Are black panthers in Mississippi? No, but there's a black jaguar in Hattiesburg
Claims of black panther sightings in Mississippi go back as far as many can remember, even though none have ever been confirmed. However, at the Hattiesburg Zoo, visitors can see the next closest thing.
"We often get people that come to the zoo and say, 'Look, a black panther,'" said Jeremy Cumpton, director of conservation, education and wildlife at the Hattiesburg Zoo. "And I'm like, 'Actually...'"
The cat is not a black panther, Cumpton said. It's a black, or melanistic, as the condition is often referred to, jaguar.
"She has the same rosettes (spots) that normal jaguars have," Cumpton said. "She's got some brown in there and some blues."
Cumpton said in direct sunlight the rosettes are visible, but in lower light she appears to be completely black.
According zoo animal curator Kristen Moore, the black jaguar named Maya is rare because of her color, but not unheard of.
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A rare black cat in Mississippi
"I think there's about 500 to 600 in the wild," Moore said. "I think that's the last thing I read."
As unusual as a black jaguar is, many Mississippians may not know about Maya. Cumpton said when she arrived in 2016 the zoo was in the process of revitalization and did not draw the same amount of visitors it does today.
"We were just starting to get our name out," Cumpton said.
Since then, Maya has served not only as a popular attraction, but also plays a role in dispelling the myth about black panthers in Mississippi; something Cumpton and Moore said has been passed down from generation to generation.
"We have a sign here that helps tell people the origin of that myth just to help a little bit with education," Cumpton said.
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Decades of claims of black panthers in Mississippi
Even so, claims of sightings of black panthers in Mississippi persist. Richard Rummel, a biologist with the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks who has experience with panthers, said between social media and phone calls to his office, he often encounters reports of black panthers and has since the late 1970s.
"I've been hearing about them since then," Rummel said. "I get a couple of calls a month, maybe more."
In addition to black jaguars, Rummel said black leopards have been documented, but their range is from parts of Africa to areas in South Asia. He said there are also populations of black bobcats, but not in Mississippi.
So what are people seeing in Mississippi when they claim it's a black panther? Rummel said in some cases he doesn't know. In some cases it's a hoax. In others it's a matter of mistaken identity.
"I've gotten calls from people that really don't know wildlife," Rummel said. "People will see a black panther by a bridge and I go down there and find otter tracks."
So, short of traveling out of state, Maya is the only opportunity for Mississippians to see a truly large black cat .
"She interacts well with visitors," Moore said. "She'll come right up to the glass so people can get a good look at what a large black cat looks like."
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If you go:
Location: 107 South 17th Ave., Hattiesburg
Admission: Children under 2 free. Children 2-12, $6. Adults, $8. College students, active military and seniors 65 and over, $7. Groups of 20 or more, $4 children, $7 adults.
Hours: 10 a.m.-4 p.m, Tuesdays through Sundays. Ticket sales end at 3:30 p.m.
Closed: Mondays, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas, Christmas Eve, New Year’s Day.
Contact: 601-545-4576 or zoomail@hattiesburg.org
Contact Brian Broom at 601-961-7225 or bbroom@gannett.com. Follow Clarion Ledger Outdoors on Facebook and @BrianBroom on Twitter.
This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Mississippi zoo features rare black jaguar
