This cast of a paw print left in a Wheaton creek bed on Sept. 15 by an unknown animal could belong to a cougar, according to Brookfield Zoo officials. There have been multiple big-cat sightings in the area.
Posted on 09/17/2009 5:43:11 PM PDT by JoeProBono
A paw print discovered in Wheaton could be that of a cougar, wildlife experts said today — a day after another expert doubted that it was.
Wheaton police said today that evidence technicians successfully lifted a paw print from a creek bed after a resident reported seeing a large, black or dark-colored cat there.
The castings were taken to Brookfield Zoo, where several experts examined the castings and photographs of the paw prints. Results of the examination, however, were inconclusive, police said.
The mammal curator ruled out the print being from a canine or fox, but said it was consistent with a large cat, possibly a medium-sized cougar or other exotic cat, police said.
But Mike Brown, lead keeper for carnivores at the zoo, said Wednesday that full-grown cougars, which usually weigh more than 100 pounds, leave much larger prints, possibly 5 to to 6 inches across.
“These weren't even close,’’ he said. The tracks also appeared to be too shallow, he said. “These prints could have been from almost anything.’’
Whatever it is, Wheaton police continue to patrol the area and residents are reminded to supervise children and pets, and not to leave pet food outside.
[Wheaton, Illinois, a distinctive community of 55000 residents situated just west of Chicago.]
This cast of a paw print left in a Wheaton creek bed on Sept. 15 by an unknown animal could belong to a cougar, according to Brookfield Zoo officials. There have been multiple big-cat sightings in the area.
<
ew. That’s a knarly looking kitty. I don’t think I’d pet it.
He’s sorta pi**ed because he was woke up by this guy taking his picture. He was perfectly content to lay in the middle of the yard asleep, trucks going around him, until this guy showed up ....
Coyotes are thick as frigging thieves around here now. A Bobcat wouldn't surprise me in the least.
Sorry, not buying it. It looks too symetrical for a cat to me. Dogs have very symmetrical paws, cats have a smaller “pinky” toe...iirc.
Lemme guess...you run the scales at a metal recycling center or something like that?
If no claws show in the print, it is likely not a canid print.
I thought my cat was big. That’s a big kitty there.
Wow all attitude. Gotta love it!
That is one terrible casting...size looks to be in the area of 3”Lx2”W from a wet scene...actual size would be proporionetly less... small bobcat size at the most...I would tend to call it large domestic cat or a similar size exotic...but, since it is just a photo of a poor casting the only thing I will say for certain is that I wouldn’t lose any sleep over it.
“A paw print discovered in Wheaton could be that of a cougar”
Stifler’s Mom!
Such a poor cast, it’s hard to tell. Cat prints generally don’t look so laterally compressed, and well cared for dogs often have their nails trimmed to a point where they don’t leave a mark. Given the area, I’d bet dog.
ROFLMAO!!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.