Local cougar is considerate of our needs

By Julie Cooper (Contact) | The Natchez Democrat

Published Wednesday, October 8, 2008

The Natchez cougar is a connoisseur of news.

She — the latest spotter is sure it’s a female — reads all the local and national news headlines.

And she’s closely following the plight of her human neighbors.

When things get heated in Natchez or in the country, our cougar friend decides to intervene.

The cougar first made herself known in early June — in the midst of a mayoral race in Natchez.

Chick or Jake? That was the question on many minds. Campaign signs were sprouting at will in yards around town. Tensions were mounting. Everyone needed a break from the news.

Enter the cougar.

She made herself known to two downtown residents near Briel Avenue — appropriate since it was a city election.

Two women saw her lurking in the tall grasses on the side of the road.

And for at least three weeks after the first sighting, the cougar was the main topic of discussion in town. Half joke, half fear, this big cat knew how to grab attention.

Then, she disappeared. We’ve had no reported signs of the cat, and a representative from the Mississippi Department of Wildlife and Fisheries said the odds of there being a cougar in Natchez were basically zero.

The cat became more joke, less worry.

Now, in the midst of the worst economic crisis in years, she appears again.

This time, our cougar made herself visible to a bike rider on the Natchez Trace. She merely walked across the road in front of him and disappeared into the woods.

Because the animal was on the new portion of the Trace, it is reasonable to believe that we are tracking the same cougar. It’s fairly easy — if you are on four legs — to travel from the Briel Avenue area to the Trace via an old railroad track.

This time, the spotter is quite certain of what he saw.

It wasn’t a deer or a goat.

It was a 100-pound cat, golden tan with markings on its face.

And this time, she came to get our minds off the stock market.

Animals are, after all, one of the best distractions from the real world we have. It looks like the City of Natchez has one considerate cougar.

I recently did a little hiking in the mountains of Yosemite National Park in California. During a water break, I looked up to see a good-sized bobcat hopping the rocks in front of me.

The cat darted behind one rock, only to come out again and pose for a few photos.

It was quite an amazing sight. In fact, it was one of my favorite moments of the trip.

Seeing nature’s hidden wonders in real life, sans the zoo bars, is an eye-opening experience that takes your mind far from the real world.

Seeing a cougar on the Natchez Trace probably takes you even further away from the day-to-day to which we’ve become accustomed.

And whether this cougar planned it or not, she is a great reminder that though your candidate may not win, your stock may plummet and the housing market may crumble, life as God planned it goes on.

Nature’s wonders are all around us — even if Wildlife and Fisheries says they aren’t — and sometimes we just need to sit and be in awe of them.

Oh, and take a picture if you see that cougar!

Julie Cooper is the managing editor of The Natchez Democrat. She can be reached at 601-445-3551 or julie.cooper@natchezdemocrat.com.