Ontario Biologists continue to affirm that Cougars(Pumas) are present in Ontario,(Eastern) Canada.......................With this in mind, our friend Helen Mcginnis(Cougar Rewilding) referred me to.our new friend and Canadian Cougar Biologist, Dr. Rick Rosatte.............Rick emphatically clued me into the fact that there have been over 30 pieces of class 1 and class 2 evidence (DNA, scat, photos of tracks,credible sightings by government biologists etc) that verify that cougars continue to make a living on the Ontario landscape. .....He feels that our other good friend, Mark McCollough of USFW, was incorrect in stating in his EASTERN COUGAR REPORT yesterday that Cougars are extinct in Ontario.................Rick further feels that the Science is well established in the finding that genetically there is only one genotype of cougar in North America - i.e. cougars in western North America are genetically the same as cougars in eastern North America (Culver et al)...............Mark acknowledges this as well but his Agency feels that there is enough of a dissenting opinion from other biologists who do not agree with Culver that all North American Cougars are of one genotype...... therefore declaring the so-called Eastern Cougar extinct in the USA is legitimate and justifiable..................A Political football all of this has become insofar as getting Fish and Wildlife to put into effect restoration plans that would put the Cougar back in it's historical haunts East of the Mississippi River............................We give a shout-out of approval to Michigan(our friend Chris Hoving, a key man in their FWS) which does have a law in place protecting Cougars(regardless of genotype)................Yesterdays Fed findings that will ultimately not allow for Federal protection of the so-called Eastern Cougar will not trump the Michigan law.which will remain in effect.................I reinforce heartily what John Laundre of Cougar Rewilding stated in yesterdays posting on this topic..............."Get the Cougars restored in the East pronto"............"Stop the politics and B.S. about species/subspecies"............Cougars are Cougars..................We need them and Wolves fulfilling their trophic, keystone functions in keeping our landscape diverse and healthy.............

Cougar in Québec - the Ministry for Natural Resources, Fauna and Parks announces two new puma confirmations
Quebec, February 1, 2005 The Ministry for Natural Resources, Fauna and Parks (MRNFP) confirms the presence of cougars (Felis concolor) in the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region and the Capitale-Nationale region (formerly the Québec region). The combined efforts of the MRNFP, the firm Envirotel 3000 of Sherbrooke and the Laboratory of molecular ecology and evolution of the University of Montréal make possible the advertisement of these results.

These two confirmations are added to those of the cougar killed accidentally in Abitibi-Témiscamingue region in 1992 and of the cougar detected in the Gaspésie-Îles-de-la-Madeleine region (zec des Anses) in 2002, during the first deployments of Envirotel technology in this area. The genetic expertise was then provided by Dr.  Virginia Stroher of Bishop University in Lennoxville.

Let us recall that Dr. Marc Gauthier, of Envirotel 3000, developed and marketed for five years a system able to attract cougars selectively and to collect their hairs at stations of scraping. In parallel, the Laboratory of molecular ecology and evolution of the University of Montréal, under the direction of Dr. François-Joseph Lapointe, developed a technique that makes it possible to detect, within a reasonable time and at acceptable cost, the genetic print of the cougar starting from DNA extracted from hair or flesh, which constitutes a remarkable technological breakthrough.

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Rick Meril email to Dr. Rick Rosatte

Rick....................I thank you for your prompt reply and clear information on Cougars in Ontario..........................I did some reading on the Web about the Cougar evidence from Northern Ontario that you and colleagues have collected over the past half dozen years..........................I think that Mark is in a very political tinderbox here in the States as it relates the the Puma issue East of the Mississippi.............................His commentary is that while many Researchers subscribe to the one genotype premise that all Cougars in North America are one and the same, there are dissenters on this issue.

 But what is so crazy is what then is the Florida remnant population of Cougars?...............................Cougars they are,  which happen to be residing East of the Mississippi.............................The USA should be obligated to transplant a % of Cougars currently found in our Western States back into their historical haunts in the East......................Our Fish and Wildlife folks know that there is only 1 genotype of Cougar in North America and that is why they had no objection bringing in some Texas Cougars a few years back to interbreed with the Florida population...........................Why all the "mis-direction"  and "hocus pocus" on the Cougar issue?  Fish and Wildlife bending to the political whims of Business interests that don't want Cougars restored to the landscape, it appears

Does Canada have any type policy for re-wilding regions that once harbored cougars, wolves and bears?.................While apparently individual Cougars still cling to life in the Northern regions of your Provdence, will they be able to expand to all sectors without some transplantation help by your Agency?
Rick

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On Fri, Mar 4, 2011 at 3:54 PM, DR. Rick Rosatte <no-reply@kontactr.com> wrote:

Sender's name : DR. Rick Rosatte
Sender's Email : rrosatte@nexicom.net

Hi Rick: I read the 5 yr review of the Eastern Cougar by Mark McCollough of the USF&W and found errors in relation to the status of cougars (Puma) in Ontario, Canada. He states on page 11 of the review that cougars are extirpated and not protected in Ontario and cites a 13 year old reference for this information.

 Had he contacted the agency responsible for the management of cougars in Ontario, he would have found that in Ontario cougars are listed as an endangered species under provincial species at risk legislation. Had he done a little more research, he would have also found that provincial government scientists have collected more than 30 pieces of class 1 and class 2 evidence (DNA, scat, photos of tracks,credible sightings by government biologists etc)that verify that cougars are present on the Ontario landscape.

 He should also know that genetically there is only one genotype of cougar in North America - i.e. cougars in western North America are genetically the same as cougars in eastern North America (Culver et al).

Rick

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Eastern cougars still exist, Ontario ministry insists, despite U.S. claim they're gone

By Scott McNeil

OTTAWA — There are still eastern cougars in Ontario, maintains the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, despite a Wednesday announcement from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service claiming the species is extinct.

Jolanta Kowalski, a spokesperson for the ministry, said staff have yet to capture a photo of the animals despite having cameras placed around the province for several years. However, she added, they have found other signs the animal is still around. "What we do have, conclusively, is evidence that they exist in Ontario," said Kowalski.

On Wednesday, the Fish and Wildlife Service announced evidence from around the U.S. and Canada shows that the species has gone extinct. This could result in the eastern cougar's being removed from the endangered species list, since extinct animals are not eligible for protection.

There has been a long debate over whether the species still exists. The last confirmed cougar was killed by a Quebec trapper in Maine in 1938. The last known cougar in Ontario was killed in 1884. Despite regular claimed sightings since, none has been substantiated.

Kowalski added that if cougars are still in Ontario, they may not be native. She said they could be escaped zoo animals or pets or may have migrated from the western parts of North America, where cougars are still common.

In its research, the ministry has found what its experts say are cougar footprints, as well as feces with cougar DNA.

According to the ministry, most sightings are actually other animals, such as bobcats, lynx or even large house cats. Kowalski said Rick Rosette, the lead scientist for cougar research, is scheduled to re-examine tape from ministry cameras in the next couple months.
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   Recent Federal Recommendation on Status of Eastern Cougars as Extinct Has No Bearing on Michigan Cougars

Michigan - A U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) report issued earlier this week has concluded that the eastern subspecies of the cougar is extinct; however, this has no bearing on cougars in Michigan, the Department of Natural Resources and Environment said today."The USFWS has determined the eastern cougar to be extinct, and this has no bearing on cougars in Michigan," said DNRE Wildlife Chief Russ Mason. "The cougars present in Michigan are dispersing from the Dakotas, where the nearest established population exists."

The report was a routine review of status of the cougar species. The review included the most recent genetics, ecology and sightings of this subspecies. Because no evidence for the subspecies could be found, the status review determined that the subspecies is extinct and recommended its status be changed from endangered to extinct.

The status review does not change the status of cougars in Michigan, which would occur as a federal rule change at some time in the future. For more information on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service report.

Cougars were originally native to Michigan, but were extirpated from Michigan around the turn of the century. The last known wild cougar taken in the state occurred in 1906 near Newberry."There is little agreement among cougar researchers as to the number of separate subspecies, and whether to separate them by genetics or appearance," said Christopher Hoving, DNRE endangered species coordinator.

"The eastern cougar (Puma concolor couguar) was known to occur only in the Lower Peninsula. A separate subspecies was described in the Upper Peninsula and Wisconsin, called Puma concolor shorgeri. Other subspecies of cougar exist in the western United States, where populations continue to grow and expand eastward. However, many researchers now consider all cougars in North America to be one subspecies."

Regardless of subspecies, DNRE biologists have verified five sets of tracks and two trail camera pictures of cougars in the Upper Peninsula since 2008. These sightings probably represent dispersing cats from western populations."The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service report has little effect on cougar conservation in Michigan because the entire species is listed, regardless of subspecies," Hoving said. "All wild cougars in Michigan will remain state endangered until the population is viable and self-sustaining."

For more information on cougars in Michigan, visit the DNRE website at www.michigan.gov/cougars. The website contains an online observation form to use to report sightings. Sightings with physical evidence, such as tracks or pictures, are most useful in verifying a potential cougar sighting.
The Department of Natural Resources and Environment is committed to the conservation, protection, management, and accessible use and enjoyment of the state's environment, natural resources, and related economic interests for current and future generations. Learn more at www.michigan.gov/dnre.