About
Friends of Connecticut Mountain Lion organization, also known as "Cougars of the Valley", devoted to research and education of children and adults on the value of mountain lions return to North East of United States.
Cougars of the Valley was founded by Bo Ottmann in 2007.
(860) 324-3174
cougarsofthevalley@hotmail.com
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Important Trail Camera Initiative, Please Read!
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Colin McEnroe Show: Are Wild Mountain Lions Back In Connecticut?
interview with Bo Ottman and Susan Frechette, CT Dept. of Environmental Protection
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Mountain lions in Connecticut? – REPUBLICAN-AMERICAN
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Article about Cougars of the Valley on FarmingtonValley.Net
October 7th, 2010 - 00:21
i just witnessed a cougar iun connecticut i was in norwich ct in the industrial park coming down the hill it starred at me for a while and walked into the woods by the yantic river i got out the car to get a picture but it had wondered in the woods to far
October 27th, 2011 - 17:17
Hi Chance,
I’m a reporter for The Mercurial in Danbury, CT. I was hoping I could get a few quotes from you via email for an article I’m writing on Mr. Ottman and his organization. Please let me know if you’re interested.
Best Regards,
Pete Mauerman
mauerman.peter@gmail.com
themercurial.com
September 6th, 2011 - 12:44
In July 2011 while we were on vacation, my neighbor witnessed a mountain lion strolling through our yard. He along with his two sons saw it. Then last week my son also witnessed seeing a mountain lion again strolling through our yard and was playing at the same neighbors house.
We are off of HopBrook Road near Simsbury Farms.
I can’t believe I would have said to myself…I can handle bears but now I have to watch out for mountain lions?
Marcie
October 27th, 2011 - 17:11
Hi Marcie,
I’m a reporter for The Mercurial in Danbury, CT. I was hoping I could get a few quotes from you via email for an article I’m writing on Mr. Ottman and his organization. Please let me know if you’re interested.
Best Regards,
Pete Mauerman
mauerman.peter@gmail.com
themercurial.com
September 19th, 2011 - 23:35
Has anyone heard about a mountain lion that was hit by a car in Simsbury today (9/19/11) near Nod Road/Bridge/Biggest Tree in CT? A friend said his cousin saw it, and people had stopped to take pictures of it.
January 29th, 2012 - 10:21
I know the animal control officer in Simsbury – no such event ever happened.
January 21st, 2012 - 13:54
I was traveling south on route 2 at the Lebanon Bozrah line on thursday Jan. 19th when I caught a glimpse at what appeared to be a large cat. It was trotting like a cat but was the size of a german shepard. Unfortunetly the the road conditions required alot of my attention and so I did not get as good a look at the animal as i would have liked to.
August 3rd, 2012 - 08:21
This summer there have been several sightings in Ashford. No one has gotten any pictures of the mountain lion but I did get a pic of paw print. When I called DEP they really did not want to hear about it. They ended up telling me that mountain lions do not live in this part of the country. To many responsible people in my area have seen this huge cat for it not to be true! Why is DEP denying this stuff!!!
Also DEP said it must have been mistaken for a bobcat, fox or coyote. This big cat had a long tail rounded ears and weighed about 80 lbs. Bobcats have short tale and pointed ears. Has anyone else out there in Ashford seen this big cat?? I guess we need to carry a camera at all times!!
August 3rd, 2012 - 20:39
Hello Kate,
Out here in the west where we have breeding populations of mountain lions, the general statistic on lion sightings is that in about 80% of the sightings, no lion is involved. Accordingly, authorities are hesitant to spend resources to follow up in areas where there are no known cougar populations. However, second to a photo, is finding tracks, scrapes, scratches, or a cached deer. These are excellent signs.
I hope that Connecticut will welcome these magnificent cats. However, since female pumas (another of many names for mountain lions) are somewhat philopatric, it may take a while for breeding cats to establish.
Did you compare your photo to the tracks shown on this site’s Facts Page? That would certainly get people interested.
February 3rd, 2013 - 21:36
There was a gentleman I met while installing his cable tv in Pomfret. Up around We Like it Ice cream stand. Trail cam picture of what looked to be a MT Lion.. Long body with the long curved tail, the head was hidden behind a tree… I believe they are around. You have to make sure, since I have seen a few Coyotes with such bad mange the ears were eaten away and the tail was almost bare, hanging very low…
Most people who post I believe might have seen a coyote, wild dog or yes the bobcat. I have seen bobcats with longer stubs than usual..
August 24th, 2012 - 18:13
I was walking my dog yesterday morning, Thursday, August 23, 2012, when a very large, (the size of a full grown labrador retriever), blonde-colored wild cat pounced out of the power lines and crossed the street to the other side of the power lines, directly in front of me. It appeared to me to be a mountain lion but when I called the local official, he didn’t seem to believe me. I then researched on line and found this website which confirmed that, while rare, these sightings are very possible. I’d love to know if there have been any other sightings in my area of Lincoln, RI.
August 24th, 2012 - 22:03
Hi Diane,
There is another sighting in Lincoln July 23 near Kenbrin Swim & Tennis Club. Please contact me, so I may discuss this further.
Sincerely,
Randy Osga
401-952-7435
September 11th, 2012 - 08:45
I am sickened by the mountain lion from S. Dakota who was run over inCT as well as all of the roadkill/sightings the DEP is denying. Thx. 4 your comments. I am creating art that addresses this story/tragedy.
January 12th, 2013 - 14:56
i am positive that the mountaion lion documented in greenwich is the same one hit on the Merritt in Milford weeks later cause my question is how did that lion cross the housitonic river that goes from long island sound all the way to Kent ??
September 12th, 2012 - 12:06
I live in Northeast Arkansas, near Arkansas State University. On Saturday morning, 9-08-2012, after an overnight Thunderstorm, my daughter and I took our dog (~ 75 lbs.) out. We found very large tracks (~ 4” or more in width) that looked… maybe like wolf, which I had not studied, so we got online to verify our suspicion and to our amazement, the tracks looked more like cougar tracks! I stayed up all night researching and could only conclude by all the examples, that the tracks were most likely cougar. Research stated that the cats have been absent for about 100 years, but that they are suspected of beginning to repopulate. They seem to believe that males travel the farthest, looking for new territory ranges for solitude. This set of tracks also included what looked like a small (~ 1.5″) print…?? …maybe a cub. I took very good pictures with a 12″ ruler next to the prints and with our dog standing near, so that one could appreciate the size of the prints. Tell me who in this area I could trust to involve and make plaster casts to verify, that it is a cougar, if it is. Remember this area was the site of the Westside Middle School shooting March 24, 1998. People of this area love guns and hunting and someone would love to shoot this cat for a trophy (doesn’t help the reputation of Arkansans). Please help me soon, because the tracks are already four days old, and although I have buckets over them, I think we are suppose to get more rain in a day or so. Sincerely hoping for the welfare of this animal and others, Carol Ann
September 12th, 2012 - 19:58
Just make the castings and worry about who to have look at them later.
September 12th, 2012 - 21:08
Carol Ann, Thanks for sharing. Plaster casting is pretty simple to do using run of the mill plaster of paris you buy at a hobby shop, I have done it many times. Here is a link to help you:http://www.bear-tracker.com/plastertracks.html
My only advice is depending on how moist the ground is, the plaster can take a little over an hour to harden. After you pour the plaster and allow it to harden, it is safest to “dig” around the poured track with a small shovel removing the cast and the surrounding earth, and then let it harden overnight in a safe place like your garage. You can then easily, but gently remove dirt and debris the next day once is is all dry. Good luck, and please share your pictures !
John P
September 12th, 2012 - 12:16
Thank you! I am eagerly waiting for you to get back to me about who I could trust in my area to help me determine whether what I’ve found is a mother and baby cougar tracks. Carol Ann
September 12th, 2012 - 14:07
Please e-mail us at cougarsofthevalley@hotmail.com and send us your pictures
November 10th, 2012 - 12:07
I have seen moutain lions on at least three occasions, one of which my wife was with me and also saw it. We live on the edge of a state forest which has plenty of wildlife. I have two game cameras which I will set up again.
November 12th, 2012 - 09:09
Morning,
I am interested in your efforts, due to the fact that I spotted a cougar back in the late 80′s on rt8 in Winsted Ct. Do you have a membership?
November 13th, 2012 - 09:23
I fish Sages Ravine (located on rt. 41 in Sailsbury, Ct. near the Ma. line) regularly. This past summer on a high ledge above me, came a soft (but low) gutteral growl. As i looked up, i lost my mind looking at a tawnny brown 90 lb. cat! (by the way, i ve never seen a Bobcat with a 30″ tail, or 1 that weighed 90 lbs!) They re here–how? or from where? (nooo not from 1,800 miles away) but they re here!
November 13th, 2012 - 18:37
Hi Bo, I’ve been an avid deer hunter for 40 years and I was startled a couple of weeks ago while out hunting in Southern Enfield. I had just poured a cup of coffee at dawn when I looked down and 20 yards from my stand was a large cat. I had my cell with me but couldn’t get a picture. When the cat took off ( after about 30 seconds) I immediately thought lynx or bobcat. When I got home I did some web research and am positive it was not a lynx but was either a bobcat or something else. I’m not sure but I thought I saw a long tail which would rule out the bobcat. I do have a trail camera out there but no other pics so far. I’ll keep you posted on my results.
November 13th, 2012 - 19:05
Southington, CT In July while sitting on my patio in the AM, I had my two small dogs outside.My niece awas sitting back too, but on my property line I saw a mother mountain lion and cub, just sitting and watching the dogs. I did call the Animal Control. I have seen them before.
November 15th, 2012 - 08:15
I witnessed a large mountain lion
On Wednesday, November 14,2012 At 3:25 PM. It was crossing route 85 in Colchester , CT. This area is a residential and commercial area. It went up in a bankment and went into a brushy area near the Construction of a large building on Parum Rd.
December 5th, 2012 - 09:49
http://narragansett.patch.com/articles/matunuck-cat-sighting-reviewed-dem-changes-original-position#c
January 24th, 2013 - 20:55
I saw a large mountain lion nnot tpp far from my home in northern CA. They’re gorgeous animals and I appreciate your work, but the main reason I’m writing is to try to contact the photographer of one of the mountAin lion photos on your site (the one in the yellow wildflower meadow. I’d like to use it in my new album of original songs and I’d like to get permission to use it. If you can help me, please contact me. Thank you, Jefferson Parson
February 6th, 2013 - 16:01
At about 9:15am today, I was driving on RT 199 in Roxbury and saw a mountain lion barrel up the wooded hillside……..amazing!
February 6th, 2013 - 22:35
Thanks Diane, Roxbury is a hotspot for sightings. Could you give us a more exact location on rt 199. Thanks, COV
February 12th, 2013 - 19:35
Hello all, I saw a Mountain Lion on Chestnut Hill Rd in East Hampton,CT last Monday morning. He had to be around 5 feet long and ran across the road wicked fast. He was coming from one open field to another. I spoke with the Animal Control Officer from East Haddam today regarding my sighting and based on what I told him, he confirmed it was a Mountain Lion. I wish he wasn’t running by so fast I would have love to have gotten pictures.
March 21st, 2013 - 17:21
Is there a fee or pre-registration for sat 3/23 at Stanton Hall Huntington Ma ??
Thanks, Charles
March 21st, 2013 - 21:21
No pre reg, no fee. Donations accepted!
Ray
March 22nd, 2013 - 09:21
thanks, see you there
Charlie
April 3rd, 2013 - 07:31
mtn lion sightings are getting more common in vermont coming in out of canada i my self seen 2 my friend saw 1 two weeks ago.
April 3rd, 2013 - 07:36
my spelling not to great this morning
May 8th, 2013 - 21:28
A just saw my first mountain lion. It ran across the road right in front of my truck. It was about the size of a full grown German Shepard. It was around 2pm on rt 164 in Preston. There are alot of dairy farms out this way so I’m sure there is plenty of food around.
May 14th, 2013 - 14:37
My husband observed a brown mountain lion crossing the street at the bottom of our hill in Brooklyn, CT last Saturday night around 8pm. It was very close to our car. I am very nervous now.