Mountain Lion Siting

[Monica Wolfgang]

I recently received an e-mail with photos of Mountain Lion seen in Martin Michigan.. What I am looking for is some kind of confirmation that these are real photos and were taken in Martin Michigan. Any idea?

[Ardie GunLake]

I got the same e-mail. I cannot verify the pictures but many people including my son think they have seen one and heard it as well.

[Ardie GunLake]

By the way Gun Lake is about 10 miles from Martin.

[Liz]

Go to this site on the web
http://www.michigancougar.com/martin.htm
MICHIGAN CITIZENS for COUGAR RECOGNITION
(MCCR)
PHOTOS NOT FROM MARTIN, MICHIGAN
They first appeared on the internet in March, 2006, on this web site and claim to come from the Yellowstone area.

[Doug]

Those pics were fakes, at least not Martin MI. anyway.

[michigan farmer]

We had a mountian lion on our michigan farm nov 17, o7.

[Jim L in Iosco Co]

At the risk of being branded a wacko I contacted the DNR and reported a sighting of a cougar crossing US-23 near Alabaster, about 10 miles south of Tawas City. This cat was 7 feet long, had a tail 3/4 the length of its body, and weighed 70 - 80 pounds. It was very dark in color, almost black. It's legs were the same length from front to back, not longer in the back as a bobcat would be. It walked like a cat - smoothly, as it trotted across the road. It did not move like a dog or "bob" like a bobcat.
The DNR did take my report seriously, and examined the picture that I took or the animal walking away from up down a trail. I admit that the picture was bad - but the thing just was not into posing or standing around.
I've not received anything offical from the DNR (as I've been told will happen). The expert that emailed me said what I saw must have been a bobcat since: a)there are no cougars in lower Michigan; b) Cougars are not black, they are tan; c) we (myself and my girlfriend) were likely exagerating the animal's size as a big bobcat could certainly be confused as being twice that size or more. What he could not exlain was a tail as long as we saw or that bobcats are not black either. We were also able to objectively judge the animal's size (length / height) against that of the oncoming car that almost hit it. It was longer than the car was wide and as tall as the hood. We were obviously estimating the weight, it may have weighed more but we had no way of knowing. These sizes are at least double that of any bobcat. Regarding the dark color there are sites on this topic that say that, due to inbreeding with the limited population, the black color is known to occur. I asked the DNR about the other sightings of black cougars and was told those were likely South American Jaguars that had been released or escaped as illiegal pets and would nt be able to be bred due to lack of others in the wild.
Regarding the DNR's stance it is actually quite conservatively scientific and sound. They will not apparently declare a sighting as real unless they have lab-verified physical evidence that has chain of evidence security. In other words one of their own scientists has to collect a scat or fur or a body, take it to a lab and have it validated. A photo or a casting of a paw print just won't do it. I dead animal delivered to the lab will not do it either since it may have been found or shot out west and brought into the state. There are theories that this is a money issue with the DNR but I see it is a "prove it" standard so that the department is not hoaxed or made fools of. They also denied the existance of wolvorines back in the state until they found the small population in the thumb a few years back.