Mississippi man spots possible cougar across road from Wendy's

originally posted by: Wrapscalllion
a reply to: Blaine91555

Maybe , from the head size , it could be a jaguarundi.

Possible, but doesn't really look like one -

jaguarundi facts

originally posted by: grey580
a reply to: LadyGreenEyes

Granted it's evidence of something.

I'm wondering if it's a melanistic leopard. The head seems a little small for a cougar.

Be easier to tell what it was if the video was a little clearer.

Yes, though for the distance, and being a cell phone video, it's not bad! Definitely looks melanistic, though. The size, I'd like to see a good analysis of that.

I recall they did one on a Monster Quest, I think it was, and discovered a cat that was at least twice the length of any known house cat! Black one, of course!

I see blonde and brunette cougars all the time...

I’ll see myself out.

Looks like a dark cougar tracking a little varmint..it's not quite black..right at the end of the vid you see it kinda pounce.

a reply to: LadyGreenEyes

Black panthers were spotted in florida a lot.Rumor had it they escaped from florida attractions and thrived in the swamps. It isnt the first time for example in silver springs they are over 200 rhesus macaque. As far as cougars in Tennessee yes ive seen 3 so far.

a reply to: LadyGreenEyes

I think this is one that will remain a mystery as to what it is for sure. It's large and a cat.

Another possibility is a young female Cougar. I think that's what they are called there? Where I grew up they were called Mountain Lions and I've been much to close to one twice in my life, but this one does not seem large enough unless it's a young female.

For those who don't know, Cougar, Mountain Lion, Puma and at times wrongly Panther are all names people call the same animal. If one were in a populated area, they would be quickly noticed as the local pets and livestock would start disappearing or showing up half buried, dead and stripped of flesh. There would be more evidence than just a video, so very unlikely I think.

originally posted by: dragonridr
a reply to: LadyGreenEyes

Black panthers were spotted in florida a lot.Rumor had it they escaped from florida attractions and thrived in the swamps. It isnt the first time for example in silver springs they are over 200 rhesus macaque. As far as cougars in Tennessee yes ive seen 3 so far.

I have heard black one don't exist, but I think they do.
Definitely, Panthers are throughout Tennessee. One (brown one) was killed by an auto at I-40 exit and US 127 near Crossville in 2015. My brother has seen 2 what appeared to be black ones, 1 in west Fentress County, about12 miles west of Jamestown on Boatland Road and 1 in Blount County, east of Townsend, near the boundary of GSMNP. W. B. Ridenour got a good trail cam picture of a black one, on his farm, in Anderson County below Norris Dam.
Black Panthers are common in the fokelore of East Tennessee. My great grand mother repeatedly, spoke of them when I was a child. Supposedly a panther killed one of her classmates while walking home from school near Gatlinburg about 1900.
The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency denied the existence of cougars in the state prior to 2015. Today there have been over a dozen confirmed sighting according to the TWRA web site. Locally we have always known cougars were around.

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originally posted by: Nickn3

originally posted by: dragonridr
a reply to: LadyGreenEyes

Black panthers were spotted in florida a lot.Rumor had it they escaped from florida attractions and thrived in the swamps. It isnt the first time for example in silver springs they are over 200 rhesus macaque. As far as cougars in Tennessee yes ive seen 3 so far.

I have heard black one don't exist, but I think they do.
Definitely, Panthers are throughout Tennessee. One (brown one) was killed by an auto at I-40 exit and US 127 near Crossville in 2015. My brother has seen 2 what appeared to be black ones, 1 in west Fentress County, about12 miles west of Jamestown on Boatland Road and 1 in Blount County, east of Townsend, near the boundary of GSMNP. W. B. Ridenour got a good trail cam picture of a black one, on his farm, in Anderson County below Norris Dam.
Black Panthers are common in the fokelore of East Tennessee. My great grand mother repeatedly, spoke of them when I was a child. Supposedly a panther killed one of her classmates while walking home from school near Gatlinburg about 1900.
The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency denied the existence of cougars in the state prior to 2015. Today there have been over a dozen confirmed sighting according to the TWRA web site. Locally we have always known cougars were around.

The black whatever I saw was in TN just around GSMP, along I-40. Confirmed!

originally posted by: Ddrneville
I see blonde and brunette cougars all the time...

I’ll see myself out.

ROTFL!!!

Now that's funny.

originally posted by: vonclod
Looks like a dark cougar tracking a little varmint..it's not quite black..right at the end of the vid you see it kinda pounce.

I think so, too, either a very dark cougar, or some other dark, large cat, and it does appear to be hunting!

originally posted by: dragonridr
a reply to: LadyGreenEyes

Black panthers were spotted in florida a lot.Rumor had it they escaped from florida attractions and thrived in the swamps. It isnt the first time for example in silver springs they are over 200 rhesus macaque. As far as cougars in Tennessee yes ive seen 3 so far.

I am sure I recall being told they could be around, when I was a kid in Tennessee. As for Florida, all sorts of escaped things down there, so cats are as likely as anything else! Still, when they are also seen in a lot of other places, it's hard to imagine that all being from escaped ones. I still wonder if we don't have black jaguars roaming around the country, unrecognized by the officials.

Over 200 rhesus? GACK! I really can't stand those things. We had a day of learning about them, when I was in AIT. Difficult at best, those animals.

You've actually seen three? Oh, nice! saw one in Texas, ages ago, well, some large cat; assumed a cougar! Night, not daytime, though, so can't be 100% sure it wasn't some other large cat. Cougar is most likely.

a reply to: LadyGreenEyes

Well, it's been reported, in the past, that jaguars also lived in the southern portions of North America in the past, they do black as I understand it.

At that distance, a jaguar and puma might be indistinguishable to anyone outside an expert.

Cool video, though.

Puma's and Jaguars are about the same size, though jaguars are a bit stockier in the body. Possibly a cross/hybrid?

Watched it again, it's certainly looks like a puma--I've only ever seen one in my life.

its a domestic cat, i dont think anything else except servel or lynx will be bug hunting like that one is, which are pretty distinctive.

originally posted by: Blaine91555
a reply to: LadyGreenEyes

I think this is one that will remain a mystery as to what it is for sure. It's large and a cat.

Another possibility is a young female Cougar. I think that's what they are called there? Where I grew up they were called Mountain Lions and I've been much to close to one twice in my life, but this one does not seem large enough unless it's a young female.

For those who don't know, Cougar, Mountain Lion, Puma and at times wrongly Panther are all names people call the same animal. If one were in a populated area, they would be quickly noticed as the local pets and livestock would start disappearing or showing up half buried, dead and stripped of flesh. There would be more evidence than just a video, so very unlikely I think.

Oh, definitely a large cat of some sort, meaning, not a house cat type! What sort, we likely won't know, I agree. Unless it attacks someone, or there is far better video, it will remain a mystery.

And, yes, any names for the same animal - cougar, puma, panther (though that also denotes a black cat, as often as it does a cougar), mountain lion. They are very adaptable animals, too, and can live basically anywhere in the country. They can adapt to all sorts of terrain and conditions, and are hard to spot, even when someone know they are around.

As for being spotted, one would not necessarily attack pets or livestock, if there was enough game in the area. When I saw one in Texas, the neighborhood people assumed it was a bobcat upsetting the dogs. There was a bobcat that would pass through every couple of months, that had been spotted, and that would, by being there, upset a lot of dogs. When I saw the cougar, the dogs had been carrying on, and we all assumed the bobcat was back. Nothing attacked, no pets missing that anyone heard about, and we even had outdoor cats. The night I saw the big one, I was out back, standing in the driveway looking at the stars. I did that now and then, if there were too many porch lights on to see the out front. I was there a good half hour or so, give or take, before the cat jumped off a carport across the alleyway, crossed the drive, and leaped over the next fence. BIG cat - not a bobcat - and most likely a cougar, though it was too dark to see the coloration. No doubt it saw me long before I saw it, and simply wasn't interested. The area did have a lot of deer, and smaller wildlife, too. So, they can be around, and not be attacking. One was hit, too, in the area, when I was in school, and no one spotted it before then.

a reply to: suicideeddie

Domestic cat? Don't think they come quite that large... The shape, and length of the tail has got Puma written all over it. The territory is good for puma. I think the guy was just in the right place at the right time and caught something kinda cool.

Cougars eat anything, though they do specialize somewhat with deer, they can catch. Field mice. Voles. Ground Squirrel. That field looks like prime mouse or vole habitat.

originally posted by: LanceCorvette

originally posted by: Nickn3

originally posted by: dragonridr
a reply to: LadyGreenEyes

Black panthers were spotted in florida a lot.Rumor had it they escaped from florida attractions and thrived in the swamps. It isnt the first time for example in silver springs they are over 200 rhesus macaque. As far as cougars in Tennessee yes ive seen 3 so far.

I have heard black one don't exist, but I think they do.
Definitely, Panthers are throughout Tennessee. One (brown one) was killed by an auto at I-40 exit and US 127 near Crossville in 2015. My brother has seen 2 what appeared to be black ones, 1 in west Fentress County, about12 miles west of Jamestown on Boatland Road and 1 in Blount County, east of Townsend, near the boundary of GSMNP. W. B. Ridenour got a good trail cam picture of a black one, on his farm, in Anderson County below Norris Dam.
Black Panthers are common in the fokelore of East Tennessee. My great grand mother repeatedly, spoke of them when I was a child. Supposedly a panther killed one of her classmates while walking home from school near Gatlinburg about 1900.
The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency denied the existence of cougars in the state prior to 2015. Today there have been over a dozen confirmed sighting according to the TWRA web site. Locally we have always known cougars were around.

The black whatever I saw was in TN just around GSMP, along I-40. Confirmed!

Nice! I recall hearing about big cats as a child, but can't recall if I heard about black ones or not.

originally posted by: seagull
a reply to: LadyGreenEyes

Well, it's been reported, in the past, that jaguars also lived in the southern portions of North America in the past, they do black as I understand it.

At that distance, a jaguar and puma might be indistinguishable to anyone outside an expert.

Cool video, though.

Puma's and Jaguars are about the same size, though jaguars are a bit stockier in the body. Possibly a cross/hybrid?

Watched it again, it's certainly looks like a puma--I've only ever seen one in my life.

Yes, that has been reported, and am personally a bit curious about some of that reporting! As stated elsewhere, or perhaps here, too, I recall an exhibit in the Witte Museum, that included a jaguar (taxidermy) as part of the local Texas fauna, and that was there at least into the 80's. Yet, more recently, some have claimed they "weren't in the U.S." for a century or more! Conflicting reports there! I believe the earlier ones. And, yeah, they do come in black, though some claim that's only in certain areas farther south. No reason they couldn't be here, too!

Looks sort of like one, but could be a younger specimen of a larger sort of cat, too. Hard to say from that video. Hadn't considered a cross/hybrid, but seems possible. If lions and tigers can cross, why not other sorts?

originally posted by: suicideeddie
its a domestic cat, i dont think anything else except servel or lynx will be bug hunting like that one is, which are pretty distinctive.

Not even close. Look at the size. That's no domestic cat, and I have seen a lot of pretty big domestic cats, 18-20+ pound range. That's far larger.

originally posted by: seagull
a reply to: suicideeddie

Domestic cat? Don't think they come quite that large... The shape, and length of the tail has got Puma written all over it. The territory is good for puma. I think the guy was just in the right place at the right time and caught something kinda cool.

Cougars eat anything, though they do specialize somewhat with deer, they can catch. Field mice. Voles. Ground Squirrel. That field looks like prime mouse or vole habitat.

That it does, or rabbit, even. Plenty of small game in an area like that, and a cougar can be playful! Knew a guy that had a young female for a while - he did wildlife stuff - and she played like that.