Another California mountain lion likely killed by a vehicle
Another wild mountain lion, this time in California's Santa Monica Mountains, has been found dead following a possible "vehicle strike".
The lion, which wore a radio collar and was known to scientists as P-81, was found on the Pacific Coast Highway near Las Posas Road in the western Santa Monica Mountains.
The cougar had been tracked by scientists as part of a long-term study.
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Local celebrity mountain lion P-22 had to be euthanised after he was likely struck by a vehicle. Santa Monica Mountains / NPS
He was noted for his physical abnormalities: a kinked tail and only one descended testicle, according to the park service.
Biologists said the traits were signs of low genetic diversity, or inbreeding, in the area, and the discovery "underscores the need for measures to better support this population," wildlife biologist Jeff Sickich said in 2020.
The animal, estimated to be about four years old, was "likely killed" by a car on January 22, according to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.
Authorities will conduct a necropsy to confirm the manner of death.
The news of P-81's death comes more than a month after P-22, another Los Angeles area mountain lion under study, was euthanised after suffering injuries in a vehicle strike.
He became a local celebrity when a camera trap photographed him beneath the Hollywood sign, and more recently, was known for attacking a chihuahua being walked on a leash.
As people move into mountain lion habitats, human-wildlife conflicts have become increasingly common.
However, mountain lion attacks on people are relatively uncommon.
"Statistically speaking, a person is one thousand times more likely to be struck by lightning than attacked by a mountain lion," the department said.
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A mountain lion known to scientists as P-81 was found dead in the Western Santa Monica Mountains. Santa Monica Mountains / NPS
Pressure on California's big cats
While not endangered, mountain lions are classified as specially protected species.
Scientists consider them an important part of biological diversity.
In California, they are the last remaining large carnivore.
Their kills provide a reliable food source for scavengers, like critically-endangered California condors.
Songbirds, amphibians, reptiles, butterflies and native plants would be affected if the predator were to go extinct.
With habitat loss due to roads and development, cougars in Southern California are suffering from genetic isolation.
Vehicle strikes are the leading cause of death for mountain lions in the southern California area.
"Since March 2022, nine mountain lions have died by vehicle strikes - six were radio-collared," a tweet from the recreation area said.
"P-81 is the 34th mountain lion, and the 13th radio-collared, to die from road mortality since 2002."
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