Another Angle On The Big Pusscat Story.

[junkman]

Al, your right. They didn't say any thing about a breading population but that Missouri had some cats. And like someone said the MDC does acknowledge that they are here. But actually they have been wandering through for many years. A question I have concerning cats is, where did all the bobcat go? 20 years ago I seen a bobcat at least once a week but now I haven't seen one for many years. Maybe the big cat chased the little cats off. that's my theory and I'm sticking to it.

[Chief Grey Bear]

Chief, I was just Typing outload lol.

I was figuring that but wasn't real sure. You don't live far from "Bigfoot" land. Just over west a bit and a little south of you in the moutains of okie land they claim to have one there. Funny thing is, these super great cameras seem to never get a clear pic. Always real grainy.

A question I have concerning cats is, where did all the bobcat go? 20 years ago I seen a bobcat at least once a week but now I haven't seen one for many years. Maybe the big cat chased the little cats off. that's my theory and I'm sticking to it.

They are still here. And I say in higher numbers than 20 years ago. Food is now much more abundant for them since there has been a huge down turn in trapping. And they are not worth much either.

[Outside Bend]

I never really meant it as a conspiracy theory, because they are obviously here. Was this just a bad year on the old home range and a group of males decide to head to Missouri and see if they could scare up a little tail? There must be a breeder in the woods around here somewhere.

Perhaps the males aren't looking for females. They're young, curious, perhaps feeling a bit experimental, shunned by their parents out west...perhaps they prefer the company of other males.

Hey- there's as much evidence for it as there is for a breeding population in the Ozarks

[Wayne SW/MO]

I doubt that young male cats are exempt from looking for love in all the wrong places.

[drew03cmc]

I know for a fact there is a breeding pair in Linn County, KS and probably Bates County, MO. We, at work at KCPL at La Cygne, KS last summer saw a VERY large cat, and yes, I know what I am looking at, wandering the hills there. A day later, we saw a baby. Probably a YOY, and little less than half the size of the one the previous day. We were no more than about two miles into Kansas. The fuel foreman at Iatan Power Plant in Weston, MO has pictures of two cougars swimming in the flood waters just outside the cooling towers. You can see the length of the tail and the cat is by far larger than a bobcat, which also roam these parts. I have seen bobcats out on jobsites as well, right along tree lines and, to be honest, I have no idea how the hell people confuse the two. I guess the KDWP and the MDC are feeding the same lines of crap regarding these magnificent cats. They are present, and they are going to be here for awhile. Enjoy them.

[skeeter]

Surprisingly, recent DNA testing has proven that not all Black Bears in MO have AR origins. read: http://www.semissourian.com/story/1737623.html?response=no

Could the same thing have happened with Cougars ? Maybe, but probably not according to MDC DNA testing, but one thing is for sure...with the abundant food supply in the State, there will eventually be breeding populations here.

Then there was the Wolf shot by a hunter thinking, at first, it was a big Coyote : http://freshare.net/article/dna_tests_shed_light_on_mo_cougar_wolf_sightings/ Turned out to be another traveler.