Rumors circulated on social media that a mountain lion, like the animal pictured here, was on the loose in the Richmond, Ky., area. Wildlife officials said the reports are a "hoax" and the animalphotographed by a local doorbell camera was a bobcat. File Photo by Gary C. Caskey/UPI | License Photo
June 5 (UPI) -- Wildlife officials in Kentucky said reports of a mountain lion on the loose in the state are a "hoax," with one caught-on-camera animal being identified as a bobcat.
One resident reported spotting a mountain lion in the Richmond area in late May, and another resident's doorbell camera captured an image of what some suspected to be a cougar on their doorbell camera near the Madison County fairgrounds this week.
"As far as we can tell right now, this is some sort of domestic cat or a hoax," Kentucky Fish and Wildlife Public Information Officer Lisa Jackson told FOX 56 News. "As always, we appreciate receiving original photos of any questionable sighting."
Joe Lacefield, a Regional Biologist with the Department of Fish and Wildlife, said the animal captured in the doorbell camera photo was not a mountain lion.
