MANISTEE COUNTY, Mich. – Last month, photographs were taken of what appeared to be a large, black cat in Manistee County.
Dakota Stebbins took the pictures before the Drew Kostic Memorial 5K Tough Run on Aug. 13.
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Officials with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources told UpNorthLive that the cat is a “normal-sized black cat.”
Stebbins said the large cat he saw “looked skinny.” He said he took the photo from 50 to 75 yards away with a 75mm-250mm lens while “zoomed in about a quarter of the way.” He said the tree in the photo was only 15 yards from him and he was positioned uphill from the cat.
There are three native wildcats in Michigan including bobcat, mountain lion and lynx. There are no confirmed cases of a black mountain lion -- but their color can appear gray or almost black depending on light conditions.
Also known as cougars or pumas, they were native to Michigan but were wiped out in the early 1900s. They are now listed as an endangered species in Michigan and spotted occasionally.
Photos: Every confirmed cougar sighting in Michigan since 2019