There's more than one way to hunt deer.

[smith17]

I was hunting with a woodsman in the Black Belt of Alabama back in the early 90s and he told a story of seeing one a few years earlier. He had been standing under a tree on one side of a big clearing and suddenly the woods went completely quiet. No birds chirping. Nothing. He thought it was an air pressure change which can silence things at times. In about a minute, a cat came striding out of the woods, opposite him, with its belly swaying side to side until it disappeared into the woods at the end of the clearing. Nothing made a sound for a good 10 minutes after that, according to him. If I remember correctly, I think he did just like Howie, headed for the camphouse well before dark. He never saw it again.
Ed

 

[MK]

I've got old historical letters from the
area of Oklahoma my property is at.
Back in the late 1800's, Jaguars were quite
common up there, and they mentioned in the
letters the way they would scream at night.
Almost a human woman sounding scream some say..
According to Indian lore, they had the regular
spotted jaguars, and also mountain lions, etc..
But they considered the black jaguar as almost
a separate type of cat, and considered it the
most dangerous of the cats around that part
of North America.
But what is significant is that they actually
made mention of black cats back then, which
means they were in that area at that time.
It's common knowledge that the vast majority
of jaguars and other cats were killed off in
the early 1900's.
But who is to say they got them all, including
the black version which the Indians mention in
1800's documents. You'll never get all of them.

Myself, I think they have always been here to
some extent, despite the common lore that black
Jaguars are mostly in Central America.
And.. I think they are making a comeback of
sorts due to the federal regulations on killing
them, and they are showing up more due to
encroachment of their habitat.
I've done a lot of research on Jags, and black
cats since I saw the one up in OK, and I see
plenty of stories in most of the states.
Plenty in TX, LA, OK, and others.
But all the experts will tell you that the only
viable Jaguar populations are in the AZ, NM,
area.
Whatever.. I know what I saw. It was a large
black Jaguar. If it wasn't , I wouldn't have
spent any time studying up on it. Made quite
an impression on me as I'd never seen a large
cat before.
As far as the trail cams, good question.
Some get snapped in AZ, but those are the
spotted type. I think basically it must be due
to the cats being very wary, and staying away
from people, and thus many cams.
That's the only thing I could think of. Most
jags like heavy woods, which is exactly what
the terrain is up at OK.
Perfect habitat for them, and plenty of deer
and other critters to eat. Lots of room to hide
also.
I've also heard of black cat sightings by oil
service people in Eastern OK where you start
getting into the mountains.
I've got stories I've found of large black cats
here in Tejas eating people for lunch.
I've run across stories of a woman, and
another pair of men that got attacked in a
separate incident.
Ate the woman, and one of the men. I think the
other man got away. They were on some kind of
work crew.
This was back many years ago in the early
1900's near the LA border area.

 

[Bob R]

MK,

I am glad you are posting this. I know that I saw a big black cat out on the Ft Sill impact area in the late 90's. I just kept quiet about it because I knew no one would believe me.

bob

 

[bettis1]

I saw a big black cat out on the Ft Sill impact area

I think that is what Ruark meant when he said "Use Enough Gun".

Bob

 

[LOBO]

Back in high school myself & four friends were coming back from a basketball game (Bay Springs, MS area) when a big black cat ran across the road no more than 30 feet in front of us. I will never forget its image lit up by the headlights. Never.


Kind of OT, but for a time people here in Mississippi have reported black bear sightings. The MS Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, & Parks wouldn't say yey or ney about the bears. Now, they say what has been known the whole time; that MS does have a small population of black bears. IMHO, they knew it all along. I feel like this same scenario is playing out about the big black cats. They're here, they know they're here, but they aren't ready to admit it.

 

[Clayton]

The Texas Hunting Forum members have put a 10K bounty on a black panther kill. Lots of non-believers out there. Me? I want to see a picture or a carcass.

 

[fat tom]

We've seen several of the big cats on our hunting lease over the years,including a female with 2 cubs. The official position of the SCDNR is that they don't exist in the state. BUT,you better not SHOOT one or they'll lock your ass up!

f.t.