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Panthers spotted in region; MNR has yet to confirm reports

Local News – Black panthers are roaming around Bonfield and Rutherglen, witnesses say.

Several sightings have been reported to The Nugget and the Ministry of Natural Resources.

John Wilson said he was driving his pickup truck down Trunk Road in Bonfield about a week ago when he spotted what he believes was a panther.

“I saw this rabbit running straight for my truck like something was chasing it,” he said Thursday.

“All of a sudden this black thing came out of the bush. At first I thought it was just a dog, but when it turned sideways I saw its long curvy tail,” he said.

“As soon as it saw me it headed right back into the bush.”

Marlene Tilson of Trunk Road in Bonfield said most sightings have been of a young panther.

“If there’s a baby then there must be a mother and father around,” she said.

“I’m nervous to go outside. I wouldn’t recommend people walk around this area. They might be a shy animal, but you ever know.”

Tilson said she suspects the panthers are descendants from a litter lost after the closure of an exotic animal farm in Powassan.

“When we first moved to the area about 14 years ago, we were told of this farm and how the owner had to destroy all his animals because they were infected with TB (tuberculosis),” she said.

The locals say a litter of four black panther kittens were left behind.

Tilson said she was skeptical about the presence of panthers in the area until her husband and several area residents confirmed what many had suspected for years.

“A few weeks ago my husband went out in the back field to feed the horses and he said he saw something big and black,” she said.

“At first he thought it was a bear, but it had a long tail and was about the size of our Labrador retriever. You can hear it at night, it has a loud, high pitch, like a screeching sound.”

Tilson said when she walked over to the spot where the animal was spotted, its paw prints were as big as a “bread and butter plate.”

Tilson said she reported the sighting to the MNR and was told there have been numerous sightings in the Bonfield and Rutherglen area, as well as Verner.

Tanya Ingwersen, technical wildlife specialist at the MNR, said the presence of black panthers in the area would be unusual, but “possible.”

She said the MNR has never seen the animal for verification, but has had reports of sightings.

“Anything that residents can give us, like tracks or droppings where a DNA sample can be taken or a photo would be helpful.”

Ingwersen said if the reports are accurate, the black panthers would most likely have been pets released into the wild.

Almira Smith, a Bonfield resident of 37 years, said a young panther walked across her driveway.

“The tail was as long as its body and completely black,” she said.

“I called the MNR. I didn’t think I was seeing things . . . They told me there were at least four reports made.

“It looked like a cat, until it started to lope through the hay and it was going fast,” she said.

“We now make sure the grandkids stay close to the house.”Jennifer Hamilton-McCharles
North Bay Nugget, Ontario

This entry was posted on Sunday, July 15th, 2007 at 12:43 am and is filed under Alien Big Cats, Bigfoot Report, Cryptozoology, Eyewitness Accounts, Mystery Cats, Out of Place. You can follow responses via our RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.