Video: Michigan Cougar Caught on Camera Killing a Deer

A man in Michigan's Upper Peninsula set up a trail camera that captured one of the most exciting videos yet of a cougar capturing a deer in the wild.

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Cougars in Michigan

The last legal wild cougar kill happened in 1906 in Newberry which is considered the southern gateway to the Tahquamenon Falls area in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. For many years after cougars were thought to be non-existent in Michigan.

Thanks to hunters and their trail cameras, they have captured several of these big cats on camera in the U.P. There have been nearly 50 confirmed cougar signings over the past five years and 82 total since 2008.

The photo above was taken in 2023 in Luce County and is one of the best pictures I have seen of a Michigan cougar. That cat is a brute and would make me nervous if I were a nearby deer hunting from a tree stand with only a bow and arrow in my hands.

Video: Cougar Caught on Video Catching a Deer

A guy by the name of Eli Schaefer posted the video above on his Facebook page that captured a cougar on one of his trail cameras catching and killing a young whitetail deer. It shows the power of these animals especially when you see the cougar walk away with the deer in its mouth carrying it easily as if it were the size of a rabbit.  Schaefer got the video on December 30, 2023, but did mention in his post that it was the second time he captured the big cat on his trail camera that year.