Deer hunting could get interesting in Tennessee if a recent report from West Tennessee is verified.
The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency reports that it has received a photo of what appears to be a mountain lion (cougar) taken by a trail camera on private land in Obion County. The photo has not been verified and it is being analyzed by photo/graphic experts.
The photo was allegedly taken on Sept. 20 and wildlife officers have not found any tracks, hair or other physical evidence. An investigation is ongoing.
The TWRA notes that all wildlife species, including mountain lions (if confirmed), are protected species, which cannot be hunted or killed until an appropriate hunting or trapping season is established by the Tennessee Fish and Wildlife Commission, the agency’s governing body.
There are breeding populations of mountain lions in many western states and there have been confirmed reports of the big cats in Missouri, Arkansas, Kentucky, Illinois, Kansas and as far east as Connecticut. Biologists believe that these sightings were of young males leaving their home ranges in search of new territory. I just hope that they don’t like country music and stay away from Middle Tennessee.
Excitement and danger
If verified, the discovery could add a new dimension of excitement for deer hunters and other outdoor persons who venture into the woods in search of wild game. A full-grown mountain lion could attack a hunter, and there have been incidents out west where the big cats have killed people, along with deer, cattle, dogs and anything else that they could get their claws and teeth into.
I was bowhunting for elk in New Mexico several years ago in an area that was populated by mountain lions and black bears. My guide had dropped me off for an afternoon hunt beside an isolated water hole high on a mountain mesa where he had built a sturdy ground blind that was protected on three sides.
We had examined the ground around the water hole and found plenty of elk tracks, but there were also lion tracks in the mud. His last words to me before he left were to make a lot of noise if a mountain lion should appear and it would probably run away.
The guide was supposed to pick me up at dark, but he was delayed and didn’t get back until nearly 10 p.m. Sitting in the dark on an isolated mesa surrounded by man-eating animals (my thoughts) and singing country music was a harrowing experience. I was never so glad in all my life to see headlights beaming up the trail.
I don’t want to have a similar experience in Tennessee, so I hope that these reports of a mountain lion sighting turn out to be false.
Call Owen Schroeder at 931-358-9214 or email him at owenschroederjr@bellsouth.net.
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