Now the cougar is an endangered species. The western subspecies still holds it own. The Eastern Cougar Felis concolor cougar is generally considered extinct. The last recognized specimen was captured in Maine in 1938 and died a few years later.
People continue to report cougars in the Eastern United States.
While these cats may be Eastern Cougars, they may also be evidence that the Western Cougar's range has increased. Some sightings prove to be cases of mistaken identity with bobcats, dogs, or other animals the real subjects. Such escapees may account for many of the better sightings. A small but persistent fraction of sightings in the Eastern United States are of black cats. While black panthers are encountered very rarely in Central and South America, none has ever been reliably reported from the United States or Canada.