Hunt for large cat
on Maui is called off
WAILUKU >> State wildlife workers stopped trying to trap a large cat in a gulch area in lower Olinda, Maui, on Tuesday after concluding that the animal has moved away.
But state wildlife biologist Fern Duvall said the baited cages may be moved to a place makai of the initial trap area, if there are indications of a large cat in that neighborhood.
"We will be contacting adjacent landowners for permission to do another ground search as soon as it can be arranged," Duvall said.
Wildlife officials dismantled several large trap cages Tuesday after there were no indications of cat activity last week.
Duvall, who believes the cat may be a jaguar or leopard, said the trap cages will be redeployed once there are "new credible sightings."
He said human interference in the trapping area may have caused the animal to move away. Duvall said feral chickens and deer have been sighted in the gulch area, indicating that the cat is no longer there, and no new paw prints have been found in the vicinity of the traps.
He said large-cat sightings have been recently reported to the state from as far as Kapalua, Makena, Kihei and Kula, and none have been determined to be reliable.
State officials increased the number of trap cages from one to four on June 25 after searchers found deep scratch marks on trees and the remains of 10 doves in the gulch a day earlier.
In addition to several reported sightings in recent months, a resident reported seeing a large cat on June 25 as wildlife officials were searching for it.
Sightings or unusual events may be reported to state wildlife officials at 808-873-3502 or Maui Police Dispatch, 244-6400.