http://www.ncwildlife.org/News/Blogs...thbusters.aspx

"Finally, one of the most tenacious rumors regards cougars (also called panthers and mountain lions). The Wildlife Commission receives dozens of calls reporting sightings every year. Nearly all are unconfirmed, and many turn out to be bobcats, deer, foxes or coyotes — all of which are common in North Carolina. All confirmed sightings since 1950 turn out to be escaped captive animals, kept as pets. The wild eastern cougar has been extinct in North Carolina for many years. Occasionally, the myth pops up that the Commission, or some other government agency, released cougars to control the feral pig population. This is not true."