A driver got the surprise of a lifetime after hitting a rarely seen cougar.

The photos of the 142-pound cougar were shared on Facebook by Jesse Koskiniemi, you can see in the photos that the paws are the size of a grown man's hands.

The driver was in Nimrod, about 155 west of Duluth, and while cougar sightings are rare, they are seen in Minnesota from time to time. The Minnesota DNR says "surveys have recorded no evidence to suggest the possibility of a resident breeding population of cougars in Minnesota."

The DNR believes that the cougars sighted in Minnesota are the "result of transient animals from the Western Dakotas." The DNR says that if you happen across a cougar that you should not shoot it, "Cougars are a protected species and may only be killed by a licensed peace officer or authorized permit holder."

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