Eastern Cougar Declared Extinct, Removed From List Of U.S. Endangered Species

Known as the “Ghost Cat” across North America, the Eastern Cougar has been rumored to hunt in various areas across the United States and Canada.

Unfortunately, the Eastern Cougar been elusive to researchers since the 1930’s when the last photo of the cat was taken. Its similarity in looks to other cougars and pumas are thought to be the reasoning behind the sightings. However, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has made the move to officially declare the Eastern Cougar as being extinct, and states that it may have been extinct for at least 75 years.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has been looking for signs of the Eastern Cougar in hopes of finding a way to save the endangered species and assist in fostering breeding. However, they have not been able to find any evidence of its continued existence in the wild, according to CNN. The last known living instance of the Eastern Cougar was documents in Maine, in 1938. The proposal to remove the Eastern Cougar from the endangered species list and officially document it as extinct has been submitted and is available for public review and comment at the Federal Registrar website. It will remain there until August 17 when the final decision will be made.

According to News Limited in Australia, the Eastern Puma was declared extinct in 2011 as well, but never officially made it to the extinction list. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service states that the Western Cougar is still alive and well in the United States, and that it should not be confused with the Eastern Cougar. They also state that if a handful of Eastern Cougars do still exist in the wild, their numbers are too low to adequately support a population growth.

“The US Fish and Wildlife Service conducted a formal review of the available information and… concludes the eastern cougar is extinct and recommends the subspecies be removed from the endangered species list. Only western cougars still live in large enough numbers to maintain breeding populations, and they live on wild lands in the western United States and Canada.”

The Eastern Cougar saw a decline in numbers in the 1800’s when Europeans arrived in the East and hunted the pumas in an attempt to keep livestock safe. The addition of deforestation and human’s taking over the natural habitats to build housing and cities, as well as the invasive use of natural resources also contributed to their demise.

[Photo Courtesy: News Limited]