LONGVIEW, Texas — It's not an animal that many people would expect to see near the roadways of East Texas, but a police officer came across none other than a mountain lion this week.
A Longview police officer was patrolling in the 3800 block of West Loop 281 around 3 a.m. Tuesday when he struck a mountain lion with his patrol vehicle, according to a Facebook post from Longview police.
Due to the extent of animal's injuries, the mountain lion had to be put down at the scene. A Texas Parks & Wildlife Department biologist and game warden were called, and a game warden took possession of the carcass.
The TPWD released the following statement Wednesday night regarding the incident:
"In the early morning hours on Tuesday, Dec. 10, a mountain lion was struck by a Longview Police Department (LPD) patrol vehicle. The police department contacted the Gregg County Game Warden and coordinated the retrieval of the deceased lion.
Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) staff took possession of the deceased lion to collect DNA and other biological samples. The lion was estimated to be a 3-4-year-old female weighing 83.5 pounds.
Several of the samples will be sent to the Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute as part of an ongoing research project and some were retained by TPWD staff as part of our effort to learn more about mountain lions in Texas.
In Texas, mountain lions are primarily found in the Trans-Pecos and parts of South Texas, however individual lions can move long distances and can show up far from their native ranges."
According to the National Wildlife Federation, mountain lions live all throughout the Americas and can be found in a variety of ecosystems, such as mountains, forests, deserts, and wetlands. They're able to make their homes anywhere there is shelter and prey. These animals also go by the names of cougar, puma, panther, or catamount.
So that means even East Texas can be home to these large felines.
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