Duluth Police Issue Warning After Cougar Sightings In The Area

The Duluth Police Department issued an unusual, but important public alert this afternoon.

In a public notice, the department warned Duluthians and others in the Twin Ports area that they have been receiving reports of cougar (mountain lion) sightings in the area.

In their public release about the sightings, the Duluth Police Department shared that they have been made aware of sightings by members of the public in the Duluth area of a cougar.

The alert is linked to a sighting at Duluth's Ordean East Middle School and Congdon Elementary, prompting the schools to be put into a "secure status protocol" after a cougar was spotted in the area on Wednesday (December 3).

The image of the cougar above is the animal that was spotted near the schools today. If you look closely, you can see what looks like a collar around its neck. The Minnesota DNR has confirmed this, though they say it isn't one of theirs.

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The Duluth Police Department said that they have been in contact with the Minnesota DNR about these sightings. The DNR acknowledged the collar on the animal, but said it was not a Minnesota DNR collar. Because of this, they can't track it. They suspect it was collared elsewhere and made its way into the state.

The DPD warns that you should exercise caution if you see one of these animals and should never approach them.

I've personally seen people in national parks and other wild outdoor settings who actually try to get closer to these animals to get a photo or a better look. This is the opposite of what you should do.

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While it seems like common sense, I've seen more than a handful of people try to approach a bear or other potentially dangerous wild animal, you really don't want to tangle with. If you feel that urge to try to get a better look, please fight that urge.

While cougar sightings are rare in the Northland, they are not completely unheard of. There have been a growing number of reports over the years of sightings in Northern Minnesota, including a few different sightings caught on camera in the Duluth area in 2023 and others in the Grand Marais area in 2022.

Although reports in 2024 were down, stats from the Minnesota DNR have shown a generally upward trend in the number of confirmed cougar sightings in Minnesota over the years.

The peak was in 2023, when the Minnesota DNR was able to confirm 34 of these sightings.

The home territory for Mountain Lions in the United States is generally in the Mountain West states, though they do have a presence in the Western Dakotas.

Experts have suggested that sightings in Minnesota and other places eastward are likely young males who have explored eastward.