For all its concrete jungles, its expanse of humanity and grittiness, to its supreme credit, there are still open spaces in Los Angeles and greater Southern California.
So that’s why it was probably no surprise that a mountain lion, known as P-22 by local scientists tracking the animal, snuck into the L.A. Zoo that abates Griffith Park, a 4,000 acre expanse of open space (think Hollywood sign), and nabbed Killarney, an elderly koala bear living in the zoo. The bear’s remains were found outside its cage that featured an eight-foot fence surrounding it. Apparently not an issue for P-22.
Understandably, as preservers of wildlife, the L.A. Zoo doesn’t want the animal captured or controlled. “It is the zoo’s hope that P-22 remains in Griffith Park,” spokeswoman April Spurlock told the Los Angeles Times. “This is a natural park and home to many species of wildlife. We will continue to adapt to P-22 as he has adapted to us.” By law, the killing of the koala does subject the cougar to being removed or euthanized by the California Department of Fish and Game.
Last year, the big cat strolled into a neighborhood in Los Feliz and made camp under someone’s porch.
But that isn’t going to happen to this mountain lion that has become relatively famous for its wandering in the City of Angels. The collared kitty is thought to have been born in the Santa Monica Mountains and had to cross both Interstate 405 and the 101 to get where he currently resides. He ate rat poison in 2014 and the media chronicled his recovery. Last year, the big cat strolled into a neighborhood in Los Feliz and made camp under someone’s porch and had to be forcibly removed. He’s become the Justin Bieber to many animal lovers across the state, garnering his own Facebook page.
His presence definitely has some people nervous but mountain lions have always been an integral part of the California environment. According to the California Fish and Game, there are some four to six thousand lions statewide, an estimated 0-10 per 10 square miles and it’s illegal to hunt them. Since 1986 there have been 14 confirmed attacks in California, three of which were fatal. To the point of wild Southern California places, the last fatal attack was in 2004 when a lion killed a 35-year-old mountain biker at Whiting Ranch Regional Park in Orange County.
P-22’s latest exploit has created a debate on whether the animal still belongs in the park given its proximity to the city, more proof that Southern California is more wild than you think, and we’re not just talking the night life.
