With less than 10 Pumas roaming the 'Santa Monica Mountains ringing Los Angeles, the loss of one of those animals this past Monday is alarming to say the least...............This tragic loss occurred five minutes up the road from where I live in Agoura, California, where a 150 pound male lost it's life crossing the jam packed 101 Freeway.................There are no wildlife crossings allowing animals to navigate successfully across this always crowded freeway...........Male Pumas in SoCal have territories of up to 400 square kilometers, the entire expanse of the Santa Monica Mountains..............So the bottom line is that the Pumas living here are virtually "island-offed" from the adjacent San Gabriel et.al Mountains outlying Los Angeles and it is a true miracle that genetic inbreeding has not yet caused this remnant population to blink out entirely............The creation of a wildlife corridor between the Santa Monica Mountains and the Simi Hills that would allow mountain lions and other wildlife to safely cross the freeways has been a dream of Researchers........... However, despite identifying the exit at 101 and Liberty Canyon Rd. as a good spot to build a wildlife crossing due to it being one of the rare highway interchanges with natural areas on both sides of the freeway, a recent Caltrans estimate showed that building a tunnel would cost a prohibitive $10 million..............I put out the challenge to the myriad of well-to-do Film and Hollywood folks living across LA to step up and ban together to fund this critical $10 million wildlife culvert,,,,,,,,,,,,,,Think of the good press and notoriety that would come your way..............What a fine way for Lindsay Lohan, Miley Syrus and other maligned performers to demonstrate their concern for the natural heritage of their great city

Mountain Lion Struck, Killed on 101 Freeway in Agoura Hills

The 150-pound mountain lion was struck and killed on the eastbound side of the freeway near Liberty Canyon Road.

calabasaspatch.com

Patch file photo of a mountain lion in the Santa Monica Mountains.

 Courtesy of the National Park Service

A mountain lion was found dead Monday on the 101 Freeway in Agoura Hills near an area known for its open space.

The 150-pound mountain lion was struck and killed on the eastbound side of the freeway near Liberty Canyon Road, according to ABC7. Liberty Canyon Road is known for its open space and an area where wildlife can cross into the Santa Monica Mountains.

The National Park Service is in the middle of a study on mountain lions in the Santa Monica Mountains. Rangers and researchers were not available to provide any context if the lion was part of the study because of the federal government shutdown.

There are several documented mountain lions that live in the Santa Monica Mountains.

The Santa Monica Mountain range is somewhat of a closed environment, like an island—hemmed in by the Pacific Ocean and the 101 and 405 freeways. The NPS' radio collar studies have shown that male mountain lions establish large territories.

The first mountain lion tracked in the program, P-1, roamed nearly the entire range of the Santa Monica Mountains—from Camarillo to Topanga State Park to the 101. The researchers have also learned that mountain lions almost never attempt to cross the 101 or 405 freeways.

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Talk tackles future of local mountain lions in Santa Monica Mountains

National Park Service scientist Seth Riley reveals how rodenticides, roads and other human impacts are affecting the Santa Monica Mountains’ urban carnivores.

malibutimes.com

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Mountain lion numbers decreasing in Santa Monica Mountains

The population of mountain lions in the Santa Monica Mountains is on the decline due to loss of habitat. 

Seth Riley, in association with the National Park Service and UCLA, has been studying local populations of wild coyotes, bobcats and mountain lions for nearly 15 years. National Geographic magazine is doing a major article on research Riley has been conducting on mountain lions, which is expected to be published by the end of 2013. 

“I’m interested in the challenge of preserving wildlife in urban areas,” Riley said. Urban carnivores are a particular conundrum, he said, “because they need a huge amount of space and would be the most affected by urbanization and fragmentation.”  “The first male we studied used the entire Santa Monica Mountains as his home range— 400 square kilometers,” Riley said. “The females have smaller ranges, maybe 100 square kilometers.” 

Among the 31 mountain lions the National Park Service has tracked with collars, only one has successfully crossed the 101 freeway in the past 15 years. The 101 and 405 freeways are barriers to their movement, along with farming and development all around the edges of the mountains, making the area essentially an island for the big cats. This barrier has given way to a major problem of inbreeding due to isolation. 

“There are fewer than 10 mountain lions in the Santa Monica Mountains, which is not enough for a genetically diverse population,” Riley said. “They have the lowest genetic diversity of any mountain lion population in the state.” 

The creation of a wildlife corridor between the Santa Monica Mountains and the Simi Hills that would allow mountain lions and other wildlife to safely cross the freeways has been a dream of Riley and his fellow researchers. However, despite identifying the exit at 101 and Liberty Canyon Rd. as a good spot to build a wildlife crossing due to it being one of the rare highway interchanges with natural areas on both sides of the freeway, a recent Caltrans estimate showed that building a tunnel would cost a prohibitive $10 million.