Since the floods in 1993 ...

... drove the wild things out of the bottom lands and back into civilization, it's been pretty common to see more and more critters roaming around cities and subdivisions.  Deer, possum, coyotes, skunks and all the rest of the furry guys normally associated with woodlands have all been seen in my little neighborhood over the past few years, and in great numbers.

Now STLToday is reporting that an honest-to-God mountain lion has been sighted and photographed in the woods off Olive Boulevard at White Road, just east of Faust Park.  This is also near a huge area of construction along Highway 141 (Woods Mill Road), formerly a heavily wooded area and not all that far from the Missouri River.  The Beckemeier Conservation Area is also nearby. Daughter Anna, her kids and dogs and cats live close by, too.

I guess the best advice is to keep an eye on the pups when you put them out for "last call" and hope for the best.  Or keep the carbine sighted, loaded and locked and set by the back door.

A mountain lion in Chesterfield.  Whew!