Posted on 07/10/2018 6:44:52 AM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin
There have been some new developments in the case of the black panther reported to have been seen by some rural Prairie du Chien (WI) residents.
The panther (also known as a cougar) has killed several pigs, a calf and probably a Boston terrier, said Larry Stluka, who lives about four miles north of Prairie du Chien along Highway 27. It has also damaged a cow and two other dogs according to Larry.
A panther, an adult male according to Larry, has now been photographed on Larry’s farm. Larry said the panther was photographed by Austin Mezera, 17, who is Larry’s neighbor. The panther was photographed with a smart phone and appears to have only three full legs. One of the front legs appears to be short. It was photographed from about 75 yards away and it is hard to tell how big the cat is in the photo.
Also, a Boston terrier named Tikki, who was previously terrorized by a panther, has now gone missing and is presumed by Larry to have been killed by the black panther.
Larry says there is a female adult black panther in the vicinity of his property with at least two kittens. There is also the adult male, possibly with only three full legs. Panther kittens can stay with the mother for up to the first two years of their lives. Larry says he has seen the kittens as well.
In addition, two teenagers and two children have heard growling on Larry’s property.
A few weeks ago, Larry’s 5-year-old step grandson Miles, along with Larry’s wife, went down a hill to pick mulberries when they said they saw, presumably, the female adult panther at about 10 a.m. from about 100 yards. They saw it for about 10-15 seconds, said Larry’s wife, who wished not to be named in this article.
“I saw something low, black, long and fast,” said Larry’s wife. “There’s no calf that can move that fast.” Larry’s wife said she then found a cow hiding behind a tree because it was scared.
Larry’s wife also said she saw the panther on a previous night at about 10:30 p.m. She had a flashlight, but she could only see the panther’s eyes, which she said where yellowish-green. Larry later walked off the distance and it was about 16 yards.
“It was staring right at me. It turned its head and then looked back at me. That’s when I stepped back and ran to the house,” Larry’s wife said. “Now, I don’t let Miles go out of my sight.”
Larry said his neighbors mostly have had a complacent attitude about the black panthers so far. He also said, however, that one neighbor has told Larry that he is a friend and is willing to help.
Larry said his neighbors haven’t seen or heard any coyotes or raccoons in the area lately.
Larry has always maintained that he knows not too many people will believe him, but he doesn’t care if they believe him or not. He would like to warn everyone, however, and he would also like some help in trying to photograph one of the panthers on a trail camera, or perhaps shoot one.
“This female is becoming more and more dangerous,” Larry said. “Because she needs to feed her babies.” He said he fears for the safety of children who live in the area.
A couple of Larry's sows have been in a fight with the panther and are now very wary.
In fact, about a week ago, Larry positioned himself about 10 feet off the ground on a skid loader bucket at night and had two firearms. He watched a sow and her piglets who were nearby. There was a yard light that lit up the area somewhat. Larry said the sow sat up on her butt at one point and stared straight ahead for about eight to 10 minutes without moving, which is quite unusual.
He didn’t see the panther or her young, but he did hear them. Larry heard a grunting sound from the mother calling one of the kittens back.
A short time later, a neighbor’s donkey “cut loose” with a lot of noise and awhile after that another neighbor’s dog cut loose, said Larry.
“This is getting serious,” said Larry. “These things can hide in a cornfield, oats or hay. She needs to kill on a regular basis for her babies.”
Larry has been in contact with the DNR on several occasions. He said a biologist in Boscobel has been pretty helpful, but the DNR has only one trail camera available. Larry said he needs several trail cameras, however. He also doesn’t have a computer onto which he could upload any trail cam photos.
Larry said he would like to buy or borrow, for maybe several months, an older horse that can stand for hours and that he could shoot off of.
There is currently no evidence that cougars are breeding in Wisconsin, according to the DNR. Biologists believe the cougars known to have entered Wisconsin are male cougars dispersing from a breeding population in the western United States.
According to the DNR website, no black phases of cougar have been documented in North America, only South America. On rare occasion, cougars and other large cats have a melanistic condition which makes their fur black.
Misread: “Melanistic and non-melanistic...can be illiterates.”
*sigh* Time for new glasses.
I remember that. It was in Philly, right? BTW, did you ever read “Rendezvous” by Nelson De Mille?
I thought the Pantera was a car designed by Ford.
“’ve got a 20 pound, all black male cat that looks like that from about 10-15 yards away. Or this is a black cougar from 100 yards away.”
Out here in the country my elderly neighbor called this past weekend ranting about seeing a black wildcat in her yard.
The critter walked up to our patio and meowed. Big black house cat.
Black bears will eat anyone they think is easy prey.
Zot was not out this weekend!
I think it was Philadelphia.
I haven’t read Rendezvous yet. I like Nelson DeMille but I’ve kinda gotten away from reading books (shame on me). I spend too much time online. I do have a beach trip coming up, and that’s traditionally the time I hit that library and load up on books. Thanks for the reminder.
Yes they do, but there is a heluva size difference. Jaguars or black jaguars are the next largest cat after lions and tigers.
Are there exceptions in the law for animals preying on livestock? Or in the vicinity of children? “ I feared for the life of my child, Officer....”
Shoot.
Shovel.
Shut up...........................
Cougars are not protected in Iowa, or in Wisconsin AFAIK. Several have been killed in Iowa in recent years, one I know of by a deer hunter.
Wouldn’t say they were wiped out. Diminished,certainly, and made to fear men and dogs. Don’t forget the tranny mountain biker killed in Washington. There was one north of here, in the Oregon dunes...cougar, not tranny, that was fearless enough that people would drag things behind their ATVs for it to chase and swat at.
News just reported a sighting in Springfield, OR, yesterday. Hunting with dogs was outlawed quite some time ago.
‘Science” has spoken. Same thing they said about the mountain gorilla, the Bili Ape, the coelacanth, etc. I guess there are no Federal global warming dollars to be had by theorizing about the black panther’s possible existence.
When a hunter shoots one and brings it in, they’ll just change the subject. :)
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.