Cougar, Catamount, Puma, Panther, Mountain Lion? In Maine?
By NETrailhead • Mar 13th, 2007 • Category: Maine, Wildlife | 10,330 views
The Portland Press Herald had an article about the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service seriously examining the the status of the Eastern Mountain Lion. I guess they are officially examining whether it should stay on the endangered species list. But, it has brought the number and frequency of reported sightings to our attention.
Read more of the Portland Press Herald on Mountain Lions in Maine.
NETrailhead is your guide to Northern New England outdoors.
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There is NO doubt of native, free-roaming cougars are surviving in Maine’s wilderness today, as they did 150 years ago.
For the last 30 years, we’re had several hunters, trappers & a few now retired Maine wildlife officers send us pictures of the big cats tracks & a few photographs of the cougars or mountain lions themselves, that Maine & USF&WS Officials do NOT want the average person to see.
IWe would like to hear from anyone who knows of or has information on big cat sightings across northern New England since the early 1900s…….as registering such data can help in proving a continued presence of cougars since the days of the early pioneers 150 years ago.
Send your information to us at epuma@hardynet.com or Eastern Puma Research Network, HC 30 Box 2233, Maysville, WV 26833.
Our data has been shown on the History Channel MonsterQuest Series, Animal Planet & all 4 commercial TV Networks.
Thank you
I saw a mountain lion run past my window towards the Piscataquis River in Abbot, Maine, in 1999. I know two other people living within a mile of me who have also seen a mountain lion – we are all in law enforcement. Many of the local men who sit around and drink coffee at the corner store claim to have seen mountain lions in that area.
My parents, not exaggerators, sighted a cougar in our lower fields in rural Southeastern Vermont about 15 years ago. The cat strolled out from the forest, and stretched out on a rock crop, lying there for about 5 minutes in the sun. My father, usually an avid photographer, was so stunned by the occasion that he failed to capture a photograph. Both of my parents saw the cat, and both swear it was enormous, with at least a 4 foot tail. I’m sure they would be willing to corroborate this story.
This evening, May 5, 2009, just north of Poultney VT on Route 30, I saw a catamount / mountain lion about 5:30 pm. Others saw it too as the immediate traffic slowed to see it. It was only about 15 ft away from me on the side of the road and appeared it may have been in some distress. Unfortunatley I did not have my camera/cell phone with me. At first I thought it might be a fox, but the coloring was different and it had a much heavier build. The head was definitely catlike or a female lion. The ears were rounded and not pointed, cub-like. It was amazing to realize what it was and I so wished I had a camera as it was so very close. Hopefully someone was able to photograph it or better document the sighting. A couple of years ago I saw one at a distance in a field Middletown Springs and it was larger. I thought it was a mirage,but I later heard of others sighting it too. I believe the animal I saw today was a younger animal because of its size. It was pretty amazing to see.
A few years ago my parents saw a catamount in an elderly neighbors yard while they were mowing her lawn. The catamount was completely unafraid of humans and actually walked toward the mower. The catamount returned to this persons yard on several occasions to swim in a small pond/mud puddle. It also approached the elderly neighbor on several occasions when she walked outside. Animal control wouldn’t even look into the matter unless she was able to obtain a picture. She called us on several occasions to come over to try to take a picture for her but we got there too late each time. She was afraid to leave the house to get a picture as it was completely unintimidated by humans. This was about 5 years ago in Bennington County VT. Two summers ago we heard a horrific animal call that sounded very similar to a catamount mating call (we listened to clips of those online).
Near the White Mouintain National Forest at the Chatham, NH, Stow, ME border on Rte. 113 approx 7:30 pm 8/8/09
I sited a large cat like creature. Definetly larger than my 95 # Golden Retriever,longer, and very muscular around the neck and shoulders. This animal was beige to yellow in color and had a darker line or stripe down the ridge of his backbone. Ears were not tufted, but rounded. I cannot be sure about the tail length. It seemed to be tucked between his rear legs when I got close enough to see. He was traveling on the opposite side of the road away from me as I was driving my car. When I first saw it, it was running. As I got closer, it stopped briefly turned it’s clearly large, cat-like head slightly in my direction and then lept over a ditch and was gone. I’ve hiked the Maine and NH woods and mountains all my life, but this is my first siting of anything like this. I had just spent the day hiking in the Evans Notch region, alone in the woods all day. This siting was a gift, as I believe all wildlife sitings are, but this one has truly left me wondering exactly what I saw.
My wife came home after having to stop the car, in the middle of the afternoon for a large cat, low slung, with fur so black that it was almost iradesent, slowly crossing the road, green to bronze eyes,and a very long stride, my wife estimates that it was about 24 inches at the sholders
As I was traveling on route 111 east to spend the weekend at my northesat kingdom camp in Vermont and before reaching Seymour lake in Morgan on August 22, 2009, I noticed a fawn deer only eight feet from the roadside. As I slowed down a bit I noticed somthing moving at a slow prance about seventy yards behind the fawn in a grassy farm field that was light brown in color. Initailly, I assumed it to be the mother doe. After getting a few second longer look as I continued to drive past the sight, I was completely taken off guard before I realized that this was no deer at all but a very large cat-like animal. I have 20/20 far sight vision and I am an experienced deer hunter of forty years and have seen several bobcats, fisher cats and one linx. What caught my attention was the color was a lighter brown, more of a tan and the head was boxy shape with a short muzzle that had partly white markings. After breifly being in a state of shock, my curiosity made me turn around to get a better look and hopefully get a picture with my digital camera that is always ready to go in my truck. At this moment in my mind, I was thinking that this was defineltely a mountain lion. As I approached the site again there was another car that had already pulled off to the side. As I continued to park my truck behind it, a women imediately jumped out of her car and with extreme excitment asked me if I saw that large catamount and then asked if Vermont has catamounts. Right then and there, she confirmed what I thought it to be. Apparently, she witnessed the cat stalking the fawn for a few seconds until it started running after the fawn in trying to cutt it off before both went out of view. I told her that poor fawn is probably not around anymore. Boy was that a large cat!! It had be seven feet long well over 100 and maybe closer to 200 pounds. My nephew, two years ago killed a 175 pound male mountain lion in Arizona on a paid hunt. They made a full mount out it and the cat that I saw I beleive was all of that size.
Three weeks ago my mother and I were getting back from picking apples. She lives in Rutland Town in Vermont. Upon pulling into her drive way sitting on the hill in back of her home was a large animal. It was tannish in color, had a white mouth with black running around it and two other black lines running down its face near the eyes. It sat their looking down at us for about 2 minutes. I have a Rottweiler which weighs 125 lbs. Comparing the size of my Rottweiler he was close to double the size of my dog. When he took of he swirled around and dug his back legs into the hill and was gone in a flash. What we saw was definitely a Mountain Lion.
While bird hunting on Oct.29 @ about 5:00 pm. I came upon a mountain lion standing in the middle of a tote road about 100 yds. from me. This sighting was in township T17 R4 about 4 miles SW iof Sinclair. How rare are these sighting? Is there a estimate of how many loins live in Maine. I’ve heard of sightings in Mapleton & Squa Pan Lake areas.
On 11 November 2009 at around 7:30 am while white tail hunting in Perry, Maine , witnessed myself a rather large cat. Upon searching the web, it definately was a mountain lion, the tracks measured four inches in width.
Me and my friend drivinig in the allagsh on some logging roads on one of our canoe trips saw a golden colored moutain lion chasing a large hare across a very wide logging road about 50ft wide. we clearly saw it cross about 50 ft in front of us.
A Mainer at the hunting store said he’s never seen one in over 30 years….
This was 2 years ago.
In Franklin County Maine 1991 a family member observed a female and her two cubs in a two acre field on the edge of a heavily wooded area behind her house on a regular basis during the summer, most often in the early morning. She was very lucky to have had this wonderful series of experiences. She was quite secretive about these sightings. Only a few of us new of it . Maine Wardens and Biologists were not contacted, she was very protective of these Cougars and didn’t want any kind of intrusion. In the fall of 2009 a man observed one on his land several times and eventually captured this Cougar on a trail cam. This occured two miles from where my family member had her encounters in 1991. Wardens were notified and spent two days in the area. They kept the findings secret, as there was no publications of this photo. It is not suprising since Eastern Cougars are a protected rare species. I have never seen one,although several Mainers in the Franklin County area have told me they have encountered one of these rare creatures,here. One man told me of an experience while hiking, observed one following a woman hiker ahead of him and frightened off the Cougar as he warned the woman of the encounter. They reversed direction together leaving the area and she thanked him for being on the trail to intervine and possibly thwarting a bad situation, as the man said the creature seemed to be stalking her in the woods just off the trail. Not to say the Cougar would have attacked, but this is alarming. These are credilble stories. Let it be known that there are Cougars throughout Maine. New England has vast wilderness areas with plentiful prey food sources to sustain a breeding population. Cougars prefer cottontail rabbits, beaver,woodchuck,squirrels, chipmunks,mice, moles,ruffed grouse,waterfowl, and yes whitetail deer. they also eat herbs and berries, an occaisional trout or salmon and plenty of other sustainable resources. Yes folks there are Cougars in Maine.
My mother lives in lincolm vermont, and was walking her dog very early in the morning when she see a very large black cat climb up the ditch and cross the road. Her dog, a beagle had his nose snuggled in the snow, while this cat crossed the road, about 25 feet from her. My mother was too awed to be scared, but she said the cat did look up at see her, and continued to cross. The head bobbed while he walked and the tail was very long. She was interviewed by a professor at middlebury college and the infomation is in the archives in montpeiler. Two years later while coming home from Bristol vt. she spotted another black cat crossing the road about 3 miles from where she see the first cat. She still speaks of this and can’t believe she twice spotted what she calls a black panther.
About 10 yrs ago here in Brownfield myself and my 2 grandchildren saw 3 of them right across the street from my driveway. We stopped at the end of the driveway and watched them for about 10 minutes. They just starred at us There were 2 of them and 1 10′ to the right. The next day we went to Gray wild animal farm and sure enough they were the same thing. this was next to the church.
March 27, 2010 I was walking in the woods with my dogs at around 7:00am. A mid-sized black animal crossed the path ahead of me and at first I thought it was my border collie who is black but white around his neck. I stopped and peered through the trees and saw the animal leap unto the stone wall and I quickly noticed that it had NO white on it and the movements were very cat-like! It quickly glanced back but I was to far away to see facial details. I did not want my 3 dogs giving chase so I turned my direction and headed home. They (dogs) did not see the cat. I was very excited.
Linda,
Do you know what a fisher is? Sometimes called a fisher cat.
-E
I live down west of Manchester, NH. A few years ago, after tons of snow that drove a lot of moose down out of the western mountains in towards the city, we had several small herds of moose wandering around munching on the trees and shrubs until the snow started to clear. During that same interval my neighbor snapped a picture of a cougar/mountain lion sauntering across her back yard. In the picture, the cat is just inside of the tree-line in their back yard, and the nose of the cat is just crossing the edge of one tree, while the tip of its tail is just clearing another tree.
The trees are almost 7 feet apart….
That was one *big* cat. And *very* healthy looking….
There is *no* doubt of existence of these cats in New England!
I think I have a problem with someone sighting a cougar and NOT notifying authorities. The probability of anything bad happening probably is quite small, but if a small child was injured or worse……(and its happened) I would feel a tremendous amount of guilt.
Todays ML are DIFFERENT than those that were around when they were CONSTANTLY attacked and killed off by hunters and their dogs OR surrounded and ripped apart by a pack of eastern wolves. They WERE shy and reclusive, and a big reason for it was that man and dogs (wolves) WERE a danger to them……..Now, there is VERY little fear of man, and there SHOULDN’T be, right?? Man can’t hunt them, wolves are gone and todays “wolf” if FAR more docile…….I’d have to wonder if a dog on a hike is good thing or an attraction.
These cats AMAZE me, and I’m glad they are back….But, I can EASILY see that they could become a problem in the future. If there numbers continue to grow, and hunting is NOT allowed, then we can have a situation similar to that found in California. And THAT is scary to me.
My husband was on a road in acton maine and called me saying” I can’t believe what I just saw, I don’t even want to say it, but it had to be a mountain lion, it ran like a cat and had that long swooping tail” We have heard people say it before but sometimes you just have to see it for yourself to believe it” Not to long after that a game warden saw one in Barnstead N.H. I am sure they are around and it is a little scary but wonderful. Why does the state deny they are here when sooo many people have seen them? Shouldn’t we be aware of what is there? Like someone already said the fear of people in most animals are diminishing… coyotes watching you while they attack your pet, entering barns and other animals as well, bears show less fear as well… this happened last summer on a rainy day, he is an avid hunter and outdoors man, if he says it was a mountain it surely was!
I live in Greensboro, and tonight I was driving up The Bend Road at around 6:30 p.m. when I saw ahead a VERY large tawny cat cross The Bend Road in a purposeful but unhurried fashion. The coloration was like a very large and elongated boxer dog, but it was definitely a cat. By the time I drew abreast it was in the woods fringe on the right side of the road, and it turned its head and looked back at me, but what I most noticed was its black tail tip because that was the part of him/her closest to me. When I got home I decided it couldn’t be a lynx or a bobcat. Too large, too solid-colored. And the black tail tip points to a catamount– perhaps a youngish one. Free range chickens abound on The Bend Road. Bon appetite!
In 1990 in Gorham, Maine a cougar ran across a horse pasture belonging to a neighbor. I wasn’t there, but the neighbor, my husband, my father-in-law and several drivers on Rt 115 saw it. That section of South Street (Rt 115) is adjacent to a large section of the Rachel Carson Refuge and is heavily populated with deer, turkey, fox, coyote, and other common wildlife. Both the men and my neighbor are familiar with the local fauna and were sure it was a cougar which was supported by some of the drivers who stopped, one of whom was a local taxidermist. Also, it was broad daylight and the field had already been hayed, so visibility was excellent.
July 1, 2010
While traveling on Route 7 South in Clarendon, Vermont at around 6:40am I spotted a large black cat walk across the highway. I was about 40 yards away when this black cat came up out of the woods on the right side of the highway and continued to slowly walk to the other side, but unfortunately I didn’t have my cell phone on in time. When I reached the location where the black cat left the highway I slowed down in hopes of capturing a picture, but it disappeared into the ditch.
The only explanation I have come up with is that the black cat bedded down in the tall grass because it didn’t cross the large median and onto the other side of the highway. This has been on my mind since early this morning and I went back to the same location this afternoon to see if there were any signs, but the ground was too dry to spot footprints. Hopefully someday I will spot this black cat again and my camera will be ready. Thanks for listening and it was interesting to read about other sightings.
July 1, 2010
While traveling on Route 7 South in Clarendon, Vermont at around 6:40am I spotted a large black panther walk across the highway. I was about 40 yards away when this black panther came up out of the woods on the right side of the highway and continued to slowly walk to the other side, but unfortunately I didn’t have my cell phone on in time. When I reached the location where the black panther left the highway I slowed down in hopes of capturing a picture, but it disappeared into the ditch. The black panther that I spotted was about 7ft. in length, large muscular head and body, long tail, and had to weigh at least 130 pounds.
The only explanation I have come up with is that the black panther bedded down in the tall grass because it didn’t cross the large median and onto the other side of the highway. This has been on my mind since early this morning and I went back to the same location this afternoon to see if there were any signs, but the ground was too dry to spot footprints. Hopefully someday I will spot this black panther again and my camera will be ready. Thanks for listening and it was interesting to read about other sightings.
I saw a Mountain Lion on Rt 1, going west from Bath to Brunswick Maine. This was on December 26th, 2009 at about 9:00PM. It was headed toward Merrymeeting Bay. There was about a quarter inch of snow on the ground that night. I wanted to go back and find tracks to take pictures but I would have had to drive for a while and then reverse directions and then do it again because it was on a one way stretch of Route 1. I went back a couple of days later but the weather had warmed and most of the snow had melted. The cat looked to be about 90-100 pounds. The tail was very long and it was dark on the end. It crossed the road right in front of my truck and went into the woods. It didn’t look like it was in a very big hurry. Wish I would have gotten some proof.
Freeman Twp. Franklin County Maine. Yesterday morning at 7:30 I stepped out onto my porch heading for the clothesline and stopped immediately when I saw what I thought was a yellow cat that was the largest cat I’d ever seen. It was standing broadside down the lawn from the house and was in a shadowy area but in full view. I realized it was not yellow but a tawny color with some very minor striping. It was not a bobcat or lynx as it had a long tail and was much too large to be a house cat. I looked for pictures on the internet and it seemed to match the pictures of a mountain lion or cougar. It was not spotted and did not have a bobbed tail. It would have to be a young immature cat, certainly not full grown. It just stood there looking at me. I didn’t dare go in and get my camera because I knew it wouldn’t be there when I returned but when it started to move I stepped back inside the house and picked up the binoculars on the window sill and watched as it sauntered off into the woods. As it walked away I could see the long tail but didn’t notice if it had a black tip. At the time I didn’t know mountain lions had black tipped tails. My husband later searched the area to see if he could find tracks but I only saw it on grass and there were none. I wish I could have gotten a picture.
This is a secondhand account, as my parents aren’t especially Internet-savvy. My parents spotted a moutain lion from their window in Bloomfield, CT (the Hartford area) last night (7/29/10). I sent them links to the photos, and they confirmed it was not a lynx, fisher cat, or bobcat. It was a “dark tan” color, probably weighed about 80 pounds, and at one point leapt beautifully into an area with tall grass next to a golf course. The area is abundant with deer and rabbits. I had heard of the animals in Vermont and Maine, but never that far south in New England. Again, this is all secondhand, but my parents aren’t prone to inventing large cat stories, and I’ve been so excited about this I had to write something.
On Friday evening, July30, 2010, around 11:30 pm as I was driving home from work, a large cat, several feet long with a tail about down to the ground, crossed a few yards in front of my car on Beech Ridge Road, in Eliot, Maine. It crossed in the same spot where I have had to stop for deer crossing many times in the past. I assume the cat was hunting deer and following their trail. I looked up pictures online when I got home and this cat resembled a mountain lion in the size, color and tail. He stopped when he got to the side of the road and quickly looked at my car before he went into the field. He was an amazing animal. I feel privileged to have seen him as I have lived in New England for most of my life and have never seen an animal like this before in the wild.
On the morning of Aug. 2nd, in Whitingham, Vt., I found tracks in the gravel of the driveway I’d recently put in – these could have only been mountain lion tracks. Judging by the size of the tracks, I’d estimate 150 -200 lbs. A friend took pictures of them – I’m waiting to get copies from her
This Spring, standing on my back deck in Augusta , (my home abuts many unused acres and a large acreage for burial. plots) and if you keep walking you will eventually see home depot and interstate 95. as well as the Alfond cancer center I heard such grunting. I taught it was a huge bear at full trot, It was not. as it was dust and I made out the shape of a large cat about 150+ lbs with his long tail behind it, running about 30 ft in front of me across my back yard high tail it to the north rock wall , where all the deer are. I usually come home to find many deer in my yard , even being chased into my garage by a big buck one evening last fall. The report from the neighbor when I told him of what i saw , was that in the fall hunting season hunters found a carcass or a dead deer just past my rock wall in the woods that had large claw marks on its hind quarters, So it was not a surprise to him . At the time I was on the back deck when this happened I had my Munchkin cat in my arms. I have never seen her shake with nervousness in my life as that night it ran trough Yes , there are big cats in Maine and are being sighted in Augusta , Maine, too.
I saw a large (60 lbs) somewhat shiny black animal that came out of the swampy area behind our house very early in the morning, (about 4:30 to 5am). It was after my little white dog, and I am sure it would have eaten him had I not come out on the back porch. It was not the slighest bit afraid of me and I watched it turn and slowly walk (slither) away. It had very muscular sholders and walked like a cat. It had rounded ears and a punched up face like a bulldog. It sort of looked like a black panther. Only panthers do not exit in ONTARIO I am told. It sort of looked like a huge overgrown black fisher maybe (only way bigger). I think maybe the fishers and panthers are cross breading, if thats possible. I have been searching for an image on the internet as this animal was unforgetable. It was less than 60 feet away from me so I saw it very clearly. The black panther image is as close an image as I could compare it to.
Last night as I was driving home (Waldoboro, Me.) around 7:30 pm. I saw a mountain lion cross the road in front of me. The lion moved very quickly and smoothly across the road. I could see the large brown body and long tail very clearly. I am a long time hunter and a former Wildlife Ecology major at the University of Maine, so I am quite certain of what I saw.