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Mountain Lion Makes History By Crossing 101 Freeway Twice
There have been only four National Park Service documented cases of a lion successfully crossing the freeway a single time.
MALIBU, CA – Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area officials confirmed Tuesday that a roughly 2-year-old male lion known as P-55 made history by successfully crossed the Ventura (101) Freeway last week for his second time – he's the first mountain lion to successfully cross the freeway twice in the 15 years the National Park Service has been tracking lions in the area. There have been only four National Park Service documented cases of a lion successfully crossing the freeway a single time.
The red dots indicate where Pumas have been
killed crossing the myriad of Freeways ringing
Los Angeles
Kate Kuykendall of the National Park Service wrote in a Facebook post that P-55 is "full of surprises." The lion crossed the 101 Freeway to the north in August, then went on to successfully cross the 23 and 118 freeways to roam into the Santa Susana Mountains.
Artist rendition of the proposed Liberty Canyon/Chesbrough
Wildlife Overpass, hoped to be built by 2022
"Last week he came BACK to the Santa Monica Mountains and cross the 101 Freeway again," Kuykendall wrote. "We've never seen a mountain lion cross the 101 twice. And this time when he crossed, we believe he did so in a relatively developed part of Thousand Oaks just west of state Route 23.
Insanely busy 24 hours around the clock, the 101 Freeway
runs from downtown L.A.West and North all the way up to
Santa Barbara and beyond
The one single spot on that entire stretch of highway from
downtown L.A. on up to Santa Barbara that is not
developed with homes and industry is at the Liberty
Canyon/Chesbrough exit in Agoura Hills, adjacent to where I
live
The red dots indicate where Pumas have been
killed crossing the myriad of Freeways ringing
Los Angeles
Kate Kuykendall of the National Park Service wrote in a Facebook post that P-55 is "full of surprises." The lion crossed the 101 Freeway to the north in August, then went on to successfully cross the 23 and 118 freeways to roam into the Santa Susana Mountains.
Artist rendition of the proposed Liberty Canyon/Chesbrough
Wildlife Overpass, hoped to be built by 2022
"Last week he came BACK to the Santa Monica Mountains and cross the 101 Freeway again," Kuykendall wrote. "We've never seen a mountain lion cross the 101 twice. And this time when he crossed, we believe he did so in a relatively developed part of Thousand Oaks just west of state Route 23.
Insanely busy 24 hours around the clock, the 101 Freeway
runs from downtown L.A.West and North all the way up to
Santa Barbara and beyond
The one single spot on that entire stretch of highway from
downtown L.A. on up to Santa Barbara that is not
developed with homes and industry is at the Liberty
Canyon/Chesbrough exit in Agoura Hills, adjacent to where I
live
Room to roam across the 101 Freeway only exists
in this spot--the Liberty Canyon/Chesbrough exit
"He is now back to roaming
the western end of the Santa Monica Mountains, likely looking to avoid other males so that he can one day establish his own territory."
Another Artist drawing of proposed 101 Wildlife Overpass
Officials and activists hoping to protect the lions -- and bolster their genetic diversity to improve their chance of survival -- are advocating for construction of a landscaped wildlife crossing over the 101 Freeway in the Agoura Hills area.
A study released last year concluded that without an increase in genetic diversity, the mountain lions in the Santa Monica range are facing possible extinction within 50 years. Thanks to being land-locked by freeways, the lion population is hampered by inbreeding.
The problem was highlighted in August when NPS officials announced the birth of two mountain lion kittens believed to have been sired by a lion that is also their grandfather, great-grandfather and great-great-grandfather.
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