Panthers/Mountain Lions in Southern Indiana (Multiple sightings)

[Jeremy1066]

Since this necrothread has been brought back to life, I will chime in. Mountain lions/cougars have been here for awhile. I can't remember what year it was, but my best guess would be 1992 or 1993. My aunt & uncle own alot of property near Salem, IN (I think that's Washingyon County) and most of it is raw wilderness. There is a fishing pond that I used to walk to about a half mile from the house and I always carried my S&W Model 411 with me when I went down. I had several nice bass splashing around on a stringer when I noticed something walking slowly around the pond towards me. At first I thought it was a large yellow dog, but it didn't move like a dog. It was "creeping", staying low and moving slowly towards me. The cattails were tall enough that I couldn't focus on it, until it cleared the cattails and was about 20' from me. I had already unholstered my S&W and was aiming right at its head, figuring that if it leaped I would at least hit it in the chest. I pulled the hammer back, and when it heard the "click", it just stopped. We stood there, eyes locked for what seemed an eternity (long enough for both of my forearms to be sore afterward), and finally he just stood up, turned around, and casually walked away like nothing ever happened. I can still picture its long thick tail twitching as it walked away. I have no idea how long we stood there in our "staredown". I think he was probably sizing me up, looking for a weakness, and waiting for me to run. It was AMAZING. And I'm here to tell you, from 20' away, there's no question about what it was. I feel very fortunate to have had this encounter, to have survived this encounter, and fortunate that I did not have kill him. That was, however, the end of my fishing trip.

 

[OWGEM]

Occam's razor states that one should not make more assumptions than the minimum needed. Actually assumptions are not needed. There are documented cases of escaped mountain lions in IN. The DNR has released trail cam photos. Yes they are here, and yes they are escaped. However there are not many.

 

[bjenkins]

A Cougar is 40 plus years of age and hangs out at Jim Porter's in Louisville searching for her prey, usually drunk twenty something males, while a Black Panther intimidates voters in Philadelphia, PA with baseball bats. A mountain lion is what it's name implies. It's a lion with no mane that lives in up in the Mountains.

Now that's funny! Yea Porters is known for its Cougars you have to be careful there. LOL.

 

[JeremiahJohnson]

Occam's razor states that one should not make more assumptions than the minimum needed. Actually assumptions are not needed. There are documented cases of escaped mountain lions in IN. The DNR has released trail cam photos. Yes they are here, and yes they are escaped. However there are not many.

I've hunted NSWC Crane the better part of 30 years. I've seen two. A friend of mine and hunting acquaintance at Crane saw one in 1A two years ago. He has pictures of the tracks it made around the pond in 1A near 2066, but did not have his camera on him when the cat was near his stand. He got a good look at it - definitely a cougar.

The one I saw last summer (earlier in this post) I have really good numbers on estimated height and length because it stopped at a guard rail only 30 yards in front of me - about 30" at the shoulder and covered 10' a bound into the brush - tail was as long as the body and as big around as my wrist. Wish I'd had a camera, but trust me it was there. That one was passing from area 30 into area 21 at the Boggs Creek bridge, just south of Captain's Pond. NSWC Crane Natural Resources placed trail cams after I reported it, but did not get any pictures.

I've never personally seen Cougar tracks or eviscerated cached kills hunting here 30 years, but I have two sightins. Never heard one. Never got a trail cam pic of one. I spend a lot of time in the woods at Crane. They are rare, but they are here.

 

[rw496]

I'm pretty sure there was a cougar in my backyard the other night up here in NWI. I let my two large dogs out later than usual, around 11 pm. They tore after some large animal in the yard like hell. I saw the shadow and it leaped across a large ditch and into the woods. I would have thought maybe a coyote or something, but the thing stopped in the darkness on the other side and screamed at the dogs. I could tell by its lungs it was pretty large. It sounded identical in every way to this:
Mountain Lion Photos with Female Lion Screaming - YouTube

 

[OWGEM]

Listen to Bobcat sounds, especially 3 and 5...

Bobcat sounds

 

[Hkindiana]

I currently have several deer that empty my bird feeders daily. Two of them have virtually identical scars on their haunches of three to four scratch/claw marks on each side. It sure looks like a big cat tried to grab them and failed. I'll try to snap a picture of the marks on the deer. My immediate neighbor to my left saw a Couger and two cubs from his tree stand a couple of years ago, and another neighbor showed me some huge cat tracks by his barn. I've seen bobcats and their tracks, and these were MUCH larger. I'm certain that there are REAL cougers here in southern Indiana, and not just the ones at bars.

 

[rw496]

didn't really sound like those. BTW, what is the law if I saw one and shot it. Those things are deadly, and if I see one near my house I would probably try

 

[JeremiahJohnson]

 

[Hkindiana]

Yep, Couger pad looks like a nose, with central lobe and two nostrils, and shows NO INDICATION of any claws

 

[JeremiahJohnson]

Yep, Couger pad looks like a nose, with central lobe and two nostrils, and shows NO INDICATION of any claws

RGR that.

 

[indiucky]

Which bar was it at?

On a more serious note, what is the difference between a cougar, mountain lion, and a panther?

The ethnicity, dominate language and region in which the person is discussing said animal...

Catamount, Painter, and El Tigre are also terms to describe Mountain Lions....

 

[Hkindiana]

Here is a photo of one of the two deer I see with identical scratches/claw marks on both sides of their hind quarters. Both deer have three to four marks per side. I tried to get a photo showing both sides, but only one side shows up.

 

[GodFearinGunTotin]

Here is a photo of one of the two deer I see with identical scratches/claw marks on both sides of their hind quarters. Both deer have three to four marks per side. I tried to get a photo showing both sides, but only one side shows up.

That's one lucky deer.

 

[Hkindiana]

That's one lucky deer.

Actually, that's TWO lucky deer

 

[red_zr24x4]

That's one lucky deer.

Actually, that's TWO lucky deer

Or one very unlucky cat

 

[spaniel]

No doubt they exist.
Just wonder how they got here.

Illegal or legal pets that got loose?
Purposefully placed by those outside of the DNR?
DNR stocked?
Migrated?

The DNR in every state in the midwest has been following the same pattern:
-Deny cougar sightings and say people identified the wrong animal
-Finally acknowledge they saw them, but claim they are just released animals
-Deny, Deny, Deny
-Years later, finally acknowledge they exist so they can protect them

The cougars we have are not escaped animals. There have been multiple confirmed cougar sightings in all surrounding states. Recall the one hit by a train in Illinois, and the one shot by police in south Chicago? Cougars cover long distances, require large territories, and even where they are common outdoorsmen can go a lifetime without seeing them in the wild due to their reclusive nature.

IIRC they DNA tested scat in MI and it genotyped to a population in South Dakota. In 2004 I had a young cougar...too young to have migrated all the way from South Dakota...in my backyard within 10 miles of the Detroit airport. What we have is an expansion of the animal's range. I'm not sure what the state DNRs or anyone else find so mystifying about this.

 

[Airborne18th]

Sometimes people release there exotic pet out. If you see a cougar or tracks and they have no front claws they are former pets. If they have them they are the real thing...

 

[Hkindiana]

Sometimes people release there exotic pet out. If you see a cougar or tracks and they have no front claws they are former pets. If they have them they are the real thing...

WRONG. Cougers retract their claws when they walk, so you do not see claw impressions with their tracks. Dogs, coyotes, & wolves cannot retract their claws, so you WILL see claw impressions with their tracks. So, if you see claw impressions with tracks, they WERE NOT left by a Couger/mountain lion/panther or whatever other name you call it.

 

[ViperJock]

WRONG. Cougers retract their claws when they walk, so you do not see claw impressions with their tracks. Dogs, coyotes, & wolves cannot retract their claws, so you WILL see claw impressions with their tracks. So, if you see claw impressions with tracks, they WERE NOT left by a Couger/mountain lion/panther or whatever other name you call it.

I think he means at autopsy...