I am happy to show you my very first mountain lion capture. This video was taken at Camera #1's new location (it had to be moved due to mudslides). I left the camera running for fourteen days and the batteries died after three. During those three days P-41, a male mountain lion, passed my camera. I almost deleted the data because I could barely distinguish that an animal was in the photo. I converted the video to be thorough- and there he was (collar and all). I am able to tell that this is P-41 becsause he is the only puma in the Verdugo Mountain Range that has had a GPS collar placed on him.
But that isn't the best part. P-41 walked on this road at 7:58 PM. Twelve minutes later at 8:10 PM a group of hikers walked down the same path. This further illustrates that mountain lions will go out of their way to avoid people. See the comparison images below.
Part of the study with the Stough Canyon Nature Center is being able to bring this knowledge back to the community so we can all peacefully coexist with urban wildlife. Mountain lions living in an island of green space surrounded by ten million people and urbanization is a tale of resilience. It is so magical to me that I can bear witness to such an apex species in my own backyard.
Below is a beautiful image taken by Johanna Turner. Johanna has been studying P-41 for years now and has a website dedicated to all of her amazing wildlife photography. This portrait of P-41 gives him more justice than my pixelated night capture. I included this photograph so that you can get to know him as an individual, and not just a statistic or factoid.
Above Photo: Johanna Turner | cougarmagic.com To learn more about P-41 and other pumas in the Los Angeles area, check out the National Park Service Puma Profile page.