AKA: Ayew, Alien Big Cat (ABC), Black Cougar, Appalachian Black Panther, Eastern Cougar (mutated), Shadowcat, Ghost Cat, Black Painter, Black Puma, Catamount

Long ago, settlers feared the unexpected appearance of a black, lithe creature; it would drop silently from the trees, killing its prey swiftly, putting horror into the hearts of onlookers. Today, though less dreaded, this frightening animal is reported every year in states east of the Mississippi River. Alien Big Cats, or “ABC’s”, are large, black felines not definitively proven to exist in certain areas of the world; the Appalachian Black Mountain Lion is one such creature: a separation from the Eastern Cougar, covered in dark fur, and resembling a South American jaguar or Asian/African black panther.

Larger in size than their cougar brethren, Black Mountain Lions arose long ago from a genetic mutation causing melanism－a beneficial trait for the cats. They were encountered and documented by European pioneers and explorers, displayed in museums in the 1700s, written and drawn in the 19th century (see “The Naturalist’s Library, Mammalia, Vol.…