Last week’s news of a mountain lion being struck by a car in Milford got me thinking about Connecticut mountain lion law. This subject touches a little close to home. Several years ago, a neighbor told me he saw a mountain lion about two miles from my home in East Granby.
Another friend has reported seeing one in Suffield.
Connecticut regulations contain 3 references to mountain lions. All of the regulations are designed to protect them. Here they are in no particular order:
There shall be no open season on Hungarian partridge, northern and southern flying squirrel, mink, moose, muskrat, beaver, otter, Canada lynx, harbor seal, pine marten, Indiana bat, black bear, fisher, bobcat and mountain lion (felis concolor). Conn. Agencies Regs. § 26-66-3
No person shall purchase, sell, offer or expose for sale, or possess the raw skin, raw pelt, or carcass of any bobcat, black bear, pine martin, Canada lynx, or mountain lion (Felis concolor) unless such skin, pelt or carcass was legally acquired in this state or any other state or country. Conn. Agencies Regs. § 26-78-1
There shall be no open season for trapping snowshoe rabbit (varying hare), cottontail rabbit, gray squirrel, European hare, porcupine, red squirrel, woodchuck, Canada lynx, pine marten, black bear, bobcat, mountain lion (felis concolor), Indiana bat and harbor seal. Conn. Agencies Regs. § 26-66-7