Mountain Lions

by Susan Raphael

Concerning the four mountain lions shot this month on Navarro Ridge: The larger (global) issue is human encroachment on wildlife habitat. In this case, heavy logging, followed by helicopter removal of trees, occurred this spring on a three-quarter mile strip partly below the land where the lambs were killed, which could account for mountain lions fleeing to the ridge top. Killings of both lambs and lions could have been prevented. One neighbor of mine used to put livestock (when he had some) in barns at night, and though rancher neighbors laughed at him, had more surviving young. Predation by dogs and foxes did occur on occasion when he failed to return home on time, but he did not go after them, as he believed that protecting his livestock was his responsibility. He also mentioned large sheepdogs used in Europe and the U.S. on large rangelands.

In this recent case, a small pen with a four-foot high fence failed to protect lambs, and the people had had prior warning back in January when lambs were killed. If the owners had really wanted to protect them they could have built a small but solid structure and/or had an alarm system.

When I learned that four mountain lions had been shot not far away from my home, I asked the Fish & Game supervisor for my part of the coast about what alternatives had been recommended. His name is Lieutenant Frank Russell (468-5206 in Ukiah). He told me that relocating the marauder does not work because no one wants the animal, that doing so is just relocating the problem, and that DFG is liable if there is a recurrence.

"But do you counsel the people with livestock to protect livestock better?" I asked him. His answer was that they could only suggest, but that by law there was no requirement to take preventative measures. He stressed private property rights repeatedly; told me that he would like to see trophy hunting of mountain lions because there are so many being shot anyway that "it might as well do some good". I assume that he was thinking of license fees from trophy hunters rather than the fun hunters would have chasing mountain lions with dogs up trees to shoot them. He told me that the "population explosion" of mountain lions was due to the lack of hunting.

The prevailing assumption is that people are not responsible for protecting themselves or their livestock when they move into the territory of a predator and that the predator will be shot for ignoring private property boundaries, eating what looks like prey, be it lambs in an open pen with a little fence around it, or people running by in their jogging outfits.

It is the height of hypocrisy to move into an area which is wild and beautiful and kill off its wild and beautiful creatures because they are also dangerous. It is cruel and negligent to have vulnerable animal wards and not protect them from predators.

Those who see this need to network now, before it is too late and make both ideas and help available to those in our community who are fearful of attack on themselves or their animals, so that they don't just phone up our legally armed officials to eliminate the problem. I would like to join with others in this effort.

Pending Senate Bill 28 aims at reintroducing sport hunting of mountain lions, using dogs to chase and tree them and then shooting them at point-blank range, which Fish and Game does now legally, based merely on the report of suspected damage to livestock or fear of attack on a person. The NRA and the Safari Club are playing on people's fear by seizing on two fatalities (two in 104 years in California!) although hunting accidents have been far more common, and the largest number of attacks on humans by mountain lions have been in British Columbia, where trophy hunting is legal.

Senator Mike Thompson (who opposed the successful 1991 Mountain Lion initiative, which intended to ban trophy hunting of lions forever), has amended SB 28 to include trophy hunting in state and national parks by amateur trophy hunters! As if the hunters and ranchers leaning on him are very worried about public safety! Please write to Senator Thompson and Assemblyman Dan Hauser (State Capitol, Sacramento, CA 95814) opposing SB 28.