quite frankly i think there is more danger from bicyclists than from mountain lions.

I think there's more danger from pit bulls than bicyclists or mountain lions

When a mountain lion was shot several years ago in Palo Alto, The Mountain Lion Foundation stated that the cat could have been saved if a trap with food in it had been placed near the lion, which was sleeping in a tree when killed by the police. The shooting of this lion was unnecessary and a tragedy, just as the killing of the lion in Redwood City was a tragedy and could have been prevented.
We've moved into their territory. It is time we learn ways of saving the lion without danger to human life.

"...The last verified mountain lion attack in the Bay Area was more than 100 years ago, in 1909, she said." Why wait before taking action? They are predators!

Go to Web Link There have been quite a number of verified attacks in CA, however.

Simple receipe. Land trusts allow deer populations to increase without proper habitat management, and people feed them, too. As mountain lions feed on the deer, their numbers increase and they will be wandering into a neighborhood near you.

Carol, how could feeding the cat, who could take off at any moment, save it? Via a trap, you say. Where would the trap have come from? How do these traps work? Is this something animal control or cops have in their vehicles? I'd like to know more about this.

I attended the talk about mountain lions and came away with the message that any time an adult mountain lion wanders into an area populated with humans and it spotted and reported, the authorities that respond know they will probably kill the mountain lion. Once the lion is a threat to people, or might be a threat to people, the only choice is to shoot it.
I had hoped to hear that the animal experts had solutions that did not involve killing the cats.

A well researched book on this subject is A Beast in the Garden:

A well researched book on this subject is A Brast in the Garden:

Web Link

“The theme of the artificiality of the wilderness around Boulder runs throughout The Beast in the Garden, as does the idea that by romanticizing this artificial wilderness and its supposed 'naturalness,' Boulder's citizens were shirking their responsibility to manage it properly and were refusing to understand their role in creating the conditions that had led to the return of cougars.”

Harper's

March 2005

“Weaving together deep research, meticulous reporting, vivid characterization, disciplined prose, informative political and historical asides, lucid science, incisive wit, and narrative pacing as smooth and suspenseful as a stalking mountain lion, Baron has created a wily page-turner....”

Boston Globe

March 29, 2004

“The theme of the artificiality of the wilderness around Boulder runs throughout The Beast in the Garden, as does the idea that by romanticizing this artificial wilderness and its supposed 'naturalness,' Boulder's citizens were shirking their responsibility to manage it properly and were refusing to understand their role in creating the conditions that had led to the return of cougars.”

Harper's

March 2005

“Weaving together deep research, meticulous reporting, vivid characterization, disciplined prose, informative political and historical asides, lucid science, incisive wit, and narrative pacing as smooth and suspenseful as a stalking mountain lion, Baron has created a wily page-turner....”

Boston Globe

March 29, 2004

The root of the problem is, as Baron documents so well in his book Beast in the Backyard, that mountain lions no longer fear humans. Since they are protected in California there is no reason for them not to push into human territories and that is exactly what they are doing.

The experience in Boulder Colorado where the residents encouraged mountain lions to 'share' their space with humans resulted in the mountain lions losing their fear of humans. The mountain lions became comfortable around humans and started eating their dog food and then their dogs. Finally a mountain lion attacked and killed an adult human.

The solution was a vigorous program of reinstilling fear of humans into the mountain lion population. This involved attacking them with painful but non lethal substances whenever the mountain lions encountered humans. The mountain lions learned to avoid humans and human spaces. Killing a mountain lion produces no such learning as they are solitary animals and hence there are no other mountain lions to witness and learn from such a killing.

Baron's Beast in the Garden describes how the Boulder community learned to deal with this problem without having to kill the mountain lions. But it took a human death to convince the humans that they had to stop playing pussy cat with wild animals.

But I suspect, as usual, we will continue to think that we are special and where we live is unique and that there is nothing to be learned from other communities who have dealt with this problem.

Hey Carol - your suggestions sound great from the comfort of a sofa in your living room. It's a very different matter to stand in the same yard as a mountain lion that's "sleeping" in a tree, much less try to set up a trap in their vicinity.

There is a far better chance that the cat will just bolt and disappear (of course, you could suggest that a sharpshooter could just tranquilize it while it's in full run - ever tried that little feat?). And should the cat attack someone along the way, I guess you could just say "I'm terribly sorry, I guess my idea of a trap didn't work. Sorry..." In public safety, human life comes first. That's the way it works.

The basic deal is: humans are moving into mountain lion territory, and mountain lions are expanding their turf into human territory. Without any predators to keep the lions' populations in check, and because they require a certain number of sq. miles of territory for each lion (which they will defend against others), newly "hatched" lions in an expanding population will need new territories. And those new territories will often be urban areas. It's probably time to have a very limited hunting season for lions in Calif. again. They shouldn't have a favored status unless they become an endangered species, which obviously they're not.

Glad to see logical responses to the issue. Simply recall the fable regarding the frog who midway giving the scorpion a ride to the other side of the lake was stung. Before they both drown, the frog asked why. The scorpion responded, " I am a scorpion and that is my nature." The internet has many links showing bears, mountain lions and others attacking the personnel releasing them back to the wild. When do animal rights stop and the bbq begins?

I see where a mountain lion was just tranquilized and safely removed from a residential area near Tulsa Okla. I don't believe there is any record of a fleeing ml harming a person. In such cases, all they want to do is get away!

I would hope our local law enforcement/wildlife people could become as progressive as the Oklahoma folks.