NEWSLINK: Eastern cougars are extinct — or are they?

The eastern cougar is a gone cat.


The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service formally declared it extinct in January. This was no surprise. The last time anyone saw one was in New Brunswick in 1938.


But there are these big cats people keep seeing.


Mike Bird of New Milford saw one crossing Hardscrabble Road in 2016. He watched it walk for about 40 yards before it ducked into the woods.


“A cat crossed from the left to the right,” Bird said. “I thought, ‘It’s too big to be a bobcat.’ I could see its big tail.”

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