they're running through, [their tails] can even seem longer than they are, Bernier said. Harrigans interest in cougars was sparked in the late 70s, after he took ownership of The Coos County Democrat and began noticing the steady influx of reported sightings. Besides, Ottmann had revealed that hed been charged by a bear in this same piece of woods, and I felt conflicted about diverting my gaze from the underbrush. Morse is a Vermont-based naturalist and the founder of Keeping Track, a nonprofit that trains people in the scientific protocols needed to detect, interpret, record, and monitor wildlife tracks and signs. A rare Missouri mountain lion sighting was reported recently after one of the big cats was hit by a vehicle in Franklin County. There were pine cones on window sills, a well-used hatchet and a variety of animal figurines on display, and, near the television, a stack of videos including. I was walking 3 dogs at night all with leashes only 75 to 100 yards from the house I was staying at when it happened. Betsy started as an intern at WNPR in 2011 after earning a Master's Degree in American and Museum Studies from Trinity College. I am 6-2 200lbs at the time I was looking like Bruce lee because of working out daily for dirt bike racing. I want emails from Fodor's Travel with travel information and promotions. The topic was discussed at the town's June 10 city council meeting after a potential sighting on June 1 in the Savanna area of William O'Brian State . 3 Last 10 Years. The tavern was quiet except for some hard-rock music playing on the radio, the murmur of a handful of men at the bar, and us. Those are the two closest populations that we have here. Reported catamount sightings all over Vermont MyNBC5-WPTZ 16.6K subscribers Subscribe 15 Share 4.5K views 10 years ago Reported mountain lion sightings are popping up all over Vermont. I was traveling west on Route 131 in Wethersfield just west of Downers 4 Corners on January 22 about 12:15 AM during a light sleet and snow storm when a big cat ran across the road in front of me. Visit VAL and learn more . I was aware, too, of how a certain mythology surrounding the animal had taken root in Vermonts culture and even its identity: The University of Vermonts athletic teams, for instance, are known as the Vermont Catamounts, and their logo features a snarling cat lunging through the cleft of a V.. It was pretty and calm, Saw one this morning lying in the road on our dead end street only about 100 yards from the main road. There were reported sighting of it but Vermont and NH denied the allegations. I never say never to people who are calling with a sighting, he said. I will try to take more photos with an object to show scale. Its closest living relative is the cheetah. I have been investigating big cat reports across the eastern U.S., since 1963, have collected over 11,000 sightingsThis message is NOT a joke!! Back in the 60s a traveling zoo lost their black panther, and denied it. While the Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks department hesitates to give solid numbers because they feel methods for tracking the population need to be improved, their estimate in 2019 was about 4,000 - 4,500 mountain lions. Running into a mountain lion can be a scary experience. Prior to becoming a reporter, he was the founding producer of Connecticut Public Radio's The Colin McEnroe Show, which began in 2009. Latter that night we were all woken up by the most awful sounds I have ever heard the mt lion was in the back yard chasing the house cat back and fourth. If yes, like most state Highway Agencies, they should have a record of both the pickup of its carcass, as well, as to where they dumped it. However they put out a statement that IF there were to be a wild cat such as this it was illegal to shoot it. Yet I also remembered something Sue Morse had told me months before, as we sat in her living room drinking beer and chatting cats. It continues in Connecticut, where that South Dakota cat was killed in 2011, and in Massachusetts, despite two credible reports in the past quarter century (in one case, DNA-confirmed scat; in the other, verified tracks). Would like to discuss, this event with you. And its not just Vermont. 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.. 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