Adult female lion at Big Cat Rescue in Florida.

I have just been contacted by an eyewitness, DJCB, regarding a new mystery cat sighting.

On Friday, October 19, 2007, the witness saw a “female lion” on the shoulder of the northbound side of I-65 approximately .5 miles north of exit 98 (10 miles north of Nashville, Tennessee). As DJCB drove south, the large cat stood watching cars zoom by on the highway.

The eyewitness described what happened next:

I debated on whether or not to call local authorities. Three hours later, I called the TN Wildlife office. As expected, the officer handling my call spoke to me like I was the village idiot. I have zero doubt that the animal was a lion.DJCB

Anyone else hear of any new mystery cat activity from Tennessee?

If you will recall, eleven months ago, back on November 19, 2006, I wrote about the sightings and then videotape of a large short-tailed cat seen in Nashville, Tennessee. Speculations covered caracal, lynx, and bobcat.

The two images below are from the video taken of the Tennessee Mystery Cat[link may be dead now]:

For comparative purposes, below is a photograph of a caracal, which could appear to be a mountain lion or female African lion from a distance (if the tail is not seen).