Another Unconfirmed Sighting

Post written by Russ Hall

At dawn on June 21 of this year, Peg and I were at Shell Mound, seeking to recreate the experience of the Summer Solstice that Native Americans had a millennium ago. Daybreak on the fishing dock was lovely as we watched the sunrise in the east. We had the place almost to ourselves—except for swarms of no-see-ums. They kept us from lingering and we were soon on our way back toward Cedar Key. A short distance beyond the bridge over Dennis Creek Peg noticed an animal perhaps 50 yards ahead of us on the side of the road. Shadows were long and the animal was backlit, but its outline was clearly visible. It must be a fox, I thought. When it turned and made for the tree line, however, I noticed that its bounding gait was not at all like a fox. “It’s a bobcat,” I exclaimed. “But it had a long tail,” Peg said.

Hmm, a cat with a long tail. Could it be the elusive jaguarundi?

image from Wikipedia

Natives of southern Arizona and Texas, and Central and South America, sightings of jaguarundis in the Shell Mound area have been reported over the years but never confirmed. Jaguarundis are said to have been released nearby in the past century, and other sightings have been reported elsewhere in Florida and the southeast. See the Distribution and Habitat section on the Wikipedia account (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaguarundi). However, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission does not recognize occurrence of the jaguarundi in the state.

So, putting an end to the mystery is a challenge for anyone who has a wildlife camera and is looking for a project.