A cougar at Clark Lake? Don Bills says he spotted one last Thursday. “It was on Hyde road, 1/4 mile south of Reed, at 6:20am . It crossed in front of me at a quick walking pace, so I saw it for a total of maybe four seconds. He goes on to say “it looked like a younger one, not fully filled out yet–totally brown with a two-plus foot tail with a black tip on it.”
John Deming, who writes about such things, comments the DNR has received periodic reports of cougar sightings in Michigan. For years, he notes, reports have surfaced that livestock have been attacked by an unknown animal.
What does a cougar look like? “I would say most cougars are about the size of a large yellow lab, about 100-pounds with shorter legs and maybe a longer tail.” If there are cougars in our area, “you might consider where you’re walking or biking when dark. Likewise, consider the safety of your own animals.” John adds he recently “saw more than 60 deer in various fields.” And that could wet the appetite for this kind of predator. For more information, here’s Wikipedia’s take on it.
A cougar was photographed northeast of East Lansing. To read about this account and view the photo, please click here (Detroit Free Press).
Here’s a video recorded by the DNR in Mackinac County.
The following chart, from the DNR, provides insight into identifying these animals.