Found some animal marks.

A.W · Post by **A.W** » Mon Nov 20, 2006 9:36 am

I was up at the property this weekend and found some tracks. Sorry don't have a pic. I'll try and describe them.

There were 3 sets of relatively deep scratche approx. 2-2 1/2 inches wide and about 7-9 inches long. Each set had 4 sharp cat like claw marks. It also left a pile of really dark/black droppings (4) one on top of the other about the circumference of my thumb. There didn't appear to be any fur or bones in them.

Any ideas what they are?

VixChix · Post by **VixChix** » Mon Nov 20, 2006 10:11 am

did it look like this?

http://www.fs.fed.us/psw/publications/d ... 9_24K.html

A.W · Post by **A.W** » Mon Nov 20, 2006 10:16 am

There was a lot of rain the night before so the dirt was pretty well hard. No paw prints just the nail scratches. The marks and droppings were quite fresh.

A.W · Post by **A.W** » Mon Nov 20, 2006 10:52 am

Wouldn't be a jack rabbit. The sets of scratchces on the ground looks like the animal has reached forward and dragged it's claws backwards.

Needle sharp claws.

TYE · Post by **TYE** » Mon Nov 20, 2006 11:21 am

Cougar?

A.W · Post by **A.W** » Mon Nov 20, 2006 12:03 pm

Early spring of '05 I bumped into a guy up at the property that owned a horse far. He told me that the MNR had released a couple of cougars up there and supposedly somebody had seen them.

I doubt that however because of all the horse/cattle farms in the area and the proximity to the Oshawa suburbs. as well as Port Perry.

I've never seen a cougar in life so I don't know the size of their paws.

I hope it's not a Fisher.

chessy · Post by **chessy** » Mon Nov 20, 2006 3:33 pm

it may not be a cougar but the mnr has rumord to have relased 4 in the area to the east of me port hope.. to see if they can controll the deer ... one person saw one take the lamb this person is a trapper and knows what a cougar looks like, so i know this is not false info... your tracks may not be a cougar but they are out there

chris4570 · Post by **chris4570** » Mon Nov 20, 2006 5:10 pm

Where abouts is your property?

Did it appear as though the animal was trying to cover the droppings?

AirForceVet · Post by **AirForceVet** » Mon Nov 20, 2006 8:38 pm

coon? do a search on coon droppings via image results. I was supprized at the size of them myself.

A.W · Post by **A.W** » Tue Nov 21, 2006 8:09 am

chris4570 wrote:Where abouts is your property?

Did it appear as though the animal was trying to cover the droppings?

No it didn't. Looks like it just did it's business and reached out for a scratch.

Either that or it was really constipated and was grabbing on.

A.W · Post by **A.W** » Tue Nov 21, 2006 8:12 am

AirForceVet wrote:coon? do a search on coon droppings via image results. I was supprized at the size of them myself.

I'm familiar with coon droppings. A few weeks ago I posted about a coon climbing off the fence into my truck through an open window and leaving a present for me on my dashboard.

BigUgly · Post by **BigUgly** » Tue Nov 21, 2006 8:28 am

I,ve hunted the Port Perry area for years and never saw anything that resembled cougars except in town.

Have a friend who is affiliated with the ministry through his buisness. I asked him about sightings as he guides. He has never saw anything himself, except for an Elk, wouldn't say where, he also stated the rumours about releasing is a joke. Now you never know for sure but I can't see it happening. I could however see an increse in near extinct populations as a result of our incresing herd. Nature does have ways of caring for itself. With the amount of sightings for years in Ontario and Quebec I never believed they where totally extinct espicially when you consider how much land there is. Then when you consider how much land a cougar requires to survive there is bound to be more sightings as they re populate and expand. Just my thoughts but I'm usally wrong.