Be aware - there are cougars in them thar hills

Every hunter whose caught a glimpse of a large cat slipping through the woods at daylight or dusk, or heard one screaming as it prepares to hunt after dark must feel like saying “I told you so.”

Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries confirms two cougar appearances in the wild in September, one in Natchitoches Parish, the other about 100 miles away in Allen Parish.

Private citizens sent trail camera pictures from two different sites to the department in September.

LDWF Large Carnivore Program Manager Maria Davidson and LDWF Natural Heritage Zoologist Beau Gregory then conducted site investigations that confirmed the authenticity of the photographs.

“Given the time lapse between the two pictures it is certainly possible for a cougar to have traveled that distance,” Davidson said. “Both animals have the same general appearance of a young cougar, but it is impossible to determine conclusively if the animals are one and the same. It is also impossible to determine if the animals in the photographs are wild free-ranging mountain lions, or escaped captives.”

Although it is illegal to own a cougar in Louisiana, it is possible that there are some illegally held “pets” in the state. Anyone holding a captive cougar in Louisiana must have a permit issued by LDWF, as captive cougars may compromise public safety. LDWF may issue permits to existing owners in the state in order to reduce difficulties associated with determining the validity of reported cougar sightings.

The mountain lion, cougar, panther or puma are names that all refer to the same animal. Their color ranges from lighter tan to brownish grey.

The only species of big cats that occur as black are the jaguar and leopard. Jaguars are native to South America and leopards are native to Africa. Both species can occur as spotted or black, although in both cases the spotted variety is much more common. Although the department receives numerous calls about “black panthers”, there has never been a documented case of a black cougar anywhere in North America.

The first recently documented cougar sighting was in 2002 by LDWF Program Manager Michael Carloss on Lake Fausse Point State Park.

The department receives many calls reporting sightings of cougars throughout Louisiana. The vast majority of these reports cannot be verified due to the very nature of a sighting. These animals can move through an area and leave little or no evidence to be found.

Many of the calls are found to be cases of mistaken identity. Dog tracks make up the majority of the evidence submitted by those reporting cougar sightings. Other animals commonly mistaken for cougars are bobcats and house cats, usually seen from a distance or in varying shades of light.

The significant lack of physical evidence leads the department to conclude that Louisiana does not have an established, breeding population of cougars. In states that have verified small populations of cougars, physical evidence can readily be found in the form of tracks, cached deer kills, scat and road kills.

The recent occurrences of cougars in Louisiana may be young animals dispersing from existing populations in west Texas. An expanding population in west Texas can produce dispersing individual cougars that move into suitable habitat in Louisiana. Young males are known to disperse from their birthplace and travel hundreds of miles seeking their own territories.

Any hunter seeing a cougar shouldn’t even think about shooting it - the penalty for killing the state and federally protected animal is a year in jail and/or a $100,000 fine.

To report verifiable sightings of cougars containing physical evidence such as photos, tracks and/or scat call Maria Davidson at 337-948-0255 or your nearest LDWF Region office at:

Minden 318-371-3050

Monroe 318-343-4044

Pineville 318-487-5885

Ferriday 318-757-4571

Lake Charles 337-491-2575

Opelousas 337-948-0255

Baton Rouge 225-765-2360