Expert says snares
need time to workA pregnant dog is caught in
a trap set for a large cat in Maui
WAILUKU >> The latest attempt to catch a large cat roaming Upcountry Maui instead went to the dogs.
While the 19 snares have yet to snag a feline during several days laying in wait, one caught a pregnant mixed-breed dog, which then had nine puppies. The dogs' owner was located, and the animals turned over.
Arizona research biologist Stan Cunningham said during his trips to rural Olinda to supervise the installation of the snares over the past several days, he saw four claw marks on a guava tree that clearly indicated the presence of a large cat.
Cunningham is scheduled to leave Maui today after spending about a week on the Valley Isle.
Cunningham said he expects catching the large cat will take time and didn't feel confident in predicting how long the wait may be before a capture.
"I don't think it's going to happen right away," Cunningham said. "There's a lot of country out there."
Meanwhile, state officials are continuing to investigate how the large cat -- believed to be a jaguar or leopard -- arrived on Maui.
State biologist Fern Duvall said the cat may be roaming the Olinda area and returning to a residence.
One of the factors making the cat's behavior unpredictable is its origin as a domestic pet brought to Maui and the potential for it to not act like a large feral cat, Cunningham said.
Another factor is the wide area in which the large cat is believed to roam. The 19 snares have been set mainly in the gulches of an estimated 20-square-mile area with pastures, eucalyptus forests and steep ravines, officials said.
The state paid for Cunningham's travel and accommodations. The Arizona Game and Fish Department allowed him to assist Hawaii officials without charge, Duvall said.
Duvall said the major cost has been the labor devoted toward capturing the large cat, about $15,000 in wages for state employees.
Duvall encouraged residents to continue to notify authorities about the presence of the cat, to help in its capture.
"We need to know its movements," Duvall said.
Officials also cautioned residents to be careful of the snares, and keep their domestic animals away.
State invasive species coordinator Mindy Wilkinson said the hunt for the cat has taken labor away from other conservation projects, including the rescue of native seabirds, capture of endangered poouli, and the clearing of the alien tree Miconia calvescens from forests.
