While our collective hopes run high for our "ghost cat(the cougar) to re-emerge into our Eastern Forests on it's own...........................as Helen McGinnis points out below, hard evidence is not easily coming to the fore to suggest that free roaming and breeding cougar populations exist east of the mississippi....................I stay hopeful that there will be a restoration effort with surplus Florida Cats..............putting Cougars back on the ground in the Appalachians

-----Original Message-----
From: Helen McGinnis [mailto:HelenMcGinnis@frontiernet.net]
Sent: Sunday, December 05, 2010 9:01 AM
To: Meril, Rick
Subject: Re: Coyotes,Wolves,Cougars..forever!

In any rural area in the East, you'll have no trouble finding people who claim they've seen cougars, but evidence is almost nonexistent.  All the evidence that we in the CRF have evaluated is not cougar.  Videos & photos are usually bobcats and housecats.  Tracks are usually dog, with a smattering of small bear tracks.  All the evidence of undoubted cougars--photos--that are undoubtedly cougar turn out to be hoaxes--photos taken somewhere in the West.  You need to be careful in posting this kind of thing.

There have been a number of reports of dead cougars along interstates.  Usually that dead animal can't be located when investigators arrive.  Judy Tipton investigated two along Kentucky freeways.  One was a large orange housecat.  The other was a deer with one leg stretching backwards, resembling a tail.

We are always interested in seeing evidence, but we can't do anything with sightings unaccompanied by evidence.
----- Original Message -----
From: Meril, Rick
To: Marker, Rick
Cc: 'Helen McGinnis'
Sent: Sunday, December 05, 2010 11:49 AM
Subject: RE: Coyotes,Wolves,Cougars..forever!

Helen………..another Tennesee/Alabama sighting???  This is my salesperson, rick marker checking in

-----Original Message-----
From: Marker, Rick
Sent: Sunday, December 05, 2010 4:07 AM
To: Meril, Rick
Subject: Fw: Coyotes,Wolves,Cougars..forever!

Did Dan tell you I saw a dead cougar on the side of I-75 when I drove from Lexington to Knoxville?
He was right outside Corbin, KY 20 miles from the Tennessee border.

Rick Marker