Black Pumas uploaded a bunch of live studio recordings at Capitol Studio A. I already watched the incredible Colors performance yesterday 🥰

Black Pumas - Colors (Live from Capitol Studio A), youtube link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGjS3qaE900

Today I noticed, there is more...

Here is their "Live From Capitol Studio A" youtube playlist with five more songs:
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLQOe9iCkxQTAVTGtML7AIcKLVYEXD4Kdh

#Music #Soul #PsychedelicSoul #RnB #BlackPumas

Black Pumas, Chronicles of a Diamond, 2023 on ATO

Sophomore album from Black Pumas – following up the giant success of their self-titled debut in 2019 with “Colors” which was a bit inescapable (and brilliant).

Doesn’t get as much attention as the debut – the dreaded sophomore slump – but I think it is every bit as good an album.

My copy, via Barnes & Noble, is a limited edition pressing on red & gold split vinyl, with an included postcard. (It can be surprising what you can find in Barnes & Noble, which I don’t normally think of as a record store but gets some good pressings).

Black Panthers – Rare and Everywhere

Tales of black panthers are widespread and repeated from the US and Canada to Europe. A cryptid conundrum arises from the fact that there are no documented populations of these melanistic cats in those places. Yet people see them, report them, and insist that they are around. The black panther phenomenon is so entrenched in cryptid content that many suggest they are not regular animals but zooform phenomenon – paranormal beings in animal shape, unable to be tracked and caught.

Real big black cats

Melanistic variants of large cats include the jaguar and leopard, both of which produce a genetic combination that result in a black coat color. In both cases, the typical coat color is tan with spots or “rosettes”. The excess of dark pigment overwhelms the spotted pattern, even though the spots are visible on the black background in certain lighting up close.

A common assertion from witnesses or those repeating local accounts is that the animal seen was a black mountain lion/puma. Melanistic mountain lions are not recognized as biological possibilities. Hunted for centuries and rendered extinct in the northeastern states, there has never been an example of a black puma. A logical conclusion is that the species Puma concolor does not carry the mutation to account for melanism, so it cannot naturally appear. Therefore, it’s not reasonable to accept this explanation for a big black cat. Even if, one day, a black puma is found (or close to it), it will not be reasonable to conclude that this one-off individual could account for the extensive sightings. So what can account for sightings?

This recent video does a fine job of presenting all the possible explanations for reports. However, EVERY media post about the mystery inevitably includes comments cluttered with unverified (and unverifiable) stories from people who claim to have seen them, regardless of the impossible odds that such a creature exists, particularly in that area.

Black jaguars are a possibility in the southern US. While still a rare variation, individual jaguars can cross into Arizona and may range far enough for people to occasionally spot them. With the rarity of individuals and the additional rarity of the black coat color, the odds just don’t favor black jaguars.

With black leopards only native to Africa (Edit: and tropical Asia), the next reasonable guess is that imported, kept cats have escaped. Escaped kept cats are also a low-odds, but not impossible, option. However, missing animals usually are recovered fairly quickly or end up dead.

In the UK, where the idea of “alien big cats” has a long and exciting history from the early 1900s, certain areas were said to be home to their own named large cat, often described as black. These include the Beast of Exmoor, Surrey Puma, Beast of Bodmin, Norfolk Panther, Cotwolds Big Cat, Beast of Dartmoor, Galloway Puma, and Beast of Buchan. In 2020, Spain was the center of a black panther flap. Like in the U.S., there is a serious problem with no known animals upon which to pin the sightings. But the option of released or escaped animals remains a commonly suggested, though infrequently confirmed, solution.

Photos and hoaxes

Several photographic examples exist from people claiming to have encountered black panthers. The photos often lack scale, or a follow-up to determine scale isn’t done. The black coloration obscures details that allow us to accurately judge size and characteristics. Wildlife experts can tell if the animal is proportioned like a big cat or a regular house cat. In most cases, it’s obvious that the animal is Felis catus (domestic cat), which can get pretty hefty.

Black jaguars have been caught on game cameras in Panama. Even in remote areas, rare snow leopards have been caught on camera in Northern Pakistan. Yet, with the multitude of game cameras everywhere in the US, no black panthers have been discovered. The negative evidence suggests they really aren’t there.

Hoaxed photos abound. Every so often, a real photo of a black leopard or jaguar will be promoted as taken from a local camera. Or, as is more frequent, a photo has been manipulated or created. Some examples are used so often, reappearing every few years, commenters joke about how the same cat really gets around.

My favorite “hoaxes” are those involving stuffed animal toys that people mistake as real animals.

The black panther mascots

A curious observation I have made is the multitude of school and sports mascots that are black panthers. A big fearsome cat is a common icon to use, and often it is depicted as black even though the location can’t claim any large representative native cats. Pop culture images of black panthers are now so well-known that people have a frame of reference and may assume that the presence of a “black mountain lion” isn’t as far-fetched as it actually is.

The repeated imagery and stories of black panthers are influential in interpreting sightings. Witnesses may have no idea that such large cats are not plausible in their area. If they see a glimpse of a large, sleek dog in low light, or a bulky tom cat in the distance, they can easily jump to the wrong conclusions.

We are primed to see what our culture suggests we could see. The black panther image is ubiquitous. We will always fear the large, dangerous predator that might be in the forest, no matter how rare (or impossible) scientists say they are.

This post is part 2 of the 12 days of Cryptids.

#12DaysOfCryptids #alienBigCats #bigCats #BlackPanthers #blackPumas #cryptid #mysteryCats