Mountain Lion in Kentucky? Our friend Helen McGinnis of Eastern Cougar Foundation weighs in with commentary

 

Mountain lion sighted in Mason County

 RECTORVILLE -- A local resident had her morning routine interrupted by an unnerving sight on Monday.

A mountain lion, also known as a cougar, was seen stalking prey in a field near the home of Rectorville resident Barbara Quinn.

"At first I thought, "Wow, what a dog," but when I got a good look at it realized it was entirely too big for a dog," Quinn said.

When the animal turned to the side, Quinn was able to see the big cat's shape better and the long tail with a curl on the end.

"It had a body about as long as a pair of love seat cushions and it was thin. It may have gotten what it was hunting because I see there are buzzards circling in the area where it had been," Quinn said.

In her excitement, Quinn woke her husband and grabbed the binoculars.

"He has better eyesight than I do," Quinn said.

He confirmed what she thought she was looking at was indeed a mountain lion.

"He got a good look at it, and again through the binoculars. I forgot about the camera at first, but when I got the camera, it had moved to the shadows of the treeline so the camera couldn't pick it up," Quinn said.

The property where the mountain lion was seen belongs to a neighbor who has leased it for cattle grazing, she said.

"I hope it just got a rabbit or squirrel," Quinn said.

Quinn watched for the big cat again on Tuesday but it did not reappear.

"I think (the neighbor) may go out later today and see what is dead out there," she said.

According to Helen McGinnis of the Eastern Cougar Foundation, a cougar, once it has killed its prey will take it to a protected area where it can eat without being disturbed.

"They will go to some brushy area if possible," McGinnis said.

There is a large brushy area near where Quinn saw the cougar.

Once it has eaten its fill, a cougar will cover the remaining portion, to return to until it is all consumed or too decayed to eat.

An inexperienced juvenile cougar may attempt to prey on livestock or small pets, but 80 percent of the animal's diet is deer, she said.

"In the last 120 years, there have been 22 confirmed cougar attack deaths of humans in the U.S. and Canada combined," McGinnis said. "You have a better chance of getting hit by lightning than being attacked by a cougar."

Kentucky wildlife officials have identified any cougar looking species in Kentucky as an invasive species, meaning it is not a native species to the state and can be killed without a permit.

"There has been no confirmation of a breeding population of mountain lions in Kentucky, that I know of," said Cory Ellis, Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation officer for Mason County.

Ellis cited the availability of exotic animals, similar to a cougar, in places as close to Kentucky as Lucasville, Ohio, but originating from other countries, therefore not native species, he said.

"They buy them when they are cute and little, but then they get big, cost a lot to feed and get let go to fend for themselves," Ellis said.

In a differing opinion, McGinnis said true North American cougars are considered an endangered species and protected by law.

"It may take DNA testing to determine the difference," she said. "If there is scat at the site where it ate the prey it should be collected and we would be very interested in having it analyzed."

Move the scat into a plastic bag with a twig; do not touch it yourself because you may contaminate the DNA, she said.

Another misidentification is almost impossible, comparing a cougar to a bobcat.

A cougar differs from a bobcat/wildcat in several distinctive ways, officials said, including tail length, a mountain lion has a long tail; size, cougar weigh 80 to 200 pounds versus a bobcat at 20 to 45 pounds; and facial characteristics, with a bobcat showing hair feathering on the sides of its face versus a cougar with a smoother complexion, she said.

Cougars are also elusive, usually avoiding human contact, McGinnis said.

"For someone to see a cougar is a rare, chance of a lifetime, opportunity" she said.

When sighting a cougar, do not confront it and call state wildlife officials, McGinnis said.

For more on cougars, visit www.easterncougar.org.