Posted by Bill Maile on January 6, 2013 at 12:59 PM
There have been several reports about a black panther being present in our area of Northeastern PA. One photo was published in the local paper by the publisher, who has been on hunts of just about every type of wildlife in the U.S. and Canada.
So my buddy and I had come across this big, black cat sometime before the report first surfaced--I just blew it off at the time.
I have heard the face is too small and shape not right for this to be one. I have several other photos but am not sure if we are allowed to post consecutive photos here.
This was shot on a very misty a.m. in October, at 500mm, a couple of hundred yards away. Just wondering on any opinions or any tell-tale signs. I'm not arguing either way, just looking for info since the reports are surfacing in our area.
The tail looks a bit long for a house cat in your photo, Bill. You can certainly post more images. But size could really be the deciding factor. How much did the cat you saw weigh, do you think? It's hard to get an idea of its relative size based on your photo. I live in NJ, very close to the PA border, and we have had reports of a black panther in our area, too.
Posted by Bill Maile on January 6, 2013 at 1:57 PM
Thanks Sandy, great photo!! But I still don't see anything in it that rules out the other being a panther. We do have at least one running around here. The distance of the body from the ground in your photo is one possible factor that I do see as being different.
Rebecka, the tail is what really caught my eye. Not only is it long, but it is very thick. Here are two images in one.
Posted by Bill Maile on January 6, 2013 at 1:59 PM
This is a crop of a shot at 500mm, so that may affect what you are seeing some. Thanks folks, always great for info here whether to confirm or deny, you guys and gals are the best!!!
I cannot see it as anything other than a house cat.
Posted by Bill Maile on January 6, 2013 at 2:23 PM
Probably so Lon, just checking it out as I've said. Thanks!
Posted by Richard Ditch on January 6, 2013 at 3:22 PM
Definitely a house cat.
Posted by Brian Gatlin on January 6, 2013 at 6:08 PM
it's a house cat. reports of black panthers, while persistent, are strictly based in the imagination. simply put, there is no such thing as a black panther in the US.
Posted by Wayne Jones on January 6, 2013 at 7:24 PM
That's a house cat, Bill. There is no separate black panther species, but a few large cats, including the jaguar, which has been spotted in the southern USA, do have a melanistic (black) form. That's the western hemisphere "black panther."
By the way, the house cat you photographed may very well be the "black panther" that people in your area have been seeing. It's amazing how convincingly an amimal can appear to be a large cat when seen at a distance, or even closer when the visibility is poor. When I worked for the Division of Fish and Wildlife, "black panther" sightings generally turned out to be house cats, but some were fishers, and occasionally, they turned out to be black dogs, such as labrador retrievers. The cats and fishers were usually identified by photographs or poeple comparing what they saw to pictures. The ones that turned out to be dogs were identified by the tracks people found where they said they saw the "panther."
Yes, a house/feral cat...........but that is some big cat..........
Posted by Bill Maile on January 7, 2013 at 10:15 AM
Yes Wayne, I've read up on them of course and I agree this is a VERY large house/feral. However, it appears some sort of large black cat in that family exists in the No. Hem.
I saw a very clear photograph of one taken locally--and pardon, but it "ain't" no house cat, feral, or dog. As in all things in nature, exceptions apply--just look at the bird world.
Posted by Wayne Jones on January 7, 2013 at 11:04 AM
That's exciting, Bill. Yes, we all know they exist, but seeing a wild one this far north would be amazing. Get that photo and photographer to the PGC and you will help make history.
In a related topic, people have been seeing cougars in the Northeastern US for decades, and most were assumed to be captive animals that escaped. I know three people who saw a cougar a couple of years ago, and nobody got a photograph of it until it was killed by a collision on a Connecticut highway. Turned out to be a wild one that had walked all the way from South Dakota. Many people are fascinated by big carnivores, but documenting them is confused by a few who are just playing with our minds with Yeti-like stories. For instance, there are photos widely distributed on the Internet and in print that "prove" cougars are seen in several states, but the exact same photograph was used to "document" a cougar in at least four states. Weeding out the truth from the hoaxes is challenging.
While we're on the topic, I'd like to hear the story behind Sandy's black panther photo.
Posted by Bill Maile on January 7, 2013 at 12:21 PM
it would be Wayne, and I'm sure the PGC has gotten the photo and report--and of course, will deny it as they do the existence of any mountain lion in PA.
But you make an excellent point, as usual!! Many of these stories get to be like folk lore, and with the advent of the Internet and social media, begin to lose credibility as in the child's game "pass the secret". And I remember that story of the one in CT. Very true!
That being said, I like to think nothing is impossible. A captive animal escaping... one getting lost and meandering hundreds of miles off course, etc. etc. I shot a Snowy Egret in Northeastern PA in May a few years ago--it was the first one EVER recorded in my home county, even more odd for that time of year, verified by Audubon and the PA Society of Ornithology.
So who the heck knows, I'll write this off as an extremely large wild/house cat and a good discussion starter.
Posted by Jake Dingel on January 7, 2013 at 6:21 PM
do you have a link to the photo that was in your local paper?
Posted by Mia McPherson on January 7, 2013 at 9:01 PM
A domestic cat for sure
Posted by Ross Warner on January 30, 2013 at 11:07 AM
Not even a large house cat, unless the trees in the background have an 8' diameter.
Posted by Bill Maile on January 30, 2013 at 12:37 PM
OK Ross, no it wasn't a large house cat, lol, it was a tiny, tiny one.
Posted by Scott Fricke on March 20, 2013 at 4:59 PM
To me the difference can be seen in the ears. In the OP photo the ears look very pointed, are high in relation to the top of the head, and are relatively close together. As seen in the photo Sandy posted, the panther's ears are more rounded, sit farther apart and are lower in relation to the top of the head. I realize there may be some differences in perspective but I looked at some other photos of house cats and panthers and that generally seems to be the pattern.
just noticed this thread is 2 months old, sorry...
Discussion
18 repliesSo my buddy and I had come across this big, black cat sometime before the report first surfaced--I just blew it off at the time.
I have heard the face is too small and shape not right for this to be one. I have several other photos but am not sure if we are allowed to post consecutive photos here.
This was shot on a very misty a.m. in October, at 500mm, a couple of hundred yards away. Just wondering on any opinions or any tell-tale signs. I'm not arguing either way, just looking for info since the reports are surfacing in our area.
Panther image attached.
Sandy
Rebecka, the tail is what really caught my eye. Not only is it long, but it is very thick. Here are two images in one.
By the way, the house cat you photographed may very well be the "black panther" that people in your area have been seeing. It's amazing how convincingly an amimal can appear to be a large cat when seen at a distance, or even closer when the visibility is poor. When I worked for the Division of Fish and Wildlife, "black panther" sightings generally turned out to be house cats, but some were fishers, and occasionally, they turned out to be black dogs, such as labrador retrievers. The cats and fishers were usually identified by photographs or poeple comparing what they saw to pictures. The ones that turned out to be dogs were identified by the tracks people found where they said they saw the "panther."
I saw a very clear photograph of one taken locally--and pardon, but it "ain't" no house cat, feral, or dog. As in all things in nature, exceptions apply--just look at the bird world.
In a related topic, people have been seeing cougars in the Northeastern US for decades, and most were assumed to be captive animals that escaped. I know three people who saw a cougar a couple of years ago, and nobody got a photograph of it until it was killed by a collision on a Connecticut highway. Turned out to be a wild one that had walked all the way from South Dakota. Many people are fascinated by big carnivores, but documenting them is confused by a few who are just playing with our minds with Yeti-like stories. For instance, there are photos widely distributed on the Internet and in print that "prove" cougars are seen in several states, but the exact same photograph was used to "document" a cougar in at least four states. Weeding out the truth from the hoaxes is challenging.
While we're on the topic, I'd like to hear the story behind Sandy's black panther photo.
But you make an excellent point, as usual!! Many of these stories get to be like folk lore, and with the advent of the Internet and social media, begin to lose credibility as in the child's game "pass the secret". And I remember that story of the one in CT. Very true!
That being said, I like to think nothing is impossible. A captive animal escaping... one getting lost and meandering hundreds of miles off course, etc. etc. I shot a Snowy Egret in Northeastern PA in May a few years ago--it was the first one EVER recorded in my home county, even more odd for that time of year, verified by Audubon and the PA Society of Ornithology.
So who the heck knows, I'll write this off as an extremely large wild/house cat and a good discussion starter.
just noticed this thread is 2 months old, sorry...