A large cougar is prowling a tiny but densely populated island just off Nanaimo and officials with the Environment Ministry say conservation officers are keeping a close eye on the situation.
A spokeswoman for the ministry says the B.C. Conservation Officer Service has received numerous calls about the cougar on Protection Island, a 70-hectare community of about 350 homes on the east side of Nanaimo Harbour.
Conservation officer Andrew Riddell told CHEK News he met with Protection Island residents Thursday morning and later set up a live trap “in hopes of capturing the cougar overnight or in the coming days.”
If the cat is caught, conservation officers and the provincial veterinarian will assess its condition and decide along with provincial biologists where to relocate it.
Riddell said he has seen cats swim from nearby Newcastle Island, a provincial park just a few hundred metres to the north, to Protection Island during low tide before, but he’s not sure if that’s where this cougar came from.
“All reports right now are that it’s preying on natural food sources and our hope is that it leaves the island naturally by itself,” he said.
Protection Island residents have been advised to report any recent sightings, especially if the cougar is showing predatory behaviour such as following people or pets. The B.C. Conservation Officer Service can be reached at 1-877-952-7277.
Residents are also urged to make noise while walking and to keep children in sight and pets leashed or indoors.
A Facebook page set up by Island residents shows the cougar likely arrived a day or two before Christmas, killed a deer and was not expected to leave before it finished that meal.
In the meantime, the page shows residents have proposed everything from naming the cat “Santa Claws,” to forming roving groups to tour the island singing and making noise, in hopes the cougar would move on.
Another post says the Protection Island Neighbourhood Association made caution signs that were to be posted at various points around the Island on Wednesday.
“I sure hope the cougar can read,” says a followup post.
But a separate entry questions what will happen if the animal attacks a child or a pet and calls on the conservation officer service to “do your job.”
The statement from the Conservation Officer Service says cougars are common on Vancouver Island, are good swimmers and have been known to swim to smaller islands “from time to time.”
— With a file from the Times Colonist
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