At SSR now and guess what I saw?

[granmanh603]

Ok I am not an animal person so...but it is raining right now and I looked out the window...I am on ground floor by the water and just saw a large cat thing walk over the grass and down the path...it was not a cat either it was light greyish it kinda was slinking along and then went down the path to the water and I lost sight of it as there is a lot of shrubs here by the pool area. Does anyone know what it could have been?

 

[sean-1966]

Armadillo??

 

[5forDiz]

Not an expert either.... Maybe Florida panther ? DH's sis & family live in Palm Beach Gardens, they occasionally see them.

 

[BEASLYBOO]

Could be a big Possum Momma, they look like big cats!
When my son was 3 we went camping, and as we're getting ready to get into the car I hear him say, "Here Kitty", I look over and it's not a kitty, rather a big Possum just meandering back into the shrubs!

 

[BostonDisneyKid]

The Fort Mysers area have "panther crossing" signs posted everywhere. Maybe it was a panther. Without having seen it, its kinda tough to say...

 

[granmanh603]

It was not a possum I know what that looks like...it had small ears but was way bigger than a cat. but did look like a cat....it was a lighter gray color when it turned the corner by the shrubs which are about 15 to 18 inchs high you could see the top of its head and ears. It went into the playground area because I saw someone coming down the path and he was taking a picture of something in there on the ground....but then never saw it again.

 

[drusba]

Hard to tell by your description. Did it look like this: http://consejo.bz/belize/images/animals/cats/jaguarundi.jpg

 

[alice99]

http://www.defenders.org/wildlife_and_habitat/wildlife/panther.php

Was it this?

 

[granmanh603]

Hard to tell by your description. Did it look like this: http://consejo.bz/belize/images/animals/cats/jaguarundi.jpg

Yes it did but it didn't look speckled at least from my distance but that was the grayish color exactly....can't tell size from the picture . It had a smallish head like that too that is why at first I just thought it was a cat...but the size was off....Thanks
Also this trip I saw a black snake....by the water but it slithered away and so did I. Glad I am at BWV in Oct. Funny and I have lived in the woods of NH for close to 20 years now and have seen I fox a few random deers recently eating my plants and turkeys!!!!! Thats it...

 

[photobob]

I'm really curious now. Do Bobcats live in Florida?

 

[granmanh603]

http://www.defenders.org/wildlife_and_habitat/wildlife/panther.php

Was it this?

I read this too. It looked grayish like the other picture some one posted but from reading this is probably was the female size wise and I have see brown rabbits in the shrubs right where I first saw it!!!!!! yikes that would have been a very ugly Disney site. I am not good at distance but I am on ground floor and this was like 30 feet or so away from patio door. Funny we have been watching people cut across the grass on a short cut to the pool the whole time we have been here and the animal was using the same route LOL

 

[Kathi OD]

While possible, I doubt it was a Florida panther. There are only about 90 of them in the entire state. They are primarily found in the Everglades, Big Cypress National Reserve, the Florida Panther NWR, and the surrounding areas.

Because of its proximity to these locations, its possible you might see them in the Ft. Myers/Naples area. A sighting in WDW would be quite unusual.

 

[Kathi OD]

I'm really curious now. Do Bobcats live in Florida?

yes

 

[drusba]

The photo I linked to is a jaguarundi. They could be mistaken for a big house cat but have the distinctive ears. Color ranges from light gray to dark brown to almost black Full grown they are about a yard long which counts the rather long tail. Often are the cause of mistaken sightings of a black panther.

 

[granmanh603]

The photo I linked to is a jaguarundi. They could be mistaken for a big house cat but have the distinctive ears. Color ranges from light gray to dark brown to almost black Full grown they are about a yard long which counts the rather long tail. Often are the cause of mistaken sightings of a black panther.

Yes it looked most like your picture...it had a little head and little ears do they have these in Fla?

 

[drusba]

Yes, the jaguarundi is in Florida. Over the years wildlife officials have even increased their reach by taking mating pairs and introducing them to new areas.

 

[liznboys]

Wow, that's freaky and interesting!

 

[Mickeyfollowers]

I don't how good of a look you got of it, but on the DVC Mike thread I had seen that someone had asked him if he had seen the otters that live in the ponds there. Here is a link to a picture of an otter.

http://campus.murraystate.edu/academic/faculty/terry.derting/CVA_atlases/otter/homepage.htm

 

[jimmacmn]

Several years ago, we ran into three bobcats while we were playing golf on the Eagle Pines golf course. The beverage cart lady said there were in fact bobcats in the area but sightings were very rare. As I recall these animals were about the height of springer spaniel.

 

[littlestar]

Probably a bobcat. Our boat driver pointed one out a few years ago to us.