Since mountain lions thrive in Napa’s valleys, they are usually on my mind as I hike along dense tree lines, slopes and canyons.
Mountain lions (genus Puma), are also called cougar, puma or panther. I’ve never seen a live lion up close and personal, nor have I seen the tracks of a mountain lion, which resemble those of a large dog, with four toes. It is unusual, I am told for a mountain lion’s tracks to register its claws, but if claws are visible in the tracks they are sharper and thinner than a dog’s blunt claw marks.
Three separate sightings from as many friends have noted majestic mountain lions close to the Lake and Napa County borders. That shouldn’t be surprising, since there is at least one mountain lion sighting reported to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (DFW) annually in Napa County alone.
To gain a perspective on the beauty and size of a local lion, stop by the visitor center at Bothe-Napa Valley State Park and there you will find a stuffed mountain lion named Tucker who, unfortunately, had to be taken down years ago by the DFW near the Napa/Sonoma County border.
Old Tucker had been dipping into the candy jar, so-to-speak, of a hard-working sheep farmer’s sheep stock time and time again. Having had enough of the mountain lion’s misbehavior, the farmer called the DFW. When taken, Tucker had his latest prey, yet another sheep tucked tightly in his jaws, half way up a tall, old oak tree. That is one strong set of jaws.
Knowing that these elusive and wild creatures are our neighbors, and that, according to a DFW Departmental Bulletin, more than half of California is considered mountain lion habitat, doesn’t need to unnerve you, since wildlife researchers state that you are more likely to be struck by lightning than be attacked by a mountain lion. Bay Nature Magazine reports that we are 1,000 times more likely to perish from a heat stroke on a trail than to be assaulted by a one of these 80- to 150-pound animals.
Instead, we can marvel at the fact that these top predators are still calling this land their home. Luckily, for us, mountain lions are typically both solitary and elusive, and tend to avoid human beings.
The DFW Departmental Bulletin states, “The mountain lion is a symbol of wild California and is regarded as a focal species in the state’s efforts to conserve wildlife and their habitats through ecosystem management.”
“Mountain lions in California are a “specially protected” species (Fish and Game Code Section 4800) and may not be taken, injured, possessed, transported, or imported except under specific circumstances related to depredation, public health and safety.”
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