Cougar spotted in National Capital Region

Another cougar has reportedly been spotted in the National Capital region, keeping alive the hope that eastern cougars might be making a comeback.

The eastern cougar was hunted to near extinction in the late 19th century. The last known cougar was shot near the Quebec-Maine border in 1938. Since then, however, thousands of sightings have been reported in Ontario, Quebec, the Maritimes and the New England states.

The latest report comes from Carolyn Ivanoff of Gatineau, just across the river from Ottawa.

Ivanoff said she was looking out her back window recently when she saw a huge cat at the end of her yard. She said it appeared to be stalking something.

"It kept approaching sideways, and I noticed its body was very, very long. It had a very thick tail, and I could tell right away it was a cougar," Ivanoff said.

She confirmed the sighting with information she got off the internet. Now, she says, she's nervous about what she saw.

"I wasn't frightened at first," she said. "Now I am more concerned about my daughter, who plays outside, and my cats."

Being wary of cougars is good advice, says Keith Forgie, who raises them at his Papanack Park Zoo, east of Ottawa. He describes them as lethal animals, even when they are young.

"They just slide around like shadows," Forgie said. "They are the ultimate hunters. "

Forgie believes there are cougars at large around the Ottawa area, but he thinks they might have been pets released into the wild, making them less dangerous to humans.

However, the Ontario Puma Foundation, a non-profit group of naturalists and hunters, has been tracking cougar sightings since 2002. Its members believe cougar populations are on the increase in Eastern Ontario because their main source of food, deer, have become so plentiful.

• RELATED SITE: Ontario Puma Foundation

"Anywhere from around Ottawa, east to Hawkesbury, to Cornwall and southwest down to the Brockville area, they are there. Yes, they are. No question about it. No doubt whatsoever," said Stuart Kenn of the Puma Foundation.

Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources ecologist Sean Thompson says he's received a dozen calls about cougar sightings in the past year, but with no actual proof they exist.

"To get tangible evidence is nearly impossible," Thompson said. "It's like the needle in the haystack but, in this case, the needle is moving. So, in terms of resources available, it's just not a priority."

Thompson says it would become a priority if there were proof of cougar attacks on domestic animals or humans.