Lion visits become more frequent
There have been two recent sightings near homes in Nice
The severe drought affecting California has resulted in wildlife showing up in our backyards. Bears are a common visit, so much so that fresh bear tracks were spotted in the mud by the launch ramp Monday at Lakeside County Park.
Mountain lions are also appearing across the county. In the past three weeks there have been two sighting of mountain lions near homes in Nice. Last week a mountain lion attacked a 5-year-old boy in Southern California. The boy was hospitalized but survived. The mountain lion was tracked down and killed.
Since 1983 there have been 16 mountain lion attacks statewide on humans, with three being fatal. There hasn’t been a verified attack on a human in Lake County to date. There also have been numerous reports of humans coming in close contact with lions in the county. A few years ago a mountain lion was spotted walking across the Kmart parking lot in Lakeport.
Without question, a mountain lion is an impressive animal. An adult male weighs from 150200 pounds. The record for mountain lion is 278 pounds. They are incredibly strong for their size and have the ability to take down and kill an 800-pound bull elk within minutes. Wildlife biologists say a mountain lion kills a deer about every 20 days, more often if it’s a female with cubs. They are a secretive animal and mostly move about at night although they occasionally travel during the daytime.
Few people have seen a mountain lion in the wild. I’ve been fortunate in all my years of hiking and hunting to have seen five in the wild. The most memorable event occurred a number of years ago while I was deer hunting on Cow Mountain. I saw a huge male lion sitting on a hump out in an open glade. I walked toward him and he just looked at me, all the time swinging his long tail back and forth. I approached to within about 30 yards and he stood up and stared at me before slowly walking away. He was the most impressive wild animal I had ever seen.
I once had the opportunity to examine a dead mountain lion that had been hit by a car. The size of the claws were very impressive and he had a large set of fang teeth.
There is no question he was a killing machine.
Just about everyone who has hiked in the woods in Lake County has been watched by a lion at one time or another. A few years ago biologists attached a GPS tracking collar to a lion in Southern California and monitored it for several weeks.
The lion often hid in the brush a few yards off a popular hiking trail and observed people hiking past him. No one but the biologists knew he was there.
Of the three people in California who have been killed by mountain lions, one was a woman who was hiking near Auburn. The lion dragged her body into the brush and covered it up, and it wasn’t discovered for nearly a week.
A number of years ago a mountain lion entered a home through an open patio door at Kono Tayee. It was at night and the surprised occupants of the home fled to the bathroom and locked the door.
The lion roamed around the home, knocking over furniture before exiting out the same door it had entered.
While there have been no verified attacks of humans by mountain lions in Lake County, there have been two attacks in neighboring Mendocino County.
Mountain lions are fully protected and can’t be hunted, The Department of Fish and Wildlife (DFW) will issue a depredation permit to kill a lion if it poses a threat to humans or livestock.
Is it safe to walk in the state park or the woods? Of course it is, but a little common sense should be used. The DFW says not to walk alone in known lion country. If you see a lion, make yourself look as tall as possible by raising your arms above your head. If you have small children with you, pick them up because mountain lions are attracted to children. If by some rare chance you are attacked, fight back with anything that you can use such as rocks or sticks.
More information about mountain lions can be obtained from the DFW website at www.dfw.ca.gov. Just type in mountain lion on the website’s search engine.