Those licenses remain available and 2. Its a matter of perspective. They ran across my yard, moving alongside my house, then disappeared into the woods. A hunter mentor must be 21 years of age and possess a valid, current hunting license or otherwise qualify for a license and fee exemptions. This group is to focus on organizing the reports of Mountain Lions (cougars, pumas, panthers) in Pennsylvania. Mountain lions are found in mountains, coniferous forests, grasslands, swamps, and dry scrublands. Anyone, ages 11 and up, can currently register for Pennsylvanias online Hunter-Trapper Education course. Eyes are normal and are not light sensitive, and the over-all color, generally black, is usually not detrimental and may actually be of benefit. A variety of entities handle road-killed deer removal throughout the state and the region office can clarify the proper authorities to notify based on the location of the animal. Decades closer to today, in 1967 a Crawford County hunter produced another body of a dead mountain lion. On a recent stifling morning in Adams County, the 290-pound mountain lion with perfect bone structure is ignoring the raw chicken breast and pork chops a handler tossed into his pen. Cougars were officially declared extinct east of the Mississippi in the 1930s. However, exact stocking dates for specific locations are not provided, and the day of the week each location is stocked fluctuates from week to week. It could, of course, also be an exceptionally big house cat, but how to find out? But no one that I've communicated with had these preconceptions, and seeing what they saw was a complete surprise. Our smaller Siberian, Mace, is 12 (one foot) at the shoulder and weighs a good 15 pounds. What do I think of the Canon 1D Mark IV? In books I've read critical or skeptical or down-right dismissive of the idea of pumas in the East, the argument has been advanced that the hopefull puma-dreamer/spotters arguing that the State needs to prove pumas don't exist does not mean that in the State not proving this means that pumas indeed do exist in this state. I've spoken to PGC personnel, two being friends, and neither believe there are pumas in Pa. One cited how a bobcat's tail can be much longer than you expect, although I've never seen a bobcat tail longer than, at most, twice the size of the tails illustrated above of the bobcat. They reduce deadly deer-vehicle collisions and help maintain the health and viability of prey species by removing sick individuals and by reducing the spread of deadly diseases such as chronic wasting disease, an epidemic plaguing deer and elk herds throughout the country. License fees cannot be increased without approval of the General Assembly. Click here to read more about state game lands regulations. SUNDAY HUNTING:It is unlawful to hunt on Sundays except foxes, crows and coyotes. What is the Game Commission doing to manage CWD? The other three images are from my file, selected to most closely approximate the pose of the cat from the game camera. So, couldn't that same argument apply to pumas in the Northeast? We will get through this pandemic together and the Game Commission appreciates the publics compliance and support. American martens have large home ranges averaging over 3.2 mi and populations have relatively low density in comparison to most other wildlife species within the state. There is also a drop of 7 inches from the top step to the ground/grass outside. Isnt trapping inhumane and indiscriminate? The burn area will be closed to public access through a variety of notification methods, including signage at the game lands and through the Game Commission's online Hunter Notification map. Their are two web sites I know of that dealt with eastern pumas, with the one, the Eastern Puma Research Network, concentrating on sightings in the east. The agency employs more than 200 habitat management staff, which includes foresters and land managers, many of whom participate on burn crews as one of their many duties. If the test fire achieves expected results, and weather conditions remain within the prescription, crews will begin burning along the firebreak on the downwind or uphill side of the unit to widen the control line, which helps to ensure that the remainder of the burn will stay contained. However, if it doesn't exist, and if someone saw one, wouldn't there be a worry that it was a dangerous escapee? For example, one man I interviewed said he saw a 'black' puma, and this should disqualify his sighting as a black puma has never been recorded. Now, if there were any escapes, and if any of these bred with a possible minuscule number of eastern pumas, a relic native population, wouldn't the gene pool be corrupted? Occasionally, they may become ulcerated resulting in secondary bacterial infections, which would make the deer unfit for consumption. What is the mission of the Pennsylvania Game Commission? Call the region office that serves the county where the animal is located, directly. I have received about two dozen reports during that time, including one. Do Billionaires Send Their Kids To School? *Interestingly, that following spring, we had a horrendous stench wafting in from the nearby woods. Why stock pheasant that cant survive? Disease Management Areas are found in all or parts of Adams, Armstrong, Bedford, Berks, Blair, Cambria, Centre, Clarion, Clearfield, Cumberland, Fulton, Franklin, Huntingdon, Indiana, Jefferson, Juniata, Lancaster, Lebanon, Mifflin, Perry, Somerset, Snyder, Union and Westmoreland counties. All of the above images are of bobcats. Are there Mountain Lions (Pumas, Cougars) in Pennsylvania and the Mid-Atlantic States? Students must be at least 11 years old to enroll in a class. Will Chris Rock joke about Will Smith's Oscars slap during live Netflix comedy special? Providing contact information for the landowner is the quickest and easiest way for a game warden to verify a landowner has granted permission to a hunter. But please note that it is unlawful to put food out around the camera to attract wildlife to the area. Hunters and trappers buying licenses online will continue to be mailed all durable-stock license panels, including harvest tags, and will also be given access to eLicenses. And this genetic mix has been recognized, and the Florida puma is still protected. How are waterfowl seasons set? Second, antlerless allocations are set at the WMU to harvest a targeted number of antlerless deer. During the fall season any turkey can be harvested because jakes, young males, are difficult to distinguish from females this time of year. The Game Commission has a carefully timed season that intentionally finds middle ground between peak gobbling and a safe nesting period. About twice the size of a housecat, the distinct stubby tail gives the bobcat its common . Penn's Woods is our state's nickname due to our forests, which blanket more than 60 percent of our state, and more than 92 percent of our state game lands. Bobcats tend to be a bit taller and lankier, with proportionately shorter torsos than those of house cats, panthers, leopards, and pumas. Crews will remain on site until they are sure the fire is contained to the burn unit and is out cold along the firebreaks. Where can I find a local hunting license vendor? Absolutely, not. The elk rut is triggered by photoperiod (day length) and generally begins around the middle of September and carries through early- to mid-October. States have tried all kinds of strategies to bring down the number of crashes, from capturing and sterilizing deer to encouraging hunters to go open season. What are the wart-like bumps that can grow on deer? What are the benefits of having a concurrent antlered and antlerless deer hunting season? What species can a mentored hunter hunt? If a bear on your property becomes a nuisance by being destructive or dangerous, you can report it to the Game Commission region office that serves the county in which its located. While the chances that I'll ever see a puma in Pennsylvania myself are virtually zero, I'm always on the alert -- for the bobcat I've never seen in Pa., for a fisher, bear, deer, red salamander, toad, or snake, and yes, I'm always hoping that I too will become one of those who saw something that officially cannot exist within the state, a puma I know I saw but, of course, could not have! *Please note: Junior hunters, ages 12 and 13, must be accompanied by an adult member of their family, (at least 18 years of age), or by an adult serving in the place of a parent. Still, our research shows females (both juvenile and adult) comprise a larger portion of the fall harvest than males. Biology. I had three cameras positioned, so had a cat visited, I'd have had it. With lots of hens breeding in the spring, turkey populations can rise quickly. Some biologists thinks it's time to bring them back to help manage deer populations. Interestingly, the US Fish and Wildllife Service has declared the Eastern Puma extinct, except for the Florida population known as the Florida panther. More information about dove hunting in Pennsylvania, as well as managed dove fields on game lands is available here. But even that little guy isn't prowling the Poconos yet. All of these forests are, with few exceptions, open to hunting, and hunting is a very important industry in Pennsylvania, New York, West Virginia, Maryland, and Virginia. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). Cougars had long been targeted by early American settlers paranoid over livestock losses, the agency found, with some states going so far as to offer bounties for dead cougars. The rounded ears, In fact, the woods literally abut my backyard. Hold your ground and back away slowly. If the pine marten requires this much paperwork, one can imagine where that leaves cougars. Consider planting vegetation that provides both food and cover. Harvest tags will continue to be issued in physical form on durable stock. As many as 1,300 elk freely roam across 3,000 square miles in the northcentral region of the state. The image in the Upper Left was from a Game Camera, sent to me by a friend. A game warden can prove that an attempt to tag the animal was made based on the evidence of a hole in the ear. If cougar reintroduction were to become a serious consideration, the game commission would first need to conduct a feasibility assessment, a "long and careful process," in Keller's estimation, that ends with a recommendation for or against reintroducing a species. Do not feed deer. Thank you in advance for helping to protect Pennsylvania wildlife! How Can Hunters Modernize Antlerless Deer License Applications? Pennsylvania has more roads and hunters than just about every other state in America. (National Park Service). Since there is no treatment or cure, limiting deer contact and interaction by increasing deer harvests across DMAs is one of the only ways to manage CWD on the landscape. This confirms the drop. Species such as grouse and rabbits are eaten infrequently while species such as turkey and goshawk were not identified within remains found in diet research. Deer aging crews visit processors to examine deer heads to collect age, sex, harvest location and hunter information. *Please note: While we try our best, we are not always able to respond to every inquiry. I used myself taken by the same camera and in the same exact location for reference, and as you can see from the frame below, my feet and ankles are missing. Rather than restrict opportunity and reduce harvest rates by reducing the amount of information provided, the Game Commission prefers to give each individual hunter the freedom to include their personal preferences on density of other hunters when deciding when and where to hunt stocked pheasants. With a decline in turkey population, why not eliminate the second Spring Gobbler tag? And a bit of an unpleasant one at that, as they now faced ridicule or doubt whenever they discussed their sightings. But Ill leave it up to you, my readers. Cougars, on the other hand, typically range from 23-28 inches at the shoulder (with some odd reports listing 35 inches maximum), with a weight ranging from 75-250 pounds . According to the commission, the last Pennsylvania mountain lion was killed in the late 1800s. My next step was to gauge the shoulder height of the cat. If you see or photograph a puma in the mid-Atlantic states, please email or call me. Except for Florida, the eastern mountain lion is believed to have extricated from the east coast by 1900. Recently, on a back road in Pennsylvania, a friend and I had our first sighting of a coyote in Pennsylvania. If it is a cougar/mountain lion, its probably a young one thats wandering around, looking for food. Eastern mountain lions lived in central Pennsylvania until the late 1800s, according to Foster. Based on the available imagery, its impossible for me to say with confidence whether were looking at a huge bobcat or a small cougar/mountain lion. Pennsylvania is home to the largest wild elk herd in the northeastern United States. A Hunting &Trapping Digest will be included with your license/permit purchase at no additional cost. (PennLive has investigated many reports of mountain lions, and other mystery creatures, and has found no confirming evidence. Open Records Officer: Pennsylvania Game Commission, 2001 Elmerton Avenue; Harrisburg PA 17110-9797, 717-787-4250, pgcrtk@pa.gov. When he told me this, he commented on how an experience like the one he and his friends had just is not forgotten. New hotline info. When encountering young wildlife, be it deer, birds, rabbits or other animals, the Game Commission urges Pennsylvanians to resist the urge to interfere with young wildlife or remove any wild animal from its natural setting, for the protection of humans and wildlife. Can so many people be wrong? Follow these guidelines to prevent the spread of the disease: 1. How many elk are there in Pennsylvania? Over the last few months several people have responded to this question with reports of their own. Bear licenses can also be purchased at an issuing agent where they can walk out the door with the license that same day. Those wishing to follow the agency online can do so on the following social media platforms: Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Hunters will continue to mail antlerless-license applications to county treasurers, as required by law. With industrial expansion into the heart of Pennsylvania in the 1700s, mountain lion sightings and attacks became more common as habitat destruction pit settlers against native predators.. The primary goal of the Pennsylvania Game Commission's Pheasant Propagation Program is to provide a quality game bird for regulated hunting opportunities. This responsive harvest framework recommends a reduced late season when grouse populations are low, then increasing late season length as populations improve. It wasn't, and I assumed it was a road-kill. What factors are causing turkey populations to decline? How Can I Contact the Pennsylvania Game Commission? Everyone is familiar with albinism, the absence of pigmentation that results in a white, essentially pigment free animal, defined by pink skin and pink eyes. It is best to call the region office directly because the region dispatcher might have additional questions for the caller about an exact location, the time the animal was witnessed or other something else. The above frame, although admittedly still amorphous, is at least telling. If you're interested in this, please pass on this link, and if you see a cat, please let me know! Most of the people I've spoken with live in this belt, but biologists friends I've spoken with have told me of their own reports, first-hand, from hunters in the Poconos who saw pumas, too. How do I report my snow goose harvest? They cover large areas of the state; in fact, many counties only have one game warden assigned. Most, quite honestly, don't know or can't believe or accept what they saw, they really can't believe their eyes. Wild animals constantly search for food and many will find the easy food source you provide. How do I report suspected wildlife crimes? Their bodies are mainly covered in tawny-beige fur, except for the whitish-gray belly and chest. The Pennsylvania Game Commission is seeking knowledgeable and experienced individuals to pass on the tradition and teach both basic and advanced hunter education training programs. PHILADELPHIA (AP) An instinct coiled way down in the human brain knows the difference between a bobcat and a mountain lion. Game wardens conducted a full investigation and concluded that Alyssa did indeed act in self defense. American marten weigh between 1-3 lbs. Second, antlers are often the first thing removed from a deer when processing begins. The agency is primarily funded by hunting and furtaker license sales, as well as State Game Lands timber, mineral, oil/gas revenues, a federal excise tax on sporting arms and ammunition, and assets that have been procured with license dollars. The cat mustve been after the deer that regularly invade my yard at night, usually to eat my neighbors arborvitae trees and my holly bushes.*. Wild trapped pheasants are released with the goal of establishing populations of at least ten hens per square mile in the spring. If you are not and would like to read this and all the other great content OutdoorNews.com has to offer, click here . If a cow is not bred in her first estrus cycle, she will recycle approximately every 21 days, providing additional opportunities for conception. However, numerous studies have shown that although a few birds may survive long enough to reproduce, viable wild populations are not produced. The maximum weight for a large male is listed at 40 pounds. Interesting, too, are the reports I've heard from people who were told that they would be in big trouble if they shot a puma. How can I help to prevent negative human-bear interactions on my property? Cutaneous fibromas, more commonly known as deer warts, are a relatively common skin ailment of deer. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. Unfortunately, at times, our wardens are not able to respond to every incident and they must use their best judgement on which calls to respond to first. If we say it ain't so, it ain't so! The northeastern U.S. population is thought to have disappeared in the 1930s. Why not work to establish a wild population in Pennsylvania? Although there was no evidence that the 2011 mountain lion ever set foot in Pennsylvania, DNA evidence confirmed that it had been both west and east of the state. This can lead to property damage, or worse, dangerous human-bear interactions. There is one significant change to Pennsylvania waterfowl seasons for the upcoming season which drops the bag limit during the regular season in the Atlantic Population (AP) goose zone to one Canada goose a day. Several states have shortened or closed their grouse season after grouse populations crashed. Had this been faked, I'd suspect the hoaxter would try for a more authentic background. Crews are highly trained and qualified to light fires in a way that allows wildlife to escape, often with crew members walking through units before and during burns to ensure the area is clear of wildlife. Are the Latest Fast CF Cards worth the Expense? They are wart-like, hairless tumors caused by a virus. If you took a hunter or trapper education course before the above dates, you must complete a Hunter Education Program Replacement Certificate Affidavit (PDF) form, which can be downloaded from this site. Cougars also called mountain lions or pumas are uniquely suited to hunt and kill deer, who not only cause traffic accidents but overgraze to the point of endangering native species and eliminating habitats for smaller animals. So how or why could there be a conspiracy? I've done this myself once, in Tanzania, when I saw a black house cat that I thought was a black leopard! Although it is beneficial to provide contact information in case game wardens have follow-up questions, callers may remain confidential. The virus is species-specific and poses no known threat to people or other animals. Office of Open Records: Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Office of Open Records, Commonwealth Keystone Building, 400 North Street, 4th Floor, Harrisburg, PA 17120-0225. Well, right behind our property lies a mountain ridge, one of several that makes a continuous forest that extends, with little interruption, for scores of miles in three directions. 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