Eastern COUGAR REPORTS PLEASE GIVE YOUR IMPUT

[Deerqueen]

Well..I am very interested in this subject as we had something very unusual happen to us last year..wondering how many others have seen wild cougars in the eastern US. or any black or melanistic ones anywhere in the US...

Please repost your sightings here...

Here's my story....

YES most definitely THERE are COUGARS in the eastern US and other cats BOBCATS HAVE MADE an astounding comeback in Eastern United States..
I live in TN and hunt and am out in the woods more than most people and can tell fresh sign from many animals..on my current hunting lease (yes I AM a woman and I have my own lease!!) we have had several families of bobcats over the years..(I will not shoot them as I am a great cat lover) Last year I watched 2 yearling bobcats and saw them almost every time I was out in the woods..
As to the mountain lions.. I have a strange report....
I have rentors which live on some property I own is close to my hunting lease..It is wooded and rocky as well..Right after the bad storms last year..Hurricanes in FL They reported to me on several occassions seeing a HUGE dark (YES BLACK!!) cat of large proportions approx. 6 feet long or better sunning itself on a rock on top of the hill behind their trailer every day..They said it entirely covered the rock which was a flat 5 1/2 feet or so by 3 1/2 feet across and they were afraid to go outside!! I immediately knew what it was and I was not alarmed..I was excited but I never got to see the cat myself..although I noticed the deer in the area were more alert than usual (we had tons of them there) and had completely avoiding my feeder behind the house suddenly. I am sure that it was a black or melanistic color phase Cougar. They also saw it once in the headlights early in the morning, as the husband left for work very early..then one day finally the rentors wife opened the back door and called to the cat...They hadn't seen it since so I assume it left that area. Black phase lions have also been reported in the southeastern part of Wilson Co. TN here but that was 10 years ago..I believe they are here but are rarely seen. Many reports are ignored as false and not taken very seriously..

I for one am very interested in hearing them…