Possible Cougar Sighting on UMD Campus

According to a “campus alert” sent today to University of Maryland students and staff, a “possible cougar” has been sighted on the College Park campus. The possible cougar has been described as “light tan and tawny brown, about 4 feet long with a 4 foot tail, and weighing about 50 pounds.”

Captain John Brandt of UMD’s Department of Public Safety confirms that the possible cougar was first sighted yesterday. “The first [sighting], which happened a day ago, was not reported to the police department,” says Brandt. “The person who made the report initially wasn’t believed. But then we got a call this morning, around 6 a.m., of another sighting [of the possible cougar].”

Since the release of the campus alert, Brandt says his department has received word of an additional possible cougar sighting. At press time, Brandt’s officers—and the campus’s video security system—have yet to spot the possible cougar.

The possible cougar is a new threat for UMD, says Brandt. “We have never dealt with this before,” he says. “Cougars are not an indigenous species of the state of Maryland. . . . They’re just not seen around here. We will get the occasional report of a coyote on campus, which usually will end up just being a fox.”

Brandt does not know where the possible cougar came from. “Your guess is as good as mine,” he says.

Any sightings of the possible cougar should be reported to university police, at (301) 405-3555.

Full campus alert after the jump.

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