Mountain lions, also known as cougars, pumas, or catamounts, are the largest wild cats in North America, recognized by their tawny coat and long, thick tail. The definitive answer to whether an established population of these predators exists in Maine is no. The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife (MDIFW) officially classifies the species as extirpated, meaning that while they were once native to the state, no resident, breeding population currently exists. Any presence of this large feline in Maine today is attributed to extremely rare, transient individuals or released captives.
Historical Extirpation in Maine
The Eastern Cougar, a distinct subspecies, once ranged throughout the forests of Maine for centuries. This large predator was an integral part of the ecosystem, preying primarily on deer and other large mammals. However, the arrival and expansion of European settlers led to a systematic campaign to eliminate the big cat.
Intense hunting pressure, often driven by government-issued bounties and the desire to protect livestock, dramatically reduced their numbers. Habitat fragmentation and loss further accelerated their decline throughout the 1800s. The Eastern Cougar was effectively eliminated from the state by the early 20th century. The last confirmed mountain lion indigenous to Maine was killed in 1938 by a hunter near the Canadian border, marking the end of the state’s historical population.
Analyzing Unconfirmed Sightings and Common Misidentification
Despite the official extirpated status, state wildlife agencies receive numerous reports of mountain lion sightings from the public every year. These unconfirmed accounts often fuel the public perception that a resident population is thriving in the remote Maine woods. Biologists, however, maintain that most of these reports are simply cases of mistaken identity.
The primary animals confused with cougars are the state’s two native wildcats, the bobcat and the Canada lynx, as well as large coyotes. Bobcats and lynx are significantly smaller than a mountain lion, typically weighing less than 40 pounds, whereas an adult male cougar can weigh up to 150 pounds. The most reliable physical feature to distinguish a mountain lion is its long, rope-like tail, which can measure two to three feet and is held low to the ground. Both bobcats and lynx have very short, “bobbed” tails, making a long tail the primary identifier for a mountain lion. Some sightings are even attributed to large domestic dogs or the eastern coyote, which, when seen quickly or from a distance, can be misjudged for a large cat.
Official confirmation of a mountain lion sighting requires irrefutable physical evidence. This evidence must be more than a visual report and includes a carcass, high-quality photographs or video, tracks, or DNA evidence from hair or scat. Without this concrete proof, the sighting is logged as unconfirmed, a standard procedure reflecting the animal’s official absence.
The Status of Transient and Wandering Cougars
While a breeding population does not exist in Maine, the state is rarely visited by solitary, transient individuals. These are typically young male cougars dispersing from established populations far to the west in search of new territory and mates. This highlights the species’ capacity for long-distance travel, sometimes covering thousands of miles.
The most famous example is the young male mountain lion killed by a car in Connecticut in 2011, which genetic testing confirmed had migrated from the Black Hills of South Dakota. The official position is that any confirmed cougar presence in the Northeast falls into one of three categories: a captive animal that escaped or was released, or an individual dispersing from a western population.
Maine has had rare instances of confirmed presence, such as a 1996 confirmation in Cape Elizabeth based on laboratory tests of collected hair. The fact that established populations exist in Canadian provinces like Quebec and New Brunswick, which share a border with Maine, also suggests possible, though infrequent, natural movement across the international boundary.