Wisconsin has a Puma sighting confirmed by Dept. of Natural Resources Officials near the town of Spooner..........Officials will seek to determine whether the cat is a disperser from the Dakotas or the Great Lakes in southern Canada

Mountain lion spotted near Spooner

By Paul A. Smith of the Journal Sentinel--journalsentinel.com

A mountain lion has been spotted near Spooner and is being pursued Thursday by Department of Natural Resources wildlife biologists.

The animal's tracks were initially spotted Monday by a homeowner in his yard near Trego, according to a DNR report. On Tuesday, a team of hounds followed the trail and treed the cougar.

DNR officials were then notified and took up pursuit of the animal Wednesday; attempts to capture the lion were unsuccessful, said Jim Bishop, DNR public affairs officer in Spooner, and are continuing Thursday.

Bishop said the wildlife officials intend to tranquilize the animal, take blood and hair samples, affix a radio collar and then release it. The animal is described as a 110- to 120-pound male.

The mountain lion, also known as cougar, catamount and puma, has a large breeding population in the Black Hills of South Dakota and has been spreading east into Midwestern states in recent years. A male cougar was verified near Janesville last year; it was later killed by police in Chicago.

There is no hunting season for mountain lion in Wisconsin.

The photo below was taken by Matt McKay of the DNR.