Wisconsin has lost its cougar

• PHOTO: Cougar

Photo by Matt McKay/Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources

Talk about it

Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources wildlife managers today said they have lost track of the cougar photographed near Spooner in Washburn County in March.

DNR officials tried unsuccessfully to track and tranquilize the cougar and fit it with a radio collar on March 5. They managed to tree it twice with the help of hunters and hounds, but, both times, the cat eluded them.

Melting snow made it harder to keep tabs on where the animal was roaming. They lost track of the cat near Highway 70 on the Washburn-Burnett County line.

Biologists want to know if the cougar stays in Northwestern Wisconsin or moves on to another state. They also want to know how it interacts with humans, cars and highways, livestock and other wildlife.

“We really haven’t had any solid evidence of it since” March 5, Wisconsin DNR biologist Adrian Wydeven said. “Who knows where this one is now. It’s surprising how far they can go very quickly.”

Ken Jonas, DNR wildlife biologist, is asking anyone who sees a cougar to call the DNR wildlife office in Park Falls at (715) 762-1363. A few people have called with reports that are yet to be verified.

The last wild population of cougars in the region was wiped-out decades ago. But experts said the animal’s success elsewhere could spur a comeback in Northwestern Wisconsin, especially considering the large deer population to feed the big cats.

While cougar sightings are common in the Northland, very few are confirmed. The Washburn County cougar, a young male, was photographed on March 5 in a tree after being reported by hunters in the area.

It was Wisconsin’s second confirmed cougar in two years. A cougar was seen in Rock County in southern Wisconsin last year and later shot and killed in Illinois. Officials say they have no intention of killing the Washburn County cougar but want to collar it to know its habits.

Wydeven said the DNR also is looking at possible cougar tracks near Racine in southern Wisconsin. The agency has sent a scat sample to a lab for genetic testing.

A cougar was photographed by a trail camera near Floodwood in 2008 and others have been confirmed in Minnesota in recent years.

Wildlife managers say it’s possible a few wild cougars may be roaming through the region at any given time, but it’s unclear if they stay here long enough to support any viable population.

Experts say most cougar sightings in the Northland turn out to be other animals, and most confirmed cougars are believed to be escaped pets or animals wandering through from the Dakotas or Canada, where the closest reproducing populations reside.

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