Mountain lions, cougars, panthers, pumas - by any name, they’re the scariest animal out there, at least in our imaginations. On “30% Wild,” we look at the prospect of these big cats returning to the eastern part of the United States, where we know they live right now, and how they can show up virtually anywhere from time to time. How dangerous are these top predators? How do you stay safe during wildlife encounters?

We also talk about black panther sightings, and learn why you shouldn’t choose the legendary Native American Underwater Panther as a kayaking buddy.

Brian Roell, Wildlife Biologist and Large Carnivore Specialist with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, tells us about the real animal behind the stories, evaluates your chances of seeing a black panther in the wild, and shares a hair-raising bear encounter from the north woods of the Upper Peninsula.

Listen to “Mountain Lions in the East, Part 1” and “Mountain Lions in the East, Part 2,” and subscribe to “30% Wild,” at www.thirtywildpod.com

• Are mountain lions dangerous to you?
• Will mountain lions return to the eastern US? Could they already be here?
• How to handle mountain lion encounters and stay safe
• Where cougars live, past and present, and where they could turn up next
• Why black panther sightings are dismissed by experts
• House cat or cougar? Cases of mistaken identity
• How cougars are weathering climate change
• Cougars and deer
• Includes the original story, “Copper Mine.”