Wily mountain lions prefer deer to people
To remain safe• Do not approach a mountain lion.
• Do not run if you encounter a mountain lion. Instead, face the cat, make noise and try to look bigger by waving your arms. Also, throw rocks or other objects. Pick up small children.
• Avoid hiking or jogging alone and when mountain lions are most active — dawn, dusk and nighttime.
• If attacked, fight back.
• Bring pet food inside to avoid attracting wildlife.
Source: California Department of Fish and Game
• Do not run if you encounter a mountain lion. Instead, face the cat, make noise and try to look bigger by waving your arms. Also, throw rocks or other objects. Pick up small children.
• Avoid hiking or jogging alone and when mountain lions are most active — dawn, dusk and nighttime.
• If attacked, fight back.
• Bring pet food inside to avoid attracting wildlife.
Source: California Department of Fish and Game
How dangerous are mountain lions? How big are they? What attracts them the most? And when do they hunt?
These are among the questions a retired biologist addressed Saturday during a presentation on mountain lions at the Carolyn Parr Nature Center on Browns Valley Road below Westwood Hills Park. People are 10 times more likely to be killed by lightning than by a mountain lion, said Allan Buckmann, who has only seen mountain lions twice in his life — one in Point Reyes and one in Franz Valley near Calistoga. "We really need to coexist with these magnificent animals," said Buckmann, a Calistoga resident who retired about four years ago after 38 years of service for the state Department of Fish and Game.
Mountain lions are astute about their habitats, hunt at night and avoid humans, he said during his 90-minute presentation in front of half a dozen volunteers and guests at the nature center. Mountain lions follow their favorite food — deer — though they also hunt for other wildlife, including foxes, gophers and rabbits, he said. Mountain lions, which number between 4,000 to 6,000 statewide, even swallow cats and small dogs whole, collars and all, Buckmann said. But humans are not on the menu. "(Mountain) lions are solitary, stalking hunters," Buckmann said. "They don't like people."
"Basically, they're calm, they're quiet and they're elusive," Buckmann added. "They are really attentive, incredibly nimble and almost all muscle. They watch, they hear and they smell." Mountain lions, which see twice as well at night as humans, usually kill on average just before midnight, he said. During the day, they sleep and groom themselves, he said.
Attacks on humans are rare. According to Fish and Game, mountain lions have killed six people statewide between 1890 and 2007. There were no Napa County fatalities. Eighty-two mountain lions were killed in Napa County between 1972 and 2009, according to Fish and Game. Since 1990, mountain lions have been a protected species. They can only be killed if a depredation permit is issued after a mountain lion kills livestock, pets or bighorn sheep, or threatens public safety. They cannot be captured and removed to another habitat.
A male mountain lion's habitat range is 1,600 square miles, Buckmann said. "There is not enough food for all of them." Buckmann said males can reach 8 feet, while females can be 7 feet from the tip of the tail to their nose. Some males in the Sierra have reached 225 pounds. Most males are 130 to 150 pounds and the females, 65 to 90 pounds, he said.
Buckmann expects the number of mountain lions to remain stable in Napa County. Joyce Nichols, board president at the Carolyn Parr Nature Center, said Saturday's program was organized because of public interest in mountain lions."We have a lot of people asking about mountain lions," she said. "People in the vineyards say they see them."
These are among the questions a retired biologist addressed Saturday during a presentation on mountain lions at the Carolyn Parr Nature Center on Browns Valley Road below Westwood Hills Park. People are 10 times more likely to be killed by lightning than by a mountain lion, said Allan Buckmann, who has only seen mountain lions twice in his life — one in Point Reyes and one in Franz Valley near Calistoga. "We really need to coexist with these magnificent animals," said Buckmann, a Calistoga resident who retired about four years ago after 38 years of service for the state Department of Fish and Game.
Mountain lions are astute about their habitats, hunt at night and avoid humans, he said during his 90-minute presentation in front of half a dozen volunteers and guests at the nature center. Mountain lions follow their favorite food — deer — though they also hunt for other wildlife, including foxes, gophers and rabbits, he said. Mountain lions, which number between 4,000 to 6,000 statewide, even swallow cats and small dogs whole, collars and all, Buckmann said. But humans are not on the menu. "(Mountain) lions are solitary, stalking hunters," Buckmann said. "They don't like people."
"Basically, they're calm, they're quiet and they're elusive," Buckmann added. "They are really attentive, incredibly nimble and almost all muscle. They watch, they hear and they smell." Mountain lions, which see twice as well at night as humans, usually kill on average just before midnight, he said. During the day, they sleep and groom themselves, he said.
Attacks on humans are rare. According to Fish and Game, mountain lions have killed six people statewide between 1890 and 2007. There were no Napa County fatalities. Eighty-two mountain lions were killed in Napa County between 1972 and 2009, according to Fish and Game. Since 1990, mountain lions have been a protected species. They can only be killed if a depredation permit is issued after a mountain lion kills livestock, pets or bighorn sheep, or threatens public safety. They cannot be captured and removed to another habitat.
A male mountain lion's habitat range is 1,600 square miles, Buckmann said. "There is not enough food for all of them." Buckmann said males can reach 8 feet, while females can be 7 feet from the tip of the tail to their nose. Some males in the Sierra have reached 225 pounds. Most males are 130 to 150 pounds and the females, 65 to 90 pounds, he said.
Buckmann expects the number of mountain lions to remain stable in Napa County. Joyce Nichols, board president at the Carolyn Parr Nature Center, said Saturday's program was organized because of public interest in mountain lions."We have a lot of people asking about mountain lions," she said. "People in the vineyards say they see them."
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