Two brothers – men in their 50s – hiking in the park Sunday afternoon near Camp Pomponio Road were approached by a pair of “aggressive” mountain lions, according to the California Department of Fish and Game. Approaching people is “highly unusual” behavior for mountain lions, said Fish and Game Warden Patrick Foy, saying the animals typically turn and run away at the sight of a person. What happened next was even more bizarre.
One of the men picked up a large stick and started swinging it at the lion while shouting – the proper course of action for deterring mountain lions, Foy said – but the animal was undeterred. In fact, it stepped closer until it was just outside the range of the stick, a few feet from the men, and stayed there for a few minutes before retreating.
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Foy said he found a deer skull near the area of the encounter, which was “well off the beaten path” in the park.
“What that tells me is … that is an area that is frequented by one or more mountain lions,” Foy said. “Perhaps these two call that spot home and these guys might have walked into the middle of it.”
Wardens began a search for the mountain lions on Monday with help from a professional mountain lion tracker and trained hounds. They found the animals’ tracks in the dirt.
Investigators called off the search Tuesday, confident that the lions had left the park.
“… Widening the search at that point would have increased the chance that the wrong mountain lion would be taken,” according to a Fish and Game press release.
If park visitors spot any mountain lions they should call San Mateo County Park Dispatch at (650) 363-4020.
Department of Fish and Game has some tips on how to respond in mountain lion encounters at its Web site: www.dfg.ca.gov/keepmewild/.
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