[at-l] Bear Phobia

[RoksnRoots@aol.com (RoksnRoots@aol.com)]

In a message dated 7/13/01 8:10:57 AM Eastern Daylight Time, 
m_factor@hotmail.com writes:

<<  It was a cat, 
 purring.  Only this cat had the deepest purr I've ever heard.  Basically, we 
 were close enough to hear a Bengal tiger breathing as it stalked the deer >>


   I have also had the life's privilege of seeing a wild bengal tiger from 
only few yards away. I'm not trying to flame your story in any way, but I 
have heard that any cat that 'roars' can't purr, and any cat that purrs can't 
roar...
    So, unless you saw your tiger, or it was mildly groaning, it could have 
been what the locals call a 'panther' that is known by most as 'leopard'  
*equally as dangerous and mostly nocturnal. I picked up a paper near 
Ranthambore Preserve to read that India was having a panther problem from 
night attacks. Panthers were preying on villagers who went out to relieve 
themselves at night. They were smart enough to lay in wait til evening for 
their quarry. 
    If it was a tiger, the parks provide enough deer in this Hindu/vegetarian 
part of the globe that the tigers are satisfied and usually don't prey on the 
subsistence peasants. Shame that Ranthambore had lost many tigers to official 
corruption previous to my visit. I was surprised to see so many Indians only 
a few hundred yards away in the preserve with no protection whatsoever.
    The only way I could relate this to the AT is that many Indians live 
their entire lives "through*hiking". Maybe that is why they are so tranquil 
and content. 
         A tiger's groan is like nothing you would ever want to hear alone 
out in the woods *believe me! (We also saw a cobra slithering into the weeds. 
Blacker color than I had previously thought)