The Last Confirmed Mountain Lion Sighting in Pennsylvania

Photo byNathan AndressonUnsplash

WILKES-BARRE, PA - Mountain lions, once native to Pennsylvania, have not been officially spotted in the state since the late 19th century.

According to the Pennsylvania Game Commission, prior to European settlement, these large predators roamed the forests alongside other species like elk, wolves, and black bears.

Indigenous peoples, such as the Lenape, referred to mountain lions as "Kwèn’shùkwënay" and revered them for their hunting prowess.

Early settlers in Pennsylvania encountered mountain lions frequently. Notably, hunter Philip Tome described a chilling encounter in his journal, "Thirty Years a Hunter," where he faced off with two mountain lions in the wilderness near the West Branch of the Susquehanna River, according to the Pennsylvania Game Commission.

However, as Pennsylvania’s forests were cleared for agriculture, mountain lions and wolves became targets for hunters protecting livestock.

By the 1870s, the last confirmed mountain lion in Pennsylvania was killed, marking the end of the species' natural presence in the state, according to the Pennsylvania Game Commission.

Though there have been reports of escaped or captive lions, there is no evidence of a wild mountain lion population in Pennsylvania today.