Last year, I had a friend who called the DEC to ask them about cougars being released in NY State. They replied that they did not release any. My friend then ask, if they don't exist, can I shoot one if I see one?. DEC then replied, why would you want to shoot an animal that is endangered? He said, No - you can not shoot a cougar because they are considered endangered. I'm serious about this conversation. My personal opinion is that the DEC does not release cougars. If they are here, I don't know how they got here. My opinion, people don't know what a large bobcat looks like in the wild and they think it a cougar. Sorry you naysayers, this is just my opinion and, as everyone knows, I've been wrong before.