Michigan Department of Natural Resources officials spent several days recently tracking down a report of a cougar being photographed in Schoolcraft County.
An image was submitted to the department in Newberry, said to have been taken on a dark road south of Seney.
After considerable time, manpower and money spent investigating the incident, state officials have branded the sighting by Merida Royster a hoax. ...
Mountain lion reports, whether true or false, can have a serious effect on public perception and are therefore taken very seriously by the DNR. ...
Local public persecution of mountain lions might form and fester, resulting in further long-term problems for the species in this region. ...
We commend the DNR for its investigation ... both for the good authentic evidence might bring about ... and for the exposure of those false reports that may seem like an innocent prank, but have the potential to create a whole range of unnecessary and likely unintended consequences.
The Mining Journal, Marquette
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