Mtn Lion hit by car in Standish 2/8/10

[AdkGal]

A friend of mine just called and said he was shown a picture of a dead Mtn Lion that was hit by a car in Standish yesterday. The cat was weighed by the DEC, (190 pounds) then hauled away.

Let's see them deny this one!

[poconoron]

Originally Posted by AdkGal

A friend of mine just called and said he was shown a picture of a dead Mtn Lion that was hit by a car in Standish yesterday. The cat was weighed by the DEC, (190 pounds) then hauled away.

Let's see them deny this one!

Let's see the picture!!

[AdkGal]

Originally Posted by poconoron

Let's see the picture!!

It was taken on a guys cell phone. I have no way to get hold of the picture.

[hobbitling]

I'll tell everyone that I know a lady (on the internet) who knows a guy who described a picture of a Cougar his friend took, but she hasnt seen it, and I haven't seen it. That should convince them.

Pardon our skepticism. But we've seen pictures before. All so far have turned out to be taken out west and circulated around the web for years before popping up in the Adirondacks.

Any details? date, location, names of people involved, names of officers on the scene? This kind of info might be helpful in uncovering "Cougar-gate" (because it's not a conspiracy theory until someone puts "gate" in the name.)

A find like this would go straight over to the Wildlife Pathology lab at Five Rivers. There's no way they'd just drop it in a ditch.

That mt. lion was the one we saw in 2004?! We were closer to Lyon Mt [NO PUN INTENDED] when we heard his ''meow'' more like a yeow to us! tx for story. Looncry

[adkayaker]

The entire story is suspect based on the words used. There is much more important info the DEC is going to be interested in than weighing and then hauling away such an animal. There would be extensive testing, DNA, stomach contents, teeth, etc. A goal would be to id it as either a western species that strayed, a captive pet from perhaps an exotic location from beyond the U.S. Stomach contents for wild food vs. consistent human provided food, etc. Let's give the DEC more credit than to weigh it and trash it.

Originally Posted by adkayaker

The entire story is suspect based on the words used. There is much more important info the DEC is going to be interested in than weighing and then hauling away such an animal. There would be extensive testing, DNA, stomach contents, teeth, etc. A goal would be to id it as either a western species that strayed, a captive pet from perhaps an exotic location from beyond the U.S. Stomach contents for wild food vs. consistent human provided food, etc. Let's give the DEC more credit than to weigh it and trash it.

DEC and tx for insight adkayaker. Looncry

[hobbitling]

They can get diet data from hair samples too, by looking at carbon isotope levels. animals fed a diet of corn fed livestock or commercial animal feed will have a distinct isotope ratio compared to wild animals feeding on wild prey.

[dundee]

Here's the pic: too bad it wasn't taken alive.

[AdkGal]

Originally Posted by adkayaker

The entire story is suspect based on the words used. There is much more important info the DEC is going to be interested in than weighing and then hauling away such an animal. There would be extensive testing, DNA, stomach contents, teeth, etc. A goal would be to id it as either a western species that strayed, a captive pet from perhaps an exotic location from beyond the U.S. Stomach contents for wild food vs. consistent human provided food, etc. Let's give the DEC more credit than to weigh it and trash it.

Yes "hauled away" Do you think they would be able to do all the other testing that you mentioned with the cat lying on the side of the road??????
Let's be serious!!!! NO ONE said trash it!!!!

The only people that will believe this post are special people who have been fortunate enough to see such a beautiful animal here in the Daks! I, being one of them, believe my friends every word. I do not have to prove the sighting to anyone. You can either believe it or not... your choice.

[randomscooter]

Originally Posted by AdkGal

Yes "hauled away" Do you think they would be able to do all the other testing that you mentioned with the cat lying on the side of the road??????
Let's be serious!!!! NO ONE said trash it!!!!

The only people that will believe this post are special people who have been fortunate enough to see such a beautiful animal here in the Daks! I, being one of them, believe my friends every word. I do not have to prove the sighting to anyone. You can either believe it or not... your choice.

You clearly said "hauled away". It's unfortunate it was interpreted differently. I for one remain skeptical, but I also don't see any good reason to think it impossible. It's not a sasquatch after all.

Originally Posted by AdkGal

Yes "hauled away" Do you think they would be able to do all the other testing that you mentioned with the cat lying on the side of the road??????
Let's be serious!!!! NO ONE said trash it!!!!

The only people that will believe this post are special people who have been fortunate enough to see such a beautiful animal here in the Daks! I, being one of them, believe my friends every word. I do not have to prove the sighting to anyone. You can either believe it or not... your choice.

AdkGal: What a privilege to see this wild animal! No words can express your experience that is so personal. tx for sharing this post. It is a connection with
creatures of the wild that puts us in a peaceful place. Looncry

[law_adk]

I would really like to believe that there are mountain lions here but I have my doubts. Many people claim to have seen them but you would be surprised at how many people cant tell a mountain lion from a bobcat (not saying that is the case with anyone here).

Lets use this as a reminder to carry our cameras and keep our eyes open for tracks.

190lbs is very heavy for a mountain lion especially in the winter ( they average about 150). If the story is true I wouldn't be surprised if it was an escaped pet.

[Limekiln]

So they weighed it right then and there? Then hauled it away? I find that hard to believe.

I don't know what the average mountain lion weighs but 190 lbs? Without some documentation I'm not believing this story. I saw a mountain lion on the Northway near North Hudson in September 2008, so I believe there are a few around, but not that many.

[gulo]

Would it happen to look like the pic in the hoax series from Arizona?

http://www.easterncougar.org/pages/a...erncougars.htm

My friend told me that he heard that the DEC paid the local media not to say a word about it. And the DEC told the GEICO claims rep that if he said anything to anyone about the incident then the gecko would be put on the invasive species list.

Originally Posted by timetohike

My friend told me that he heard that the DEC paid the local media not to say a word about it. And the DEC told the GEICO claims rep that if he said anything to anyone about the incident then the gecko would be put on the invasive species list.

politics as usual! Looncry

[kayakrski]

Is the pic taken on the back of a dark colored truck with silver boxes in it? If so it's definitely some sort of a hoax. I just received it on my cell as a picture message yesterday but it was supposedly in Black Brook. A few weeks ago I received the same picture in an e-mail but the cat was in Springville, NY. That cat must really get around and is sure using up some of his 9 lives!

G

[gulo]

Originally Posted by kayakrski

Is the pic taken on the back of a dark colored truck with silver boxes in it? G

http://www.trackincats.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=1490

[Vermont Scott]

Originally Posted by law_adk

I would really like to believe that there are mountain lions here but I have my doubts. Many people claim to have seen them but you would be surprised at how many people cant tell a mountain lion from a bobcat (not saying that is the case with anyone here).

Lets use this as a reminder to carry our cameras and keep our eyes open for tracks.

190lbs is very heavy for a mountain lion especially in the winter ( they average about 150). If the story is true I wouldn't be surprised if it was an escaped pet.

I find all the conspiracy theories a little hard to believe. If there are mountain lions in the Adirondacks I would also go along with an escaped pet as the source.

I grew up just outside the blue line not too far from Lake George. About 20 years ago my dad had a neighbor who had a pet Florida panther, at least that's what kind he said it was. It was definitely a panther and he kept it outside next to a barn in a chain link enclosure year round. I think it was about 1 1/2 to 2 years old when I saw it. They are an absolutely stunning animal but I felt terrible that the poor thing was destined to live behind a chain linked fence. When it was a kitten it lived in the house with the family and kids. When it got bigger he put it outside. The damn thing was just laying in the sun next to a hay bale when I saw it and purring like crazy. I should probably say rumbling because it was the loudest, deepest 'purr' I have ever heard. He said I could reach in and pet it-no way! I had just seen 'Cat People'.

I cost a fortune to keep the animal in chicken, it's primary food. I can imagine people giving up after the novelty wears off and releasing the animals in the wild but I don't know if the cats could develop the hunting skills necessary to survive. I also think that a big cat acclimated to people would seek out people for food. Trust me, we had a lot of stray house cats show up at our place at feeding time. 190 lbs is a huge animal and if it was real, which I really doubt, it was probably a recently released captive animal.