I have been an 'outdoorsman' my whole life. I have heard of 'panthers' around here forever but never would give it much credence. Until I heard one. I always heard people say it's like a woman screaming. Yep. Bizarre! It was wild, I couldn't believe it. Never saw it but there is no doubt in my mind it was a panther, a.k.a. mountain lion. And over the past 20 years, with game cameras, they have been sighted. I will never forget the sound! It was at my gf's house on her back porch. I looked at her and said "Did you hear that? What the hell was that?" I thought it was a woman walking through her yard screaming at her kids, lol. The thing was moving and it meowed (it was like a scream, wicked!) three times. She was as flabbergasted as I was, as it was dark and it was loud and it was rather spooky! I guess it might have been a mating call, whatever, it sounded unreal.
Do you think it cold have been a red fox instead? Pretty similar. Scream of the red fox - YouTube Mountain Lion screaming!!! - YouTube
Then there's bobcats, which sound like something else, but something you'd call the cops over if it was a human making those sounds.
Here in Arkansas, the Game and Fish has denied that we had mountain lions, despite reported sightings, and a few caught on game cameras. I seen one on a game camera a few years ago, about 5 miles from me as the crow flies. And I have seen tracks before that I just can't see what else it could have been, along a creek bank, a few years ago.
Yep, Cougar print is almost double the size of a Bobcat print (assuming full grown). Looks like the house cat from hell walked through.
Saw this print out in the boonies in Utah last year. Just glad that I could run faster than my wife. Gary
Thanks for posting, that is interesting, never heard a fox before! What we heard def sounded like the mountain lion. It was the time of year that mountain lions travel long distances, I suppose it is breeding time? And there were game camera sightings as a big cat traveled through. Over a long distance, many miles. It headed north into Arkansas.
Still a keeper video! That camera also does a great job of lighting up the area. For sure if a trail cam can be hung near low leaves or even tall grass it helps the lighting. I've many times after leaf drop hung a camera very close to another tree or 2 and that helps as does aiming the camera a bit toward the ground.
We've got those too. As well as pine martens, which are very similar. A few years ago I saw a fisher walk through when deer hunting from a stand. Although, if I've heard one, I couldn't place the sound to the animal. Those were not on the Fischer Price see and say.
The best was, and probably still is, that the dnr will say " the cats are from the West and just passing through" or some similar stupid thing. The fact is, that it was here. Idiots...
Recently read an interesting article in woods and water about the mountain lions in Michigan, which have been well documented. Learned some interesting facts: 1) all confirmed cases in Michigan are toms 2) closest breeding population is in north and South Dakota 3) they have tracked a Tom traveling as far east as connecticut. 4) we have a confirmed case in the lower peninsula in Clinton county, which Is impressive because it would mean that the cat would have come around the south end of Lake Michigan. Fascinating read And interesting topic!
