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"Craig Cylke"
 

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(puma concolor couguar)

With officials refusing to acknowledge its existence in the wild, the Eastern Puma risks losing protection under the endangered Species Act while fragile ecosystems of the eastern U.S. hang in the balance.

Fast Facts

• Pumas were eliminated from most of eastern North America by the turn of the 20th century due to uncontrolled hunting and trapping, habitat fragmentation and destruction, and decline in their main food supply - the white-tailed deer.

• During the 20th century, the white-tailed deer has made a dramatic comeback in the east. Without sufficient predators such as the puma, deer overpopulation is becoming a serious problem in many eastern states. History has shown that without sufficient predators in an ecosystem, those species whose numbers have not been controlled will become vulnerable to diseases that could threaten their entire populations and ultimately destroy the ecosystem.

• Through the research and hard work of organizations such as the Nature Conservancy, the Conservation Fund, and the Appalachian Restoration Campaign, habitats capable of supporting pumas remain throughout the central and southern Appalachians and in the North Woods of New England.

• Despite hundreds of puma sightings reported each year to organizations such as the Eastern Puma Research Network, many wildlife officials "vehemently deny or refuse to acknowledge panther sightings north of Florida and east of the Rockies, even ones with documented evidence." -John Lutz (Director, EPRN)
   

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Description

Eastern pumas are reddish brown-tan in color. They have white fur on the belly and under the chin. Black markings are apparent behind the ears, on the face, and on the tip of the tail. On average, they weigh between 65 to 130 pounds and grow to be 6 ft in length. Their western counterparts can grow up to 170 pounds because of availability of larger prey. Many eastern pumas have an upward turn or kink at the end of the tail and a swirl or cow lick in the middle of the back. Puma cubs are pale with spots and have rings around the tail. They lose their spots and rings at approximately six months of age.

The largest of the purring cats, the puma is also the largest cat that cannot roar. Rather, they make three distinctive sounds described as "chirping like a bird, crying like a baby, and screaming like a woman". They are known to survive in various environments including mountain forests, grasslands, swamps, and seacoasts. They can adapt to extremes of temperature as well. In addition to deer, they prey on beaver, porcupine, bobcat, rabbit, raccoon, opossum, and even fish. In the west, pumas also eat lynx and young elk or moose.

Primarily nocturnal, they are most active one hour before sunset to two hours before sunrise. This combined with their elusive nature makes proving they exist almost impossible.

History, Distribution and Controversy

Also known as cougars and mountain lions, pumas once boasted the most extensive range of any land mammal in the Western Hemisphere. From the southern tip of Chile to as far north as the Yukon, pumas once inhabited both North and South America from the Atlantic to the Pacific. By the turn of the 20th century, however, pumas were eliminated from most of eastern North America due to uncontrolled hunting and trapping, loss or fragmentation of habitat, and mass slaughter of their main food supply the white-tailed deer.

At this time, the only documented eastern pumas in the wild exist in south Florida where they are known as the Florida Panther. The remaining documented eastern pumas are found in sanctuaries and captive breeding facilities such as ours. In 1973, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service had placed the eastern puma on the U.S. Endangered Species List, affording it protection from its former persecution. However, some federal and state officials now would like to see this cat removed from the list, arguing that the puma is already extinct in the east except for Florida.

There once were believed to be 32 subspecies of puma in North and South America. In 1999, a landmark study of puma genetics by Melanie Culver indicated that no significant genetic distinction exists among all pumas living north of Nicaragua. Unfortunately, another argument for removing the eastern puma from the Endangered Species List could be based on the results of this study. By categorizing all pumas as one species, one could assert that the eastern puma is not endangered because plenty of pumas still survive out west. This is a dangerous premise because it does not consider the critical need to preserve ecological balance throughout the east.

During the 20th century, the white-tailed deer has made a dramatic comeback. Without sufficient predators such as the puma, deer overpopulation is becoming a serious problem in many eastern states. History has shown that without enough predators in an ecosystem, those species whose numbers have not been controlled may suffer starvation and become vulnerable to diseases which could threaten the entire population and ultimately destroy the ecosystem.

Does the Eastern Puma still exist North of Florida?

Several conservation groups have been investigating the puma in eastern North America for many years. The Eastern Cougar Foundation (ECF), the Eastern Puma Research Network (EPRN), and the Cat Specialist Group of the World Conservation Union's Species Survival Commission are among the most prominent. The EPRN has documented more than 5100 sightings throughout the east since 1965. The ECF reported more than 165 sightings in WV, VA, NC, PA, and NY during the year 2000. Other reported sightings in 2000 occurred in AL, IL, ME, KY, MA, WI, LA, NJ, MD, VT, OH, NH, TN, IN, AK, MI, FL, CT, MS, DE, SC, MO, GA, Ontario and New Brunswick, Canada.
 
Despite numerous sightings over the years, only a dozen were accompanied by sufficient field evidence to be confirmed by biologists. To confirm a sighting, evidence in the form of a live or dead animal, body part(s), scat, hair samples, tracks preserved in plaster, or video/photos is needed. While proof exists that pumas still survive in the east, the challenge is to prove they are reproducing in the wild. Until a confirmed sighting of a cub occurs, officials will continue to deny there are reproducing populations of pumas in the eastern U.S. Rather, they will claim the sightings are more likely to be of escaped or released captives.

Conservation groups such as the Appalachian Restoration Campaign, the Nature Conservancy, and the Conservation Fund are working to ensure the preservation of appropriate habitats and corridors throughout the eastern U.S. Research and habitat analyses to date indicate that good cougar habitat remains in the central and southern Appalachians and in the North Woods of New England. In their 2000 paper entitled Field Evidence of Cougars in Eastern North America, Chris Bolgiano, Todd Lester and David Maehr of the ECF stated, "Given the well-known regrowth of forest cover and resurgence of deer herds across the east, it's likely that human rather than biological constraints will limit the establishment of viable cougar populations".

Controversy Out West

Lately reports of cougar attacks in western North America have been on the rise. In the 1990's, 53 attacks on humans were reported in the western United States and Canada. Sensationalized by writers such as Jo Deurbrouck and Dean Miller (authors of Cat Attacks: True Stories and Hard Lessons from Cougar Country), these reports are generating an overreaction of anti-cougar hysteria in the media. The EPRN states, "research data has proven that a person has a better chance of being struck by lightning or winning a major lotto jackpot than being attacked by a cougar". The lesson to be learned here is that as humans continue to move further and further into these predators territories, we are the ones who must learn how to co-exist with them, not the other way around. A puma is naturally afraid of humans and will not venture into civilization if its habitat is supplying sufficient prey. We must ensure that adequate corridors of habitat are preserved to support these animals, both in the west and the east.

The Florida Panther story, what's to be learned?

For political and sentimental reasons, many Floridians still consider their state mammal, the Florida Panther, a separate subspecies from puma concolor couguar despite the genetic findings.

Even though it was one of the first states to afford legal protection to the puma, Florida is discovering that it no longer has sufficient habitat to support an independently viable population. After a population viability analysis in the late 1980's concluded that the
Florida panther could become extinct within 25-40 years under prevailing demographic and genetic conditions (Seal et al. 1989), the Florida government set a long-range goal to achieve three viable, self-sustaining populations within the panther's historic range. In the early 90's, several reintroduction feasibility studies were attempted in which 7-10 wild-caught Texas cougars were released along the North Florida/Georgia border. Each of these studies resulted in all pumas being recaptured due to conflicts with humans In 1995, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission initiated the six-year Florida Panther Genetic Restoration and Management Project. This study followed the reproduction patterns of six released Texas cougars and 29 Florida Panthers in the South Florida Everglades. As of 30 June 2000, 36 Texas cougar descendents were born, 21-25 of which were still considered to be alive in south Florida, bringing the total estimated population of pumas in southern Florida to 70.

Despite this modest success, biologists concluded that the reversal of prior inbreeding attributed to genetic restoration may be a relatively short-term benefit and recommended further releases of non-local cats to counter a resumption of inbreeding as part of ongoing management of the panther's genetic restoration. No doubt this ongoing management will come at a great cost to taxpayers. Fortunately, due to extensive public awareness campaigns, most Floridians feel a sense of attachment, pride, and ownership toward this cat and are not reluctant to foot the bill.

One wonders if the rest of the eastern U.S. would feel the same toward preserving this mysterious and elusive cat. The costs of mounting a regional public awareness campaign alone would be daunting, not to mention the even greater costs of research and population management. It is up to each of us to urge others to cultivate a sense of ownership, pride and responsibility toward the precious ecosystems and wildlife of our great country.

What the sanctuary is doing?

We at the Wildlife Rehabilitation Sanctuary are working to reestablish the eastern puma in the wild through our captive breeding and release program. At this time, we are working on strengthening the bloodlines of our four eastern pumas and 13 western cougars through selective breeding as deemed necessary. However, our goal of releasing puma offspring to the wild cannot be achieved until funding is raised to create a 5-acre natural habitat in which puma mothers will raise their cubs for two-year periods without direct human contact prior to release. Thanks to a generous donation from the Howard Buffet Foundation, we now have the land needed. The remaining cost for habitat preparation and maintenance is $235,000 (Please see our Projects Web page).


What you can do

Talk to those around you about the plight of the eastern puma. You can write to your governor or senator to urge them to keep the eastern puma on the Endangered Species List. You can volunteer for local grassroots organizations such as ours to help raise awareness in your community. You can keep checking our Web site for updated information and petitions that you can print, sign and submit to government officials as new issues arise. You can also help us to raise funds to complete our planned 5-acre natural re-release puma habitat. You can go to local schools and urge them to participate in our outdoor education programs. You can contact local media and urge them to cover this story and to bring publicity to our efforts (the media will not support us if they don't feel the public is interested). Perhaps most importantly, be persistent and don't give up. Your voice is the most powerful tool you have, you can make a difference!