Earlier this week, Witset Officials reported online that a cougar had been spotted within residential limits.
Conservation Sargent for the Bulkley Lakes Zone, Kevin Nixon, says his office didn’t receive any official report from the Village of Witset.
Nixon says they have confirmed sightings of cougars within the residential limits of Witset in the past, however, it’s very rare.
“We do have cougars around, there’s no doubt about that. We usually handle a couple calls a year with cougars either killing pets or livestock, so it’s definitely not unheard of for these parts. The neat thing about living in rural communities throughout the Bulkley Valley and Lakes District (BVLD) is, people are always on top of these things. If people think they saw something, the word usually gets out pretty fast.”
Nixon says in terms of cougars, there are a few things you can watch out for.
“Besides finding tracks, one of the most obvious signs is the killing of animals or livestock. People will notice small house pets such as cats or dogs go missing and that’s usually a good indicator of cougar activity.”
When a cougar is reported within the BVLD, the first step is always determining the seriousness and credibility of the call. If the situation is deemed necessary, conservation officers will go out and investigate.
“For example last week we had a situation called in from the Houston area. Essentially what had happened was, a bunch of sheep went missing in the area and there was sufficient evidence to believe it was due to cougars. Because of the heatwave that we saw last week, it was very difficult to bring in a hound dog to track the cougar so we ended up setting traps. At this time, it seems as though the kills have stopped so we pulled the traps. Now we play the waiting game to see if the activity increases again.”
Nixon says he has one myth to bust in terms of cougars.
“The public doesn’t always realize that cougars are very silent animals. What Walt Disney portrays the sound of a cougar to be, isn’t really what you’re going to hear in the wild. When foxes are sitting by their den, they give off this terrible screeching sound that mimics what people would typically think a cougar sounds like. Lots of the time, that’s what the calls will be, people thinking they have heard a cougar when in all reality, it was just a fox.”
Nixon encourages members of the public to call in any sort of cougar activity. His office welcomes all the calls and will investigate every situation the same.
Smithers Conservation contact information can be found here.
Looking for cougar safety tips and stats? Click here.
Something going on in the Bulkley Valley Lakes District you think people should know about?
Send us a news tip by emailing [email protected].
