NAMES

The large, tawny, long-tailed cat native to the New World probably has more common names than any other animal: cougar, puma, mountain lion, panther, painter, and catamount are the best known names in the United States, but several dozen additional names have been recorded across North and South America. All refer to the same species of cat, whose current scientific name is Puma concolor. The multiplicity of common names probably arose from the extreme elusiveness of the cats, which made them very difficult to see and understand. Not until radio telemetry became available in the 1970s were wildlife researchers able to identify and track individual cougars to learn how they behaved.

HISTORY

Cougars (along with wolves) were the top predators throughout the forests of eastern North America. The European settlers that began arriving in the late 1500s were familiar with wolves but had no knowledge of cougars, because cougars live only in the New World. Nonetheless, cougars were quickly viewed with the ancient prejudice that Europeans had against all predators. At first, settlers thought cougars were African lions or leopards (the black phase of which is called panther). Only gradually, over a period of about a century, did Americans realize that the cougar was a distinct species. Cougar folklore combined European ideas about predators with Native American knowledge, inextricably mixing psychological fantasy with biological fact. Not until about the mid-twentieth century were scientific methods used to study cougars and determine their true nature.

Because cougars are powerful predators, settlers feared for their own safety and for their livestock. Cougars were hunted with dogs until they were believed extirpated in the eastern United States and Canada by about 1900. Widespread deforestation across the East in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, and the market hunting of deer herds almost to extirpation during that same time span, also contributed to the decline of cougars.

However, cougar sightings in remote areas never completely ceased. By the 1960s, sightings had increased to the point that the eastern cougar was believed to be possibly still existing and was listed on the first Endangered Species Act in 1973. An official U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service search for cougar sign in the late 1970s and early 1980s turned up several likely scats (droppings), but technology available at that time could not confirm them as cougar and no other confirming evidence was found. But in the 1990s, DNA analysis as well as other methods began to confirm field evidence of cougars.

Consequently, the dispute over whether cougars are present in the East has shifted. Many state and federal wildlife officials now acknowledge that some cougars may roam the eastern woods, but claim that these cats cannot be native easterners, and must be released or escaped captives from elsewhere. There is no evidence to substantiate the claim that no eastern cougars have survived. Furthermore, because of the very small sample size on which the taxonomy of the eastern cougar subspecies (Puma concolor couguar) was established, it will probably be impossible to define an "eastern cougar subspecies" even with DNA analysis. See Culver in the Bibliography below for further genetic information.

In addition to the possible survival of some eastern cougars in remote places, there are two other sources of cougars in the East. Because of the large number of credible and confirmed reports of loose cougars in cities such as Washington, D.C. (see 1998 Washington Post article at left margin), it's highly likely that some captive cougars have escaped. Several cases of declawed cougars that have escaped and been recaptured after a period of months show that former captives may be able to survive on their own.

Third, a large body of verified evidence is accumulating that documents the movement of wild cougars from west to east, and from Florida to points north. Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Iowa, Illinois and other midwestern states report cougars in areas where they haven't been seen in a century or more.

The regrowth of forests and the successful reintroduction of deer across the East in the twentieth century have now recreated good habitat for cougars. Especially in the southern Appalachians, with more than seven million acres of national forests and parks, in Pennsylvania with its extensive state forests, and in the heavily forested Northeast, the two fundamental necessities of cougar habitat -- cover and prey -- are once again sufficient to support cougar populations. The question of cougar recovery is not so much biological as psychological and political. Will human beings tolerate cougars in the East?

Cougar populations in the West were also greatly diminished by ranchers aided by government-sponsored predator eradication programs of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Some populations of western cougars have rebounded to some extent since the 1970s, when bounties on them were removed. Cougars can be legally hunted in eleven western states.

LEGAL STATUS

Eastern cougars (now known as Puma concolor couguar) and the Florida panther (now known as Puma concolor coryi) are fully protected under the Endangered Species Act. Because no one can visually distinguish these subspecies from other possible cougar subspecies in the woods, and because even DNA analysis cannot define a genetic profile for the eastern cougar subspecies, all cougars living wild in the east must be considered protected under the Act from all harm and harassment.

BIOLOGY & BEHAVIOR

There is no reason to think that cougars native to the East were significantly different in biology or behavior than cougars out West. Below are some basic facts about cougars. To find more information, see the Bibliography and Related Links.

Original Range: Cougars were native throughout most of North and South America when European colonizers arrived in 1492. Except for tundra, which offers no cover from which to ambush prey, cougars lived in every type of habitat from coastal swamps to high elevation mountains.

Home Range: Cougars are territorial and males defend their home ranges against other cougars. Size of home range varies, depending on how abundant prey animals are and what kind of ambush cover (such as trees or boulders) is available while stalking prey. Cougars in parts of Nevada have some of the smallest home ranges at about 30 square miles, while some Florida panthers (Puma concolor coryi) have the largest at 400 square miles, because of the extensive swamps that don’t support many deer. Males usually have larger home ranges that overlap the smaller ranges of several neighboring females.

Size and Color: Adult cougars weigh an average of 140 pounds and are seven feet from nose to tip of tail (tail is almost as long as the body). Color is brown to gray above and whitish below. Black cougars have been reported, especially in South America, since at least the seventeenth century (see image at left margin of 1812 book with a chapter on "The Black Cougar"), but no scientific specimen exists of a black cougar in North America. Young are born with spots that fade during the first year.

Physical Characteristics: Cougars have binocular vision, which is important for depth perception and judging distances. Their eyes allow them to hunt both day and night. They can detect ultrasonic frequencies. The cup-shaped rounded ears can move together or independently in the direction of sound. Cougars make a variety of sounds including chirps, peeps, purrs, growls, moans, whistles and screams, but they can’t roar-- only lions, leopards and jaguars can do that. Cougar screams are legendary – like a baby wailing or a woman being murdered -- but few people have ever heard them in the wild. Many other animals make sounds that might be interpreted as cougar.

Cougars easily follow scent trails because the back of the nasal cavity is densely packed with olfactory cells. The skull is short and rounded with powerful jaws and strong teeth. The heavy bones of the jaw and strong neck and shoulder muscles absorb the shock of biting large prey. Usually they bite on the back of the neck; occasionally the throat. Generally, they drag their prey out of sight and try to cover it with leaves, grass, or twigs.

Cougars prefer deer as prey, but will eat a wide variety of large and small mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians, and occasionally insects. They generally do not eat carrion, which is why they were not eradicated by the poisoned bait campaigns out West that killed so many other predators, from foxes to bears to eagles.

Cougars can jump 15 feet high and 40 feet wide, climb trees and swim rivers. They have 4 toes on the hind foot and 5 on the front, which is larger than the rear. The fifth toe on the front foot is a dewclaw which is the equivalent of our thumb. It does not touch the ground but is used to grasp prey. The heel pad has 3 lobes. Cougars keep their claws retracted, which helps keep the points extremely sharp, enables the cat to stalk quietly, and usually prevents the claws from registering on tracks.

Cougars have 30 teeth. The canines are large and used for delivering a lethal bite, preferably at the back of the neck. Their other teeth are specialized at slicing & shearing flesh.

In the wild, cougars have been known to live 12 years; in captivity, up to 20 years.

Behavior: Cougars are solitary hunters, taking prey by ambush rather than long pursuits. They stay low to the ground and use whatever cover is around. When they get close enough to their prey, they explode in a sprint of up to 35 miles per hour.

Although cougars are generally solitary except for mothers with young, they communicate through scent in urine and feces deposited in scratched up areas called scrapes. Through scrapes, cougars keep track of each other to maintain a social network based on mutual avoidance. They mate at about 2 years of age, remaining together only for a few days to a week. Mothers have a gestation period of 3 months and raise the litter without help from the males. The young stay with their mother until they are 17 to 23 months old, when they leave in search of their own territories. Females often stay close to their mother’s home range, but males usually travel farther away, sometimes hundreds of miles. Young males are at serious risk of fatal attack from all adult males, including their father.

QUOTATIONS

We welcome additions to this collection.  Send them to HelenMcGinnis@easterncougar.org

Eco-Quotes

"My real goal is to save large sections of pristine wilderness for all types of wildlife. One way to do that is to make sure that the top predators have enough safe territory to thrive in. Because big cats need so much territory, when you save them, you’re really saving whole ecosystems and you’re saving the other animals down on the food chain. This is what’s called the “apex predator strategy” in conservation."

Alan Rabinowitz, quoted in the New York Times, December 18, 2007.  Dr. Rabinowitz is executive director of science and exploration at the Wildlife Conservation Society.

****

Left unmolested in their natural habitat they are marvelously efficient predators, at the pinnacle of the food chain which in its totality ensures the overall health of the environment. This is the ecological and scientific rationale behind preservation: the pug mark as a medical certificate for the habitat as a whole.

Jug Suraiya, referring to tigers in India, but the same applies to cougars.  From an article in The Times of India, February 14, 2008

Optimism

"It's the most amazing big-carnivore comeback story in the history of the world," says biologist Maurice Hornocker. "Lions will hit the Mississippi in the next decade. The East is beautiful cat country—full of deer and cover."

Outside Magazine, May 2003.

http://outside.away.com/outside/features/200305/200305_stalker_2.html

Psycho-Quotes

... if we understood them better, we would fear them less; we over-value them, and then fright at them, They fear the lion is painted more fierce than he is; ...

"The Whole Works of the Reverend John Flavel - 1770

*****

...I explained that by protecting large areas of forest for the use of wide-ranging predators, smaller species that are not as easily studied can be protected as well.  People listen when you talk about saving big cats....Humans show an empathy for these creatures that they often don't extend to many less noticeable species.

From page 6 of Chasing the Dragon's Tail: The Struggle to Save Thailand's Wild Cats by Alan Rabinowitz. 1991.  Doubleday, 242 pp.

****

When I am hiking in grizzly bear country, ….my adrenaline levels are somewhat higher than when I'm sitting in front of my computer putting together a budget for a grant proposal. I notice everything around me-including every tree I might scamper up should Old Scarface pop up from behind a boulder. This state of mind is different from fear. It is more like the attitude one achieves in Zen meditation: aware, yet calm and unhurried. Breathing comes easily. There is no hint of fatigue and very little distraction. You hold out your hand and it's as steady as the mountain in the distance. Could this be the original harmony with nature that modern humanity has lost?

Knowing that we are not all-powerful, that there are animals around us bigger and meaner than we are, and that how we conduct ourselves is of some consequence is an enlightening experience. It is the kind of experience that would do people in our over civilized society a world of good. Of course, one can be humbled by other phenomena in nature: thunderstorms, fires, tornadoes, hurricanes, volcanic eruptions, and earthquakes-not to mention diseases. All teach the receptive observer that we are not entirely in control of our destiny. Nevertheless, something about a potential encounter with a large, hairy, and possibly violent creature really catches our attention. I believe that the feeling of humility one acquires in country inhabited by wild beasts carries over to other contexts. It makes us better persons. It also makes us acutely aware of the emptiness of landscapes that now lack their native megafauna.

Reed Noss, Pages 9-10 in Maehr, D.S, R.F. Noss and J.L. Larkin.  2001.  Large mammal restoration: ecological and sociological challenges in the 21st century.  Island Press, Washington, DC, USA

*****
Wild wolves, not made-by-humans wolves, wild grizzlies, wolverines, cougars, great spotted cats, large primates, and all their dependents should be the goal of all large “protected” areas wherever these species are found and, in supportive ways, their surrounding lands.  Having such places is a matter of humility.

Page 269 of John B. Theberge with Mary T. Theberge.  Wolf Country: Eleven Years Tracking the Algonquin Wolves.  McClelland & Stewart Inc., Toronto

*****

The return of the mountain lion, whether as individuals or in sanctioned restoration programs, will be one of the grandest opportunities---and greatest challenges---most wildlife professionals in the Great Plains, Midwest, and the East will ever face.    Jay Tischendorf  2007

Humanistic Quotes

Controls we may need, what is called game-management we may need, for we have engrossed the earth and must now play God to the other species. But deliberate war on any species, especially species of such evolved beauty and precise function. diminishes. Endangers, and brutalizes us.  If we cannot live in harmony with other forms of life, if
we cannot control our hostility toward the earth and its creature, how shall we ever learn to control our hostility toward each other?

Wallace Stegner (in McCall and Dutcher 1992)
Cougar: Ghost of the Rockies

ENCOUNTERS WITH HUMANS

Cougars are shy and generally avoid people.  Many people live entire lifetimes in cougar country out West and never see one.  Cougars have been known to follow people, apparently out of curiosity.  Fatal cougar attacks are extremely rare: a total of 18 human deaths have been documented in the past 500 years.  In comparison, dogs kill 18 to 20 humans every year.  There are simple ways to avoid or to mitigate threats from cougars.  Residents in the new housing developments rapidly being built in cougar habitat out West, for example, are advised not to feed pets outdoors, never to feed deer, and avoid landscaping designs that provide cover.  If you encounter a cougar in the woods:

1. Don’t run away – running triggers the cougar’s instinct to attack.
2. Stand tall – open your arms to make yourself big.  Speak loudly but calmly.  Keep eye contact.  Back away slowly, taking care not to trip.  Keep children close to you.
3. Fight back – if attacked, use sticks, stones, or fists.  Cougars can be driven away by resistance.

ENCOUNTERS WITH LIVESTOCK

Kills made by dogs or coyotes are frequently blamed on cougars.  Dogs, a major problem, usually injure the hindquarters.  Coyotes inflict many bites around the throat, flank and back.  Cougar sign includes a bite to the back of the neck (occasionally the throat), large canine punctures, claw marks along the shoulders, and (often but not always) drag marks and an attempt to cover the carcass.  Proper livestock management methods, such as bring animals in to safe areas during birthing or using guard dogs in pastures, can greatly reduce losses.

HOAXES

Hoaxes far outnumber legitimate confirmations of cougars in the East.  Most of them come from one of three sets of photos.  Here is one photo from each of the sets, with the actual state where the cougar was killed and/or photographed.  Go to snopes.com.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

Numerous books on cougars are available in libraries, book stores, and online services such as Amazon.com. Remember that the cougar goes by other names, and books are sometimes titled or listed under Mountain Lion, Puma or Panther.  The list annotated below by ECF volunteers Chris Bolgiano and Helen McGinnis comprises a short bibliography of books most relevant to the study of the eastern cougar.  Except for a few articles specifically relevant to eastern cougars, journal literature is not included, but is extensive and must be consulted for any in-depth research.

Adams, Jonathan S.  The Future of the Wild: Radical Conservation in a Crowded World.  2006.  267 pp.  Beacon Press, Boston.   Explains why cougars and other large carnivores are crucially important in maintaining biodiversity on the Planet Earth.

Allardyce, Gilbert. 2001. On the Track of the New Brunswick Panther: The Story of Bruce Wright and the Eastern Panther. Copyrighted by the author. 145 pp. [Copies are available Westminster Books, 445 King Street, Fredericton, NB E3B 1E5 CANADA. $16.95 US$$ or $22.03 Canadian$$ covers price, shipping and handling.

Anderson, Allen E.  A Critival Review of Literature on Puma (Felis Concolor). 1983. Colorado Division of Wildlife, Wildlife Research Section, Special Report Number 54, 1983. 91 pp. A technical summary of published research up to 1983, including evolution and taxonomy, movements and activity, prey species and interactions, nutrition requirements, mortality factors, longevity, causes of mortality and management. The author concludes that pumas may occur in the southeastern US outside of Florida and in New Brunswick. Extensive bibliography. OUT OF PRINT; available in some research libraries

Barnes, Claude T.  The Cougar or mountain lion.  Salt Lake City:  Ralton, 1960. Barnes gives many interesting historical details about cougars, such as the animal’s many names, and recounts many cougar stories.  On page 63 he describes a black cougar pelt that he personally handled.

Baron, David. The Beast in the Garden: A Modern Parable of Man and Nature.  NY:  W.W. Norton & Co., 2004. 277 pp. See Book Review by ECF volunteer Helen McGinnis. 

Bolgiano, Chris, and Todd Lester, Donald W. Linzey, and David S. Maehr.  "Field Evidence of Cougars in Eastern North America."  Presented at the 6th Mountain Lion Workshop, Dec. 12-14, 2000, San Antonio, TX.  Proceedings in publication.

Bolgiano, Chris.  Mountain Lion: An Unnatural History of Pumas and People.  Stackpole Books, 1995.  A history and contemporary overview of cougars in North America, integrating biology, folklore, and human psychology in a literary style.

Bolgiano, Chris.  Living in the Appalachian Forest:  True Tales of Sustainable Forestry.  Stackpole Books, 2002.  An exploration of the meaning of "sustainability" as it applies to postindustrial woodlands in the world's most biologically diverse temperate forest, the southern Appalachians.  Includes a chapter profiling Todd Lester, president of the ECF, and the role of cougars in the eastern woods.

Bolgiano, Chris.  The Eastern Cougar: Historic Accounts, Scientific Investigations, New Evidence.  2005.  246 pp.  Stackpole Books, Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania.  A collection of articles, documents and original contributions plus an extensive reference list. 

Autographed copies of Bolgiano's books may be purchased through the ECF store, with proceeds going to the ECF.  

Butz, Bob.  Beast of Never, Cat of God. Guilford, Connecticut:  Lyons Press, 2005. 243 pp.  Concentrates on the controversy over evidence of cougars in Michigan, which has lessons for the East.

Cardoza, James E., and Susan A. Langlois.  "The eastern cougar:  a management failure?"  Wildlife Society Bulletin 30(1): 265-273, 2002.  Discusses the history of sightings, the probability that some are of real cougars, and recommends that wildlife professionals do serious research based on standardized protocols.  

Culver, Melanie.  Molecular genetic variation, population structure, and natural history of free-ranging pumas (Puma concolor).  Dissertation.   College Park, MD:  University of Maryland, 1999.  A landmark study of genetics in 31 cougar subspecies, performed under the direction of Dr. Stephen O’Brien, an internationally known feline geneticist at the Laboratory of Genomic Diversity of the National Cancer Institute.  Five eastern cougar (Puma concolor couguar) museum samples (from NY, PA, Quebec, RI, and WV) were found with viable DNA.  Culver concludes that there is no basis for maintaining the traditional cougar subspecies taxonomy, and recommends collapsing them to six subspecies, including one for all cougars north of Nicaragua.  Because of the extremely small sample size for the subspecies traditionally called the eastern cougar, it is unlikely that any genetic profile can ever be created to distinguish this subspecies from others. See Culver's maps of traditional and proposed new cougar taxonomy on left margin. 

Culver, M., W.E. Johnson, J. Pecon-Slattery, and S.J. O’Brien.  2000.  " Genomic ancestry of the American puma (Puma concolor)."  Journal of Heredity 91(3):186-197. Click here for a pdf copy(1.6MB) of the article.

Danz, Harold P. Cougar. Athens, Ohio: Swallow Press/Ohio University Press, 1999. 310 pp. Strong points include discussion of cougar-human encounters resulting from human encroachment into cougar habitat. Brief accounts of fatal and nonfatal attacks on humans up to 1998. He gives  controversial recommendations for future management and prognosis for the cougar. Entertaining chapter on professional cougar hunters of the 17th to early 20th century. Information on status of cougars in all states and Canadian provinces. He is inclined to believe cougars occur in the East but his references are mostly prior to 1980.  

Downing, Robert L.  1981.  “The current status of the cougar in the Southern Appalachian [sic].”  In: Proceedings of The Nongame and Endangered Wildlife Symposium, Athens, GA, August 13-14.  

Downing, Robert L.  1984.  “The search for cougars in the eastern United States.”  Cryptozoology 3: 31-49.  This and the article above summarize the only official search for cougars in the East, conducted by U.S. Fish & Wildlife biologist Robert Downing.

Etling, Kathy.  Cougar attacks:  encounters of the worst kind.  Guilford, CT:  Lyons Press, 2001. Reviews the biology of cougar attacks, analyzes many cases, and discusses methods for dealing with cougars. 

Ewing, Susan, and Elizabeth Grossman, eds.  Shadow Cat: Encountering the American Mountain Lion. Seattle: Sasquatch Books, 1999. 225 pp.  A collection of thought-provoking essays that explore the relationship between the cat and humans. Authors include Rick Bass, Chris Bolgiano, Harley Shaw, Ted Williams and Terry Tempest Williams.

Hansen, Kevin.  Cougar: The American Lion. Flagstaff, AZ: Northland Publishing, 1992. Published in Association with the Mountain Lion Foundation. 129 pp.  Very comprehensive compilation of scientific research on taxonomy, biology, behavior, and interactions with humans, written in clear and accessible language.  

Harden, Blaine.  "Deer draw cougars ever eastward."  New York Times, November 12, 2002.

Hauck, K. 2000. Prey and Habitat Availability to Support a Cougar  (Puma concolor) Population in the Whiskey Jack Forest (Kenora Management Unit). M. Sc.F. Thesis. Faculty of Forestry, Lakehead University, Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada. 78 pp. (Advisor: D. Euler, PhD).

Houser, Rhonda S.  The use of geographic information systems to model habitat for Puma concolor cougar [sic] in the northern Blue Ridge of Virginia.  MS Thesis.  Richmond, VA: Virginia Commonwealth University, 2002. 

Humphreys, Charles R.  Panthers of the Coastal Plain. Wilmington, NC: The Fig Leaf Press, 1994. 200 pp. & map.  Between August 1990 and January 1993 the author personally interviewed people who saw cougars within a 40-mile radius of Wilmington. Approximately half of the sightings were black. Plotting each sighting on a detailed map of the area, Humphreys determined that they tended to appear in clusters. He concludes that the region has supported a viable population of panthers for at least 40 years, and that it has increased along with the number of deer. OUT OF PRINT.

Kirk, Jay.  "Aslan Resurrected."  Harper's Magazine, April, 2004. 

Logan, Kenneth A., and Linda L. Sweanor.  Desert Puma: Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation of an Enduring Carnivore.  Washington DC: Island Press.  2001.  During their marathon ten-year study this husband and wife team radio-collared 241 pumas and logged nearly 14,000 radio-locations in the San Andres Mountains of New Mexico.  Much more than an account southwestern pumas, it considers all major studies in the United States and Canada and includes discussions of the puma’s fossil history and the use of DNA analysis.  This technical book is not an easy read, but is a must for anyone with a serious interest in Puma concolor.

McGinnis, Helen J., Jay W. Tischendorf and Steven J. Ropski.  Proceedings of the Eastern Cougar Conference 2004.  Morgantown, West Virginia, USA.  2006.  Can be ordered from our online store.

MountainLion.net.  This is an online bibliography, with a second, annotated section.   It is maintained by KC Lamb.  http://mountainlion.net/

Proceedings of the Mountain Lion Workshops, 1976-2005.   You can get a complete set by joining the Cougar Network - http://www.easterncougarnet.org/members.html - for $30.00.  Many university libraries and libraries for professionals have these proceedings.  There are only a few articles on cougars of the East and Midwest

.Nowak, Ronald M.  The Cougar in the United States and Canada.  U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 1976. Gives a state by state history of cougars. 

Parker, Gerry.  The Eastern Panther: Mystery Cat of the Appalachians. 1998. Halifax, Nova Scotia: Nimbus Publishing Ltd., 1998. 210 pp. Parker investigated reports of panthers in Nova Scotia between 1976 and 1984. He relates stories of hunts for the last surviving eastern panthers in the 1800s and the men who killed them. His search for stuffed eastern panthers took him to museums large and small. He reviews some tantalizing reports of sightings in the 1900s and introduces us to modern-day panther hunters, who search relentlessly for more sighting reports and physical evidence. IN PRINT. Fastest way to get a copy is to order from Down East Books, P.O. Box 679, Camden ME 04843; 800-766-1670 or 207-594-9544.Or contact the author: Gerry Parker, 23 Marshview Drive, Sackville, New Brunswick, Canada, E4l 3B2. E-Mail: gerry.parker@ec.gc.ca

Ropski, Steven J. and Jay W. Tischendorf, eds.  The Eastern Cougar Conference, 1994, Gannon University, Erie, PA [Proceedings]. Contains abstracts or full text of twenty papers presented at the first and only conference devoted to the eastern cougar.  OUT OF PRINT; available in some libraries.

Shaw, Harley.  Soul Among Lions: The Cougar as Peaceful Adversary. Boulder, CO: Johnson Books, 1989. 140 pp.  This book is not directly related to eastern cougars, but Shaw’s experience as a state wildlife researcher radio-tracking mountain lions in Arizona with dogs, the knowledge that he gained from it, and his perceptions of lion hunters, guides, ranchers, environmentalists and wildlife agency bureaucrats are invaluable for anyone interested in the science of cougar study

Shaw, Harley G., Paul Beier, Melanie Culver and Melissa Grigione.  Puma Field Guide.  The Cougar Network.  2007.  111 pp.  Includes much information on identifying cougar sign in the wild by Shaw, who works in Arizona.  Unfortunately, cougar sign in the East is more difficult to find.  Can be downloaded for free from http://www.easterncougarnet.org/Assets/pumafieldguide.pdf

Taverna, Kristin, et al.  1999.  Eastern Cougar (Puma concolor couguar):  Habitat suitability analysis for the central Appalachians.  Charlottesville, VA:  Appalachian Restoration Campaign.  23 pp.  Uses four parameters -- land cover, deer density, road density, and human population density to analyze potential cougar habitat in the central Appalachians. 2,437 kb, 27 pages (large PDF) .  See map on left margin.

Tinsley, Jim Bob.  The Puma, legendary lion of the Americas.  El Paso:  University of Texas, 1987.   Illustrated with contemporary photos and reproductions of historical prints, Tinsley's book comprehensively reviews the folklore and history of cougars, including a chapter on black cougars with a photograph from Central America.

Tischendorf, Jay W. and Steven J. Ropski, editors.  1996.  Proceedings of the Eastern Cougar Conference, 1994.  American Ecological Research Institute (--AERIE), Fort Collins, Colorado USA.   __ total pages.    (The book is currently available for $25 US through Dr. Steve Ropski at Gannon University, Erie, Pennsylvania.  E-mail:  Ropski001@Gannon.edu).

 Torres, Steven.  Lion Sense: Traveling and Living Safely in Mountain Lion Country.  2nd Edition.  2005.  FalconGuide.  77 pp.  An amazing amount of information is packed into this little paperback book, written by a cougar expert in California.

Wright, Bruce S.  The Ghost of North America. New York:  Vantage press, 1959, and The Eastern Panther: A Question of Survival. Toronto: Clarke, Irwin & Co Ltd., 1972. 177 pp.   Many leading advocates of the existence of the eastern cougar owe their initial interest to Bruce Wright. He was a wildlife biologist in New Brunswick and the first to take eastern sightings seriously. In these books he recounts many sightings and experiences and explores possible explanations for the many sightings of black cougars. OUT OF PRINT; available in some libraries. 

Young, Stanley P. and Edward A. Goldman. The Puma: Mysterious American Cat. Originally published by the American Wildlife Institute, 1946. Reprinted 1964 by New York: Dover Publications. 358 pp.1946. This is the classic scientific text on American cougars and establishes the traditional taxonomy. Even though much has been learned about the life of this cat since 1946, the book is still an invaluable historical reference. Goldman's classification of subspecies is still used today, although DNA analysis suggests there may be little actual difference between these assumed categories. OUT OF PRINT; available in some libraries.

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