Mountan Lions (Pumas) in SF Bay
This story about recent/very local Mountain Lion sightings here in the San Francisco Bay Area was just on the news a few days ago (May 14th).
Apparently, they've been seen on a more regular basis in some very accessible, traditionaly "safe" local parks (foothills park and arastradero preserve, which butt up against one another in Palo Alto/Los Altos Hills/Portola Valley area).
This is remarkable to me--first, they should be in more remote places. Second, that they are become less afraid of humans/dogs is alarming. City of Palo Alto is even considering banning Park Use.
It is amazing to think that Mountain Lions are becoming the next "coyote"-meaning previously low populations of animals that have adapted to human encroachment and who also have no natural predators. Unfortunately, though I usually side with Ma Nature, i think these animals have to be removed (peacefully) and transported/reintroduced elsewhere where there is less chance for human interaction. Sadly, the alternative seems to be to introduce limited hunting to keep #'s in check. The unfortunate thing is that the argument for keeping deer populations in check is to make sure there are enough predators. Quite obviously, we have an overpopulation of deer, and, an overpopulation of mountain lions.
Last year, there was TV coverage about a Mountain Lion that had strolled in to midtown Palo Alto-total residential neighborhood, some 6-10 miles from Arastradero preserve. That cat had to get through either a drain culvert or PUBLIC ROADS to make it that far. Police ended up shooting it (caught up in a tree) with a high-power rifle. Good thing the bullet hit the cat and not a person.
Apparently, they've been seen on a more regular basis in some very accessible, traditionaly "safe" local parks (foothills park and arastradero preserve, which butt up against one another in Palo Alto/Los Altos Hills/Portola Valley area).
This is remarkable to me--first, they should be in more remote places. Second, that they are become less afraid of humans/dogs is alarming. City of Palo Alto is even considering banning Park Use.
It is amazing to think that Mountain Lions are becoming the next "coyote"-meaning previously low populations of animals that have adapted to human encroachment and who also have no natural predators. Unfortunately, though I usually side with Ma Nature, i think these animals have to be removed (peacefully) and transported/reintroduced elsewhere where there is less chance for human interaction. Sadly, the alternative seems to be to introduce limited hunting to keep #'s in check. The unfortunate thing is that the argument for keeping deer populations in check is to make sure there are enough predators. Quite obviously, we have an overpopulation of deer, and, an overpopulation of mountain lions.
Last year, there was TV coverage about a Mountain Lion that had strolled in to midtown Palo Alto-total residential neighborhood, some 6-10 miles from Arastradero preserve. That cat had to get through either a drain culvert or PUBLIC ROADS to make it that far. Police ended up shooting it (caught up in a tree) with a high-power rifle. Good thing the bullet hit the cat and not a person.
posted by Twain at
10:39 PM
1 Comments:
i remember this one time, twain and i were running at dusk in huddart park in WOODSIDE. we were climbing for about 35 minutes, and as we came over a crest, i swear i saw a mountain lion about 50 feet in front of us, in the middle of the trail. i sort of stopped in my tracks, and it scampered away. when i tried explaining to twain what it was, he LOL'd (laughed out loud) at me. said it was a bobcat. who would have guessed the irony? that 5 years later, twain would be posting in his own blog about how mountain lions are knowingly part of the ecosystem of the bay area bush.
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fitz, at 6:50 AM
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