Kevin Davis says he’s heard the stories from neighbours about cougar tracks being spotted, “and where there are tracks, there are cats in the trees.”
But Davis says it was still “exciting” when a camera set up at his family’s cabin near Cochrane picked up images of a family of cougars last week.
Davis and his family live in Calgary but have a cabin about 20 minutes northwest of Cochrane.
“We’ve seen bear, deer and foxes on the camera before,” Davis said, “but never a cougar, especially a family of cougars.”
The video was shot by a camera with a motion sensor at about 1 a.m. on Friday, April 5.
Davis says when his family checked the recording the next day, he saw a cougar and a few seconds later there were two more cougars and then a fourth cougar.
The cougar sightings weren’t a complete surprise. Davis says a nearby neighbour spotted two of the animals earlier in the week in the middle of the night.
“It scared the hell out of him,” Davis said.
The Alberta Ministry of Fish and Parks told Global News cougars are solitary animals except during mating season or when females are raising their young. The ministry also said the photo of four cougars is most likely a mother with older kittens, and the kittens will stay with their mother until they’re about 18 months old.
Paul Frame, a provincial carnivore specialist in Alberta says, “Seeing a family of cougars on a trail camera shouldn’t cause alarm and additional safety precautions in the area aren’t required. When travelling in cougar country, its important to be alert and aware of your surroundings and always carry bear spray and know how to use it.”
However, Davis said he will “100 per cent” be more caution in the area around his cabin.
“Seeing a bear is nerve-wracking enough, but cougars are a little more scary, so we’ll definitely be more aware when hiking out in the area or walking the dogs.”
Anyone who sees a cougar in their neighbourhood is asked to call Alberta Fish and Wildlife.
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