WICHITA, Kan. (KAKE) - Wichita resident Cris Boyle couldn't believe her eyes Monday morning when she got a notification from her Ring camera showing
this video.
"I played it, and I had to look at it and think to myself, is it in my alley? Because it was a mountain lion running down the back of the alley," said Boyle.
That's right, it's a mountain lion trotting through a Riverside alleyway. If you listen closely, it even growls as it passes by.
"It was a terrifying sound, to be honest with you. I'd hate to hear that on the other side of the fence," said Boyle.
At first, Kansas Department of Wildlife Research Biologist Matt Peek was skeptical. He said this is only the 36 confirmed sighting of a mountain lion in Kansas and the first-ever in a city within the state
"I don't think there's any doubt that this is a mountain lion. Yep. And it helps there's a domestic cat that jumps out. So you really get a good size comparison of how much bigger the cougar is than the domestic cat," said Peek. "In this case where it's in the city, we also wanted to notify the local police department and make sure that they're aware, so that if somebody does call up and say, you know, there's a mountain line in the tree in my yard, that they take it seriously because it is possible."
Boyle said while it would be easy to let it scare her knowing there could be this massive cat lurking around, she's choosing a different mindset.
"The odds are astronomical that would have ever happened or would ever happen again. I'm just, rather than afraid, I'm grateful. I'm grateful that we got that experience because how many people can say, hey, guess what was in my alley last night," said Boyle.
Peek said while mountain lion attacks on humans are extremely rare, it's still best to steer clear. If you do come in close contact, it's best to use whatever you can, like holding up a jacket, to make yourself seem bigger. Make noise and try to scare it away. Finally, if it does attack you, unlike bear attacks, you want to use whatever you can to fight back.
