Apr 30, 2008 1:27 pm US/Central
Cougar Shot In Roscoe Village Was From Wisconsin
Same Cougar Was Spotted In Rocky County, Wis., In January
CHICAGO (Sun-Times Media Wire) ―
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A cougar was shot dead in Roscoe Village on the city's North Side.
A large male cougar fatally shot by Chicago Police on the North Side earlier this month was a DNA match to a sample from a big cat in Wisconsin, according to test results released Wednesday.
The Cook County Department of Animal and Rabies Control released the findings of DNA testing and necropsy results, reporting that the cat died from gunshot wounds to the right aorta, right heart base and right ventricle.
The DNA sample obtained from the cougar was a positive match to the DNA sample from a cougar sighted in Rocky County, Wis., on Jan. 18, 2008, according to a release from the county. The animal tested negative for rabies.
The animal weighed 124 pounds and was 5-foot-4 from nose to tail base. Evaluation of its age via tooth analysis is ongoing and may take up to a month, according to the release.
"These findings provide a glimpse into the life of this wild cougar and are critical pieces of a larger puzzle, which for us and other agencies is: Where it came from, and how and why it reached an urban area," Dr. Donna Alexander, administrator of Animal and Rabies Control, said in the release. "Additional testing still being performed will further delineate his genealogy and paint a better picture of his life."
The cougar was first reported to Animal Control on March 29. As a result, Animal Control officers armed with tranquilizer guns searched the north Chicago suburbs, but did not find the cougar.
On April 14, a second sighting was reported to Chicago Police who searched the Roscoe Village neighborhood and were forced to shoot and kill the animal to protect residents, children and pets, the release said.
The remains will now be turned over to the Field Museum for future research.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2009. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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