A recent video seems to show a mountain lion near the Maine border. (CBC Video)

It’s one of the hottest debates in the Northeast outdoors: Are there mountain lions living in the region?

For years, many eyewitnesses throughout the Northeast have reported seeing mountain lions. Hundreds of sightings have been reported in the Berkshires of Massachusetts in recent years. In Winchester, Massachusetts two years ago, residents reported seeing a large cat and police said a wildlife expert who examined prints said they were from a mountain lion. Earlier this year, a wildlife camera near Lake Champlain captured a photo of a possible mountain lion. And, in 2011, a mountain lion was struck and killed by a car in Connecticut.

But despite all the reported sightings, wildlife experts have maintained that the Northeast has no permanent, breeding mountain lion population. Instead, they say, the occasional mountain lion that is confirmed in the area has usually wandered into the region from someplace else. (Genetic tests showed the mountain lion killed in Connecticut was originally from South Dakota.) And they say other reports have often been a misidentification or a hoax.

Now, a new video is likely to reignite the regional discussion over mountain lions, at least in Maine.

According to a report on CBC.com, a woman took a video of what looks like a mountain lion in New Brunswick, Canada. And, according to a columnist for BangorDailyNews.com, the location where the video was shot is a mere two miles from the Maine border.

Maine is no stranger to mountain lion sightings. Reported sightings have occurred in recent years in such places as Waldoboro, Corea and Ellsworth.

What do you think? Are there mountain lions living here in the Northeast?

Read more about a suspected mountain lion filmed near the Maine border.