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Big Cat in East Texas


Minoh

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Cougar sighted crossing road 3 days ago. Yep long tail and all. Two days ago we had a dog in the neighbor hood disappear. Same night a med size dog has a claw mark the full lengh of his body. So the at jumped a chain lengh fence to get into a back yard. Another cat showed up in this area about a yr ago, killed some local animals and then left. So he is back. Mt. Piasciga and West point road, outside Liberty City, When he comes thru he seems to stay along a creek bottom in the area.

 

:getlost:

 

 

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RISK: Cougars in East Texas?

 

By DR. PAUL RISK

The Daily Sentinel

 

Wednesday, January 30, 2008

 

Are there cougars in East Texas? You can start an intense debate at the drop of a hat with that question. The answer is yes, but in limited numbers. Human encroachment into their territory and changes brought about by housing developments, shopping malls and highways continually threaten and reduce their living space.

 

Cougars once inhabited most of the northern hemisphere from Canada to South America. Today, their range is much reduced and most people have never seen one in the wild. When they are observed, often only a fleeting glimpse is provided as the animal silently melts into the forest.

 

Most Texas cougars now live in west, south-central and south Texas, but scattered populations are found throughout the state. Neighbors of ours have seen what are clearly mountain lion tracks on their property, and one family who lives in a heavily forested area of the east-northeast part of Nacogdoches frequently see a full-grown lion. Of all things, it rather routinely wanders into their back yard, stretches out and suns itself.

 

Cougars go by a number of names, including mountain lion, puma and catamount. Secretive, predatory cats, they have developed almost a cult mythology. Their speed and deadly efficiency in pursuing prey are legend. Coupled with an almost magical ability to remain hidden in their environment, the cougar is truly an amazing animal.

 

Large cats, cougars can weight more than 165 pounds and be up to 8 feet long. Females generally weigh about 100 pounds. They are yellowish buff in color with relatively short hair and a long tail that they use for balance in chases after prey. Males have a wide range of 25 to 500 square miles. An expert predator, they are definitely not vegan or vegetarian. In the wild, their food includes rabbits, feral hogs, mice and rats, bats, birds, cattle and sheep.

 

Texas Parks and Wildlife biologists report that cougar populations are progressively increasing in Texas. Some of the reasons for that include an increasing number of white-tailed deer. Food supplies may also be growing due to the large number of outdoor dogs and cats that people in rural and suburban allow to run free. Both coyotes and cougars consider canine and feline food fine fare!

 

Do cougars attack humans? Sometimes they do. Joggers, hikers and cyclists in California have been attacked and severely mauled by them. In 1983 a woman near Harlingen was injured while defending her children against a mountain lion, and in 2003 a man in Fort Worth was attacked.

 

A TPWD brochure entitled "Mountain Lions in Texas" provides the following recommendations, if you see a mountain lion:

 

Never approach the lion to get a better view or picture.

 

Pick up small children to prevent them from running and triggering an attack.

 

Stay calm, talk calmly and slowly back away, keeping eye contact with the mountain lion. Do not run or turn your back.

 

Do what you can to appear larger by raising your arms or waving a stick.

 

If the lion is aggressive, throw rocks or sticks and speak firmly and loudly.

 

Fight back, if a lion attacks you. Lions can be driven off by fighting back. Do not play dead. Even children have successfully driven off a mountain lion by fighting back.

 

Report all aggressive mountain lion behavior.

 

In reality, the chance of seeing a mountain lion in East Texas is slim, and an attack is highly unlikely. Personally, I would be thrilled to see a lion here. If you see one, I want to know all the details, and so would the TPWD.

 

To me, cougars are just another example of the amazing diversity in the fields and forests of East Texas. And even though there is an open season on them, I prefer to live and let live.

 

Dr. Paul Risk is a professor emeritus in the College of Forestry and Agriculture at SFA, Nacogdoches, Texas. E-mail: [email protected]

 

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Mountain lions deserve to be fair game

 

09:38 PM CDT on Wednesday, July 25, 2007

 

 

 

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Orie Gilad would like to elevate the status of Texas mountain lions from varmints to game animals. Gilad is director of the Research and Conservation Program for Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Inc. of Kendalia, Texas.

 

The organization has announced plans to present the Texas Legislature with a Texas Mountain Lion Initiative. The initiative upshot is that the lions' non-game status amounts to no status. A change to game status under a responsible, adaptive wildlife management plan would be good for the state's biggest mammalian predator, according to WRRI.

 

I have to agree with Gilad that mountain lions are terrific animals and, as former Texas Parks and Wildlife executive director Andy Sansom once said, we shouldn't be killing them like cockroaches.

 

There's just one problem with helping mountain lions. They're doing fine without our help. Despite the fact that I've never even seen a mountain lion in the wild, I have too much respect for these wonderful animals to entrust their fate to the Texas Legislature.

 

San Antonio, for instance, closed three city parks earlier this month after a series of mountain lion sightings near I-10 on the city's northwest side. TP&W investigators found no physical evidence of a big cat's presence but that doesn't mean much. A month earlier, a car flattened a 3-year-old female mountain lion on a San Antonio I-10 service road about two miles from the new Bass Pro store.

 

John Young is a TP&W biologist who tracks mountain lions, mostly via the telephone or the Internet. Though lion sightings have been reported in every Texas county, most reported sightings are not particularly believable.

 

Young does the best he can to document mountain lion mortalities, however. TP&W has been tracking those numbers since 1983. Though the highest annual mortality number is 88 since that time, lion mortality averages about 30 certifiable deaths a year.

 

Most of those mountain lion deaths are the result of being hit by an automobile, caught in a trap or whacked by a bullet. There are still government trappers who respond to complaints by ranchers and attempt to catch or kill problem lions. The number of lions killed by trappers has been documented since 1919.

 

Deer hunters pick off an occasional big cat, including those who learn deer hunting is good near a corn feeder. There are a handful of guys in West Texas who maintain hound packs and actively hunt mountain lions, often following behind the chase on horses or mules.

 

Most Texas lions sightings occur in West or South Texas, but mountain lions are travelers by nature. That's how they wind up in places like Jack County, a short drive northwest of Fort Worth; Wood County, about 100 miles east of Dallas; and Bosque County, 90 miles southwest of the city.

 

A lion tagged in South Dakota wound up in Oklahoma. A Utah lion fitted with a GPS tracking device wandered into Idaho, then back through Utah and into Colorado. The female lion covered 950 miles. Males tend to move longer distances.

 

TP&W officials do not attempt to count mountain lions, which are very secretive animals. Texas A&M did perform a DNA analysis on samples taken from 89 lions in West and South Texas and fed the results to a computer, which estimated 5,600 breeding animals were involved in that DNA sample. Young suspects that number could be on the conservative side.

 

Oregon, which does protect mountain lions as game animals, estimates its population at more than 5,000. British Columbia, which has experienced more lion attacks on humans than any other place, estimates its big cat population at 4,000 to 6,000.

 

In short, mountain lions are about as abundant in Texas as anywhere. Young said Texas mountain lions may be at an all-time population high. They're doing fine in spite of humans. They don't need to hear those dreaded words – "We're from the government and we're here to help you."

 

 

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I thought that these two articles provided some interesting reading. It is amazing to know that mountain lions have been known to cover up to 950 documented miles. With information like that it tells you the most likely migrate through all parts of Texas all of the time.
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There are definately mountain lions in Texas, and some of them may indeed be moving East. I just think that a lot of these sightings are your basic UFO variety, especially the "black" panthers. I, myself, have seen a pair of tracks that looked like they were obviously from a cat, but were the size of a large Rottweiler. This was in the Frankston area. Were they from a big cat.....who knows?

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There are definately mountain lions in Texas, and some of them may indeed be moving East. I just think that a lot of these sightings are your basic UFO variety, especially the "black" panthers. I, myself, have seen a pair of tracks that looked like they were obviously from a cat, but were the size of a large Rottweiler. This was in the Frankston area. Were they from a big cat.....who knows?

In texas i agree, in east texas i don't buy it!

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How many have seen Otters, Mink, Ring Tail Cats, or flying squirrels in the wild. Not a hole lot of people have and yet they are alive and well in East Texas.

 

The same doubting Thomas issue came up when people first started talking about seeing Aligators and Bald Eagles in East Texas. We know that there is an abundance of them now and that sightings are common.

 

T have even gotten into argument swith people over the existance of Geckos and horney Toads in East Texas because they ahve never seen them. There are also plenty of those around here. Heck, I have a whole familty of Geckos that live around the eves of my house. They only some out at night so they are not seen during the day. Best natural cure for spiders taht I have ever seen and they moved in on their own. I leave then alone as long as they keep the insects at bay.

 

I give these examples to say that even though you have not seen one that does not mean they do not exist. When you do finally see one no one will convince you of anything any different.

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How many have seen Otters, Mink, Ring Tail Cats, or flying squirrels in the wild. Not a hole lot of people have and yet they are alive and well in East Texas.

 

The same doubting Thomas issue came up when people first started talking about seeing Aligators and Bald Eagles in East Texas. We know that there is an abundance of them now and that sightings are common.

 

T have even gotten into argument swith people over the existance of Geckos and horney Toads in East Texas because they ahve never seen them. There are also plenty of those around here. Heck, I have a whole familty of Geckos that live around the eves of my house. They only some out at night so they are not seen during the day. Best natural cure for spiders taht I have ever seen and they moved in on their own. I leave then alone as long as they keep the insects at bay.

 

I give these examples to say that even though you have not seen one that does not mean they do not exist. When you do finally see one no one will convince you of anything any different.

 

 

What I'm talking about is the "black panther" myth. There has NEVER been a recorded specimen of a black panther in the United States. None. That's not my opinion, it's a fact. I gave a link on the other "panther" thread.

 

Some of the other animals you listed are quite common in East Texas. I have seen otters on several occasions and flying squirrells are all over, but they are nocturnal, small, and live in the trees.

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How many have seen Otters, Mink, Ring Tail Cats, or flying squirrels in the wild. Not a hole lot of people have and yet they are alive and well in East Texas.

 

The same doubting Thomas issue came up when people first started talking about seeing Aligators and Bald Eagles in East Texas. We know that there is an abundance of them now and that sightings are common.

 

T have even gotten into argument swith people over the existance of Geckos and horney Toads in East Texas because they ahve never seen them. There are also plenty of those around here. Heck, I have a whole familty of Geckos that live around the eves of my house. They only some out at night so they are not seen during the day. Best natural cure for spiders taht I have ever seen and they moved in on their own. I leave then alone as long as they keep the insects at bay.

 

I give these examples to say that even though you have not seen one that does not mean they do not exist. When you do finally see one no one will convince you of anything any different.

I have also never seen a zebra, water buffalo, baboon, or bengal tiger. I know these animals exist like the moutain lion, just not in et.

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What I'm talking about is the "black panther" myth. There has NEVER been a recorded specimen of a black panther in the United States. None. That's not my opinion, it's a fact. I gave a link on the other "panther" thread.

 

Some of the other animals you listed are quite common in East Texas. I have seen otters on several occasions and flying squirrells are all over, but they are nocturnal, small, and live in the trees.

 

well the "myth" looked right at my entire family from about 15 feet away and jumped out of the tree it was in and scampered back into the woods behind our house. this is also not an opinion, but a fact. i remember even though it's been years that it was an absolutely beautiful creature.

 

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What I'm talking about is the "black panther" myth. There has NEVER been a recorded specimen of a black panther in the United States. None. That's not my opinion, it's a fact. I gave a link on the other "panther" thread.

 

Some of the other animals you listed are quite common in East Texas. I have seen otters on several occasions and flying squirrells are all over, but they are nocturnal, small, and live in the trees.

 

 

Just because there has never been a recorded specimen doesn't mean they don't exist. Scientist said the coelacanth had been extinct for thousands of years, until one showed up.

 

There are black jaguars in South America and Mexico. It is not outside the realm of possibility that some have stretched their territory, migrated north and east for whatever reason, into east Texas. I have friends who have a ranch in NW Lamar County. They have seen what they described as a large black cat, built not unlike a jaguar or puma.

 

I've never seen one. But I have no reason to believe my friends or clawsnstripes would lie. Whether someone else believes it or not is really not relevant to the possibility of their existance, nor the sightings.

 

I guess the question that begs asking is "Is there even the slightest possibility they might exist, and if so, could they have for whatever reason moved into east Texas?" And the obvious answer to both of those questions is "Yes."

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_panther

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Just because there has never been a recorded specimen doesn't mean they don't exist. Scientist said the coelacanth had been extinct for thousands of years, until one showed up.

 

There are black jaguars in South America and Mexico. It is not outside the realm of possibility that some have stretched their territory, migrated north and east for whatever reason, into east Texas. I have friends who have a ranch in NW Lamar County. They have seen what they described as a large black cat, built not unlike a jaguar or puma.

 

I've never seen one. But I have no reason to believe my friends or clawsnstripes would lie. Whether someone else believes it or not is really not relevant to the possibility of their existance, nor the sightings.

 

I guess the question that begs asking is "Is there even the slightest possibility they might exist, and if so, could they have for whatever reason moved into east Texas?" And the obvious answer to both of those questions is "Yes."

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_panther

 

Yes, these cats exist, but not in Texas (in the wild that is). I certainly never called anyone a liar. I am sure there are many who truly believe they saw a black panther. Myself, however, will believe it when I see some proof. This is my opinion of course, but it is also supported by fact.

 

One thing I do know for certain: here in East Texas there are enough red-necks in the woods with guns that if there is a black panther out there, someone will put a bullet in it soon. Until then, I'll stick with the facts.

 

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Yes, these cats exist, but not in Texas (in the wild that is). I certainly never called anyone a liar. I am sure there are many who truly believe they saw a black panther. Myself, however, will believe it when I see some proof. This is my opinion of course, but it is also supported by fact.

 

One thing I do know for certain: here in East Texas there are enough red-necks in the woods with guns that if there is a black panther out there, someone will put a bullet in it soon. Until then, I'll stick with the facts.

 

 

That's just it, what you are stating is not fact, it's your opinion that none exist in East Texas. Lots of things exist in East Texas that I've never seen. Doesn't mean they don't exist, however, just because I haven't seem them.

 

I've never seen a big black cat in East Texas. But I have freinds who have. These people have nothing to gain by lying about a big cat on their place. While they are hunters, they don't kill just for the sake of killing. They see more "value" in a live cat than a dead one. And if these cats exist on this continent, there's nothing to say they have filtered into east Texas.

 

Couple of years ago, there was a black bear sited out by Pat Mayes Reservoir. People didn't believe it until it was verified. Now, who would have ever thought there was black bear in Lamar County? But yet, there it was.

 

All I'm saying is I can't say the black cat doesn't exist in East Texas, even though I've never seen it.

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That's just it, what you are stating is not fact, it's your opinion that none exist in East Texas. Lots of things exist in East Texas that I've never seen. Doesn't mean they don't exist, however, just because I haven't seem them.

 

I've never seen a big black cat in East Texas. But I have freinds who have. These people have nothing to gain by lying about a big cat on their place. While they are hunters, they don't kill just for the sake of killing. They see more "value" in a live cat than a dead one. And if these cats exist on this continent, there's nothing to say they have filtered into east Texas.

 

Couple of years ago, there was a black bear sited out by Pat Mayes Reservoir. People didn't believe it until it was verified. Now, who would have ever thought there was black bear in Lamar County? But yet, there it was.

 

All I'm saying is I can't say the black cat doesn't exist in East Texas, even though I've never seen it.

 

Obviously it is impossible to prove a negative, Bleeds. Since you seem to be hell-bent on arguing this with me, the fact that I am referring to is that there has never been any recorded evidence of a "black" cat in the United States. EVER, and that is a fact my friend any which way you want to slice it. Could there be one out there? I don't know and neither do you. According to your theory, there could be polar bears that have migrated to Texas.

 

Like I said, there are tons of trigger-happy rednecks that would put a bullet in one of these things in a NY second. If there's one out there, it better be wearing kev-lar.

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