Cougar Gunned Down in Chicago

Couldn't they have called in a specialist? Don't they know about tranquilizer guns?
A 150-pound cougar was gunned down by Chicago police Monday after it was loose in a residential area on the city's North Side.

Several residents reported seeing the cat early Monday and the officer shot the animal in an alley. Although rare, cougars (also known as pumas and mountain lions) have been sighted in Illinois...in urban, well populated areas.







Last year, a young wily coyote, roughly a year-and-a-half old (who animal control named Adrian) had quite the adventure in Chicago's Loop.

A six-year study into habitats of urban coyotes, sponsored by Cook County's Department of Animal Control has produced surprising results. When the study began, it was expected to find the canines confined to large parks or forest preserves. But...it seems that there is at least one pack of coyotes living right downtown, and there may be thousands of coyotes residing in the Chicagoland area.


Of course, it's a bit odd that a coyote would seek refuge in a Quiznos sandwich shop, but that's what Adrian did, strolling east on Adams in the post-lunch crowd. He walked in the front door that had been propped open because of the warm weather.

For 40 minutes, he sat there quite passive -- next to the Gatorade -- a sort of odd celebrity, as dozens of passersby came to see the coyote who came to dinner and take pictures with their cell phones. Imagine what Mr. Coyote thought about all this attention.

Adrian, unlike the poor cougar, was captured by animal control and released into the wild.