what is this on my game-cam?

[GA_in_GA]

Quote:
There are mountain lions in GA. Check out the GON website, in the june 2011 issue of their magazine it shows evidence of sightings in about twenty different counties all over the state not just the south. As far as this sighting to me it looks like a bobcat or maybe a feral cat. Although it IS possible to be a young mt.lion.

Could you provide a link for this website--I have no idea what GON stands for.

GON is Georgia Outdoor News. I do not have a link for the article, but maybe you can find it.

For some very nice photos of Florida Panthers, take a look at this link. The one juvenile's markings are very clear.
http://heathergreenblog.com/2011/01/03/finally-my-first-florida-panther-sighting/

 

[greenkalki]

 

[PoultryPedia]

Quote:
Red&Yellow,
I think you solved the mystery. Don't know if anyone else figured it out, because I haven't read all the coments about this. Here is a quote from an online article:

"Florida has a resident population of jaguarundis that were imported into that state in the 1940s. Since the cats are so secretive it's difficult to gauge their population status, but it is generally believed to be healthy.
This begs the question of how far those transplanted cats have spread? Are they now in Georgia and Alabama, two states that have frequent "black panther" sightings?"

The article is about "black panther" sightings, but also points out, of the jaguarundi that: "Most specimens are about 20 centimeters tall and sport a dark gray color while others are chocolate brown or blonde."

For the full article see:

http://www.anomalist.com/features/jag.html

The thought of it being a Jaguarundi is interesting. I think that this scenerio is pretty unlikely based on several data points.
-The Jaguarundi is diurinal (day hunter), whereas the OP's photos are of night activity
-In none of the Jaguarundi photos I could find was tha dark dorsal tail strip present that is clearly visible in the OP's photos
-The time stamps of the photos show activity that is more compatable with canine behavior, rather than feline behavior

I would really like for the article you quoted to give a reference regarding the resident population of Jaguarundis in Florida. I could find no other statement nor evidence in any of the articles I read regarding the Jaguarundi about this population established in the 1940's. Most of the evidence I have seen shows the animal to be extremely rare in Texas let alone outside of its normal range, so although I think it is valid to look at this species, it would be a very unlikely candidate since the color is not right, the behavior in the photo series is not going along with a cat, the nocturnal time of the photo and the unliklihood that such a rare animal in its traditional northern range would have rambled so far and happened to be caught on a game cam considering there are much more likley suspects such as the Grey Fox. If you could find more information about this Florida population, I would love to read about it.

A post in previous page link to the jaguarundi entry in Wikipedia. That article talks about sightings that seem to indicate the spread of its territory...

 

[greenkalki]

Quote:
Red&Yellow,
I think you solved the mystery. Don't know if anyone else figured it out, because I haven't read all the coments about this. Here is a quote from an online article:

"Florida has a resident population of jaguarundis that were imported into that state in the 1940s. Since the cats are so secretive it's difficult to gauge their population status, but it is generally believed to be healthy.
This begs the question of how far those transplanted cats have spread? Are they now in Georgia and Alabama, two states that have frequent "black panther" sightings?"

The article is about "black panther" sightings, but also points out, of the jaguarundi that: "Most specimens are about 20 centimeters tall and sport a dark gray color while others are chocolate brown or blonde."

For the full article see:

http://www.anomalist.com/features/jag.html

The thought of it being a Jaguarundi is interesting. I think that this scenerio is pretty unlikely based on several data points.
-The Jaguarundi is diurinal (day hunter), whereas the OP's photos are of night activity
-In none of the Jaguarundi photos I could find was tha dark dorsal tail strip present that is clearly visible in the OP's photos
-The time stamps of the photos show activity that is more compatable with canine behavior, rather than feline behavior

I would really like for the article you quoted to give a reference regarding the resident population of Jaguarundis in Florida. I could find no other statement nor evidence in any of the articles I read regarding the Jaguarundi about this population established in the 1940's. Most of the evidence I have seen shows the animal to be extremely rare in Texas let alone outside of its normal range, so although I think it is valid to look at this species, it would be a very unlikely candidate since the color is not right, the behavior in the photo series is not going along with a cat, the nocturnal time of the photo and the unliklihood that such a rare animal in its traditional northern range would have rambled so far and happened to be caught on a game cam considering there are much more likley suspects such as the Grey Fox. If you could find more information about this Florida population, I would love to read about it.

The lighter phases o jaguarundi have darker tail tips, exactly like the one in question. Regarding the diurnal habits of the jaguarundi vs. the time stamp... The photos are time stamped: 08/28/2011 from 21:40-21:42... On 08/28/2011 in Milledgeville GA, the sun would have set at approximately 20:10... This is approximately one and a half hours after sunset. It is normal for diurnal animals to be active within two hours before sunrise, and two hours after sunset (just ask your roosters)... So this is well within normal parameters. Regarding the Florida population of feral jaguarundis, I too would like to know more. As a Florida resident, I can tell you that the history of roadside zoos, combined with a history of direct hits by hurricanes, and typical human ineptitude, Florida is home to a number of exotic invasive species of various origins... So it is not a stretch to imagine that secretive cat like the jaguarundi, if given the chance, could easily establish itself in a state with a similar climate to it's native habitat. Combine that with the overall warming of the climate, it's easy to see how they could spread north into the other gulf states from both their native range in Texas, and any introduced population from Florida. This is also consistent, with the large number of reports of jaguarundis across the gulf states. If such reports are simply hoaxes, then they would be coming from all over the country, not just the region that one would expect the jaguarundi to naturally expand into under the favorable conditions that exist. As far as the idea that we are dealing with a canine, I think a jaguarundi is much more likely than a dog that looks like a jaguarundi.

 

[EmpressNoId]

You might contact your local fish and game dept. That looks an awful lot like a Puma. They are thought to be extinct in the south. They were a type of smaller cousin to the Western Cougar.
Good luck.

 

[chicktwins]

It does look like a cougar to me as well. Florida has panthers and they are technically cougars, what's to say they aren't in GA as well. I just googled cougars in GA and yes they are there too.

 

[Agdketo]

Quote:
As far as I know, a Lynx and a Bobcat are the same thing.

They are not! They are two entirely different species in the same genera. Bobcats are Lynx rufus. Lynx or Canadian Lynx are Lynx canadensis. The range of the two animals only overlaps near the northern US/southern Canada border with the bobcat's going south and the lynx's going north from there. You are not going to find a lynx in GA except maybe in the Atlanta Zoo.

Thanks for clearing that up for me. Ha hah, I'm not sure how long I've thought that. And there have been many people who have agreed with me. I know one thing. I can't say I've ever learned anything from a person that has agreed with me.

 

[jww6419]

Photo #3 clearly looks like a big tomcat to me. game camera seems to take excellent pictures and fast trigger.

 

[greenkalki]

Quote:
Exelent pictures indeed. Still, I'm amazed at the ability of this animal to trigger five photos without showing it's face once. Hope the camera is still out there catching more photos.

 

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I just went through all of these posts and love the pics from the game cam. My original guess was fox. It just seemed too small. Glad to see I was on the mark. Please keep posting. It's interesting to see what shows up. Great thread.