Another Black Panther Sighted in Plano

I received an email this week from a reader who claims his mother saw a large black cat run across Windhaven Parkway in Plano, Texas this past Monday July 26th. His original email reads as follows:

Hello. I just wanted to say my mom saw a black panther run across the road in the Plano, Texas area on Monday, July 26, 2010. Please e-mail me if you want more information.

Thanks

I replied asking for more information. He got back to me with the following:

All my mother and I know is that the animal she saw was sleek, cat-like, pitch black, and very large. She couldn't see very well, because it was around 9:30 pm, but she swears it was a panther. The street was Windhaven, and it's either in Richardson or Plano. I don't drive yet, so I'm not sure. That's pretty much all she recalls.

When she got home she called the police and they said that Animal Control was already looking for the beast.

I have no proof, obviously, that this event actually occurred as reported but this is far from the first report of large panther-like cats in the greater Dallas-Fort Worth area. The Plano area in particular has been a hot spot for big cat sightings. While most will scoff at these reports, there seems to be a bit of a pattern developing.

It is true that these animals are being seen in highly populated areas. On the surface, at least, this seems, at best, unlikely. Each sighting did take place in areas near waterways with heavily wooded riparian corridors, undeveloped or agricultural land, or nature/wildlife preserves. This latest report is a prime example of this pattern.

Windhaven Parkway is only a couple of miles away from Lake Lewisville and also runs just north of the Arbor Hills Nature Preserve. In fact, Windhaven Parkway actually forms part of the northern-most boundary to the preserve. The section where the Parkway skirts the Preserve also just happens to be the most thickly forested and lonesome portion of Arbor Hills. While this particular section of Windhaven Parkway was not specified by the reader, I'm guessing this was the general area of the sighting.



The City of Plano describes the Preserve as follows:

Located on the western border of Plano, Arbor Hills Nature Preserve is a 200-acre park featuring vast areas of natural beauty for walking, jogging, hiking, orienteering, and other outdoor activity.

Arbor Hills Nature Preserve is a natural respite within our suburban city. It is a special place left largely undisturbed where visitors can have the pleasure of being surrounded by nature and experiencing animals, plants and ecoregions found in North Central Texas.

Portions of the Preserve feature three distinct ecoregions. The Blackland Prairie, Riparian Forest, and Upland Forest are all present within the Preserve.

Wildlife found in the Preserve include egrets, hawks, woodpeckers, owls, snakes, turtles, and fish. Small mammals like rabbits, raccoons, and opossums are also present. The City of Plano's sight says that bobcats and coyotes are still present within the Preserve as well though rarely seen.

It is entirely possible that we have a case of mistaken identity. Maybe the reader's mother saw a bobcat cross the road. Bobcats can get pretty big after all. The witness admits it was well into the evening and visibility was not good. The reader also mentions he is too young to drive. Maybe this is just a teen having some fun at my expense. While I didn't get the feeling this was the case it is possible, I suppose.

Still, according to the reader, his mother was adamant that it was a panther. A pitch black one at that. Something else caught my attention. The reader said that his mother reported the sighting to police. The response to her report? The police said they were already aware of the situation and Animal Control was out looking for the cat. If factual, this would lead me to believe others had seen the animal and reported it.

Again, I can't verify any of this but the pattern seems to be holding up.

Neches River Meeting Synopsis

This past Tuesday an informational meeting was held in Lufkin, Texas regarding the possible designation of the Neches as a federally protected "Wild and Scenic River". A reader of this site attended the meeting and was kind enough to provide a report on what was discussed as well as his take on the issue. His synopsis is below:

Howdy Mike,

Fortunately, I was able to attend the Lufkin meeting. The meeting started about 6:10 PM with introductions and a very informative overview regarding the "Wild and Scenic River" act. This presentation lasted 10 - 15 minutes and included a "public apology" regarding incorrect information provided in some of the handout information. The rest of the meeting was devoted to questions and answers. There was some "tension" on the part of several of those asking questions and I would rank the overall attitude of the audience as a mixture of disgust, disdain for federal involvement, and anxiety due to expectations of further loss of Texas/local control.

First pop out of the hat, the first "question" identified the simple reason most folks were attending the meeting. No more dams - simple as that. Additionally, no other control of the river was wanted or invited! No one offered support for further damming of the Neches River. In response, the only avenue offered by the speakers to prevent further damming was through additional federal involvement using the "Wild and Scenic River" act.

The perception of the audience seemed unanimous in that no one believed federal classification of the Neches as a "Wild and Scenic River" would do more than postpone the inevitable while, at the same time, open the door to future federal control over the river and surrounding lands. It appeared that everyone, including the speakers, believed federal control was not an option - one way or another it would be a fact. If attendee's had a prevailing attitude I would say it was one of disappointment but not defeat.

Comments after the meeting expressed opinions that, at best, meetings like this (held in Lufkin) were to: (1) inform locals that the only possible alternative to continued damming of the Neches River was to have the Neches designated as a "Wild and Scenic River"; (2) enlist local support to spend significant taxpayer dollars on a "Wild and Scenic River" study and (3) inform locals that after the study is complete and the taxpayers money spent the federal government will ultimately make the final decision.

If the intent of the meeting was to offer a solution it did not. If the intent of the meeting was to garner support for designating the Neches as a "Wild and Scenic River" - well, I expect those that were unsure are still unsure or are now non-supporters. If the intent of the meeting was to solidify Texans support against federal involvement with our "instate" rivers and streams, I would say it was an unqualified success.

I went to the meeting as an uninformed observer, completely unaware of any political undertones involved or that the meeting had anything to do with stopping future construction of dams on the Neches River. However, I am no longer uninformed regarding the designation of the Neches as a "Wild and Scenic River". Now, I know I cannot support such efforts - even at the cost of additional dams on the Neches River. With a dam most of us understand the process and have some realistic expectations, dismal though they may be, of what will be lost and gained both now and in the future.

As presented, my interpretation of the "Wild and Scenic River" approach offers no guarantees, makes no promises, offers no formal provision for dispute resolution, costs money from the very beginning (taxpayer dollars for the study and local money if approved), and if approved will ultimately give control of the river and surrounding lands to the federal government. I heard no denial regarding the possibility that a federal dam might come later. A lot of what was said went over my head, but what little I did understand was more than enough for me. Before it was over, I half-expected one of the speakers to say, "We can offer no promises or guarantees, but you know you can trust us."

In the meantime, my support will be for a Texas "Initiative" directed toward the prevention of further damming of the Neches - without federal involvement. As a history buff, considering Texas was a Republic at the time and under the circumstances Texas was admitted to the Union, a convincing argument might be made against any federal involvement with rivers, etc., which begin, totally flow, and end within Texas borders. It certainly seems worthy of further investigation - perhaps even our own "town" meeting though, as a senior citizen, I doubt I will see any result, regardless of the decision ultimately made or who makes it.

As I expected, it seems the Feds are going to have a tough time selling local landowners on the "Wild and Scenic" designation. Historically, the people of East Texas have viewed any Federal actions suspiciously. I suspect the current political climate has made the locals even more wary of the Federal Government.

Gators Gone Wild

Below is some fascinating video of hundreds of alligators engaging in what has been described as a feeding frenzy.

The amazing video was shot by fisherman Ray Cason at Stephen C. Foster State Park in Georgia's Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge. The gators were congregated in a boat basin, or canal, which leads from a boat ramp to Billy's Lake.

Cason witnessed the gator gathering on two consecutive mornings. Each time the "frenzy" lasted 30-40 minutes.



"There were 10-foot gators with their entire bodies three feet above the water. Gators rolling all over themselves. It was foggy that first morning (Saturday, July 10) but I bet there were 300 gators I saw in that boat basin and canal," said Cason.

Wildlife biologists seem to be split on whether true cooperative feeding was taking place. Cooperative feeding implies that the alligators were working together in some fashion to round up and capture prey. This behavior is seen with other animals like wolves, lions, and even whales. Other experts believe that there was simply a lot of prey, mainly bowfin, gathered in the boat basin each of those two mornings. A congregation of prey that thick was bound to attract a lot of attention from the dominant predator in that ecosystem.

Whatever the case, there were a whole lot of alligators going at it in a very tight space. I grew up in SE Texas where there is a very healthy alligator population but I have never seen anything like this. I do know that trying to navigate that writhing reptilian mass in a small aluminum jon boat would be pretty nerve wracking. It is not something I would recommend.



The Okefenokee is very similar to some of the marshy/swampy areas of SE Texas and Louisiana. I would be very interested in hearing from anyone who has observed this sort of behavior in our neck of the woods.

More Strangeness in SE Texas

Just in case you needed any more convincing that some very strange goings on occur in the woods of east Texas...

You may recall that last week I and two other TBRC members spent Monday-Wednesday in the field near the location where possible sasquatch tracks were located last spring. While nothing of significance occurred as far as our search for that ever-elusive North American ape, we did have several odd experiences. You will remember that we spotted what appeared to be a feral donkey strolling across a remote forest road and had a late night "visitor", a bright shining light, approach our camp between 1:00-1:30am one night. It seems the weirdness continued after we left.

A second team of TBRC members arrived in the area on Thursday 7/22. They spent their first day and night in an area about 30 miles east of our last location. They did some night hiking and call blasting but did not hear or see anything interesting. The second day and night they moved to the area where we had camped earlier in the week. They scouted the area and walked creek beds looking for sign but had no luck. So, like us several days before, nothing sasquatch related was seen, heard, or found. That isn't to say nothing of interest was observed.

While leaving their camp the second day they ran into a familiar face. It seems they bumped into the same feral donkey we ran into earlier. They managed to snap a couple of photos of the donkey thus confirming our sighting from several days before. Not the unusual animal we had hoped to concretely document but you take what you can get, I suppose.





The strangest thing the team ran across; however, was a severed dog head (photo below). Just the head. No body was found. Initially, the team was excited as the head looked ape-like upon first glance. They were disappointed, and more than a bit disturbed, once they realized the severed head was of canine origin. Again, no body was to be found. What happened here? Who or what did this? Why? More questions without answers from the wilderness of the Lone Star State.



What is going on out there?

*Photos courtesy of TBRC member Jerry Hestand

Second Meeting on Neches River Scheduled in Lufkin

I reported yesterday that there will be a meeting in Beaumont where officials will meet the public to discuss the possibility of the Neches River receiving the federal Wild and Scenic designation.

There will be a second informational meeting in Lufkin this Tuesday the 28th to discuss the issue. Anyone interested in what it would mean for the area if the Neches receives the designation is welcome to attend. Attila Bality of the National Park Service and Deborah Caffin of the U.S. Forest Service, the same two speakers who will be at the Beaumont meeting on Monday, will be speaking in Lufkin on the matter and will take questions from audience members.

The meeting will be held at 6:00pm Tuesday in the Lufkin City Council Chambers located at 300 East Shepherd, Room 102.

I would very much appreciate a report on how the meetings went from anyone who is able to attend.

I Thought This Was Interesting

Here is a link to an interesting article about the successful completion of a nearly invisible tree house in Sweden. Actually, a series of six of these units were built as part of a "Treehotel" 40 miles south of the Arctic Circle. You can read the details here.



The concept for the "invisible tree house" was first publicized a couple of years ago. Several members of the TBRC discussed the possible uses for such a structure at that time. We felt that the potential for a small version of the unit as an observation blind would be great. It is true that in most animals the sense of smell is much more developed than their eyesight. I'm not sure the "invisible tree house" would be any more effective than a normal blind or stand as far as masking the scent of an observer. Primates are different though. The sense of smell in primates is not nearly as highly developed as it is in other types of animals. Primates rely much more heavily on their sight to find food or identify danger. If the sasquatch exists, as I believe it does, it is undoubtedly a primate. That being the case, it seems logical that they rely more on sight than smell. If true, the "invisible tree house" might be an effective tool in getting a glimpse of these creatures.



I would think the cost of such a structure would be too steep for most of us; however, I'm guessing a simplified reflective box could be built by some sufficiently motivated and inustrious individual.



Anyway, I found the concept interesting then and still do now. I would be curious to hear if anyone out there has attempted to build anything even remotely similar.

Neches River Designation To Be Discussed

There will be an informational meeting in Beaumont this coming Monday July 27th in regard to the possible designation of the Neches River as a federally protected Wild and Scenic River. Anyone interested in what it would mean for the area if the Neches receives the designation is welcome to attend. Attila Bality of the National Park Service and Deborah Caffin of the U.S. Forest Service will be speaking on the matter and will take questions from audience members.

The meeting will be held at 6:00pm at the Dishman Art Museum located at 1020 E. Lavaca on the Lamar University campus. The museum is located just off MLK Drive.