A young boy was attacked on Monday by a mountain lion in California. California Department of Fish and Wildlife released the following:
Wildlife officers from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife are investigating a suspected mountain lion attack at the Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve in San Diego County. On Monday, May 27, in the afternoon, wildlife officers responded to the park where a 4-year-old boy was treated by San Diego Fire-Rescue after sustaining a non-life threatening injury consistent with a mountain lion attack. The boy was part of a group of 11 people recreating in the park at the time. The details of how the suspected attack occurred are not yet available.
While the wildlife officers were conducting their investigation at the scene, they identified mountain lion tracks. Very shortly thereafter and in the same area, a mountain lion approached the officers. The lion appeared to have little fear of humans, which is abnormal behavior for a mountain lion. The wildlife officers immediately dispatched the animal to ensure public safety. The wildlife officers collected clothing and other samples from the boy. Those samples, plus the carcass, are en route to the CDFW Wildlife Forensics Laboratory in Sacramento for a necropsy and DNA analysis. CDFW wildlife forensics specialists will attempt to confirm that this animal was responsible for the attack.
The original report can be read here.
MOUNTAIN LIONS IN CALIFORNIA
In 1990, California listed mountain lions as a “specially protected species”. The big cats are not endangered, but an exact count is still unknown. The last “guestimate” that CDFW did was in 1996. At that time they estimated about 6000 cats were in the state. They are currently studying the mountain lion population and will not release another count until 2022 with an updated management plan. With human and mountain lion conflicts on the rise, will California need to delist the cat and allow for proper predator management?
