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Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION

Province rules out reports of cougar in Transcona

By: Bartley Kives

Posted: 02/8/2012 1:00 AM | Comments: 0 (including replies)

ROBERT J. GALBRAITH / POSTMEDIA NEWS ARCHIVES Enlarge Image

Cougars are present in Manitoba in small numbers.

THE good citizens of Transcona can sleep easy tonight, knowing there never was a cougar within their midst last summer.

A wild feline spotted near Fermor Avenue in 2011 was either a Canada lynx or a bobcat, say provincial wildlife experts.

Enlarge Image

Canada lynx sightings are not rare on the Prairies. (KEN GIGLIOTTI WINNIPEG FREE PRESS ARCHIVES)

On the morning of July 9, officials received several reports of a large cat in Transcona. It was observed between Lagimodiere Boulevard and Plessis Road before it fled north towards CN Rail's Symington Yards.

At the behest of former conservation minister Bill Blaikie, wildlife officials spent three nights patrolling the area in an attempt to locate the animal, provincial zoologist Bill Watkins said Tuesday.

Based on the description of the animal -- it was reported to have ear tufts, a fluffy face and a short tail -- officials believed they were on the hunt for a lynx, as cougars have long tails, short facial fur and no ear tufts.

After three days, they came across tracks that were definitely those of a Canada lynx or bobcat -- but absolutely not left by a cougar, Watkins said.

"Given the interest, we were all astonished nobody followed up on this," he said, happy to set the record straight. "I still run into people who think there was cougar running onto the railroad yards in Transcona."

Manitoba Conservation and Water Stewardship's wildlife branch responds to several false reports about cougars every year, as people have mistaken the large, elusive felines for other wild cats or in one comical instance, a raccoon, Watkins said.

"We're trying to reduce the number of raccoons reported as cougars," he deadpanned. "So many people are so distanced from nature, they aren't familiar with wildlife. Our message to people who encounter (wildlife) is it's just a wild animal and if you leave it alone, no harm is going to come to you or the animal."

Lynx, which are larger and slightly more common than bobcats, have been photographed and positively identified within city limits on numerous occasions. Cougars are far more rare, though they are present in the province in very small numbers.

While false sightings could go down, Watkins concedes there's little he can do about cougar jokes -- a reference to single, middle-aged women dating younger men.

"Every time I'm asked to speak, the joke about the Palomino Club comes up all the time," he quipped.

bartley.kives@freepress.mb.ca

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition February 8, 2012 B1

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