Rumors circulated on social media that a mountain lion, like the animal pictured here, was on the loose in the Richmond, Ky., area. Wildlife officials said the reports are a “hoax” and the animalphotographed by a local doorbell camera was a bobcat. File Photo by Gary C. Caskey/UPI | License Photo
June 5 (UPI) — Wildlife officials in Kentucky said reports of a mountain lion on the loose in the state are a “hoax,” with one caught-on-camera animal being identified as a bobcat.
One resident reported spotting a mountain lion in the Richmond area in late May, and another resident’s doorbell camera captured an image of what some suspected to be a cougar on their doorbell camera near the Madison County fairgrounds this week.
“As far as we can tell right now, this is some sort of domestic cat or a hoax,” Kentucky Fish and Wildlife Public Information Officer Lisa Jackson told FOX 56 News. “As always, we appreciate receiving original photos of any questionable sighting.”
Joe Lacefield, a Regional Biologist with the Department of Fish and Wildlife, said the animal captured in the doorbell camera photo was not a mountain lion.
“The blurry sidewalk picture is 100% a bobcat,” he told the Richmond Register.
There has not been a native population of mountain lions in Kentucky for over a century. There have been two confirmed sightings in the past 30 years: a female cub struck by a car in Floyd County in 1997 and an adult male shot by a conservation officer in 2014 in Bourbon County. The cub was believed to be a captive cougar that got loose. The male’s origins were unclear.
“Any mountain lion appearing in the state would likely be an escaped (or released) captive animal,” the Department of Fish and Wildlife’s website states.
Bobcats are found in every county in Kentucky. Lacefield said they are unlikely to pose a danger to humans, but small pets could be at risk.
While no mountain lions are believed to be on the loose in the Richmond area, a kangaroo did escape from its owner’s property in the city on Thursday.