The biggest challenge cougars face is the amount of space they need and how to negotiate around all of the hazards in an urban environment, say wildlife biologists.
By Jim Stebinger / Special to The Malibu Times
The possible sighting of two cougars in Malibu reminds scientists how much is left to learn about them-and suggests wildlife can cope in an urban setting-says a National Park Service scientist.
Two cats, possibly cougars, awakened a Malibu couple on May 10, the residents told The Malibu Times, and were frolicking on deck outside the couple’s home.
Ray Sauvajot, chief of planning, science and resource management in the sprawling 235 square mile Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, said he is amazed that cougars do as well as they do so close to a city.
“The biggest discovery, and something of a surprise, is that they still continue to live as cougars would in more remote environments. They are staying out of sight and avoiding contact and eating deer. The biggest challenge the cats face is the amount of space they need and how to negotiate around all of the hazards in an urban environment,” Sauvajot said.
One of many studies Sauvajot heads is a query into the habits of local cougars. And one of the basic questions is: How many are there?
Sauvajot stopped short of adding two more to the total.
“We get sightings of cougars all the time and they are not cougars; in fact, they can be anything but cougars,” Sauvajot said. “We like to talk to the witnesses, and, of course, if there is physical evidence such as scats (droppings) or videos it helps us a lot. We know there are cougars out there; there is no question of that. The fact that a sighting is unconfirmed doesn’t mean that it is wrong.”
He noted, “Neither of these animals is among those we are studying, based on sightings and telemetry. We do know there have been cougars in the area that we were not tracking. We probably don’t know all of the cougars in the Santa Monica Mountains. Let’s keep an eye out and look for more information.”
What is certain is that six NPS researchers have been watching local cougars since 2002.
A large, 140-pound male and an 80-pound female were the central players in the study, as they were believed to be the only local mated pair. The female bore four kittens in August 2004. At various times researchers have sedated the male and female and put tracking collars on them. Researchers tracked the mother to her den, sedated her and planted belly monitors in the kittens soon after birth.
The collars and implants allow researchers to study the animals closely-but with a great deal of effort. Typically, researchers spend a day (or night) driving along back roads listening for the telltale beeps that indicate the cat’s location. Then it is a question of hiking around with an antenna to triangulate the “sighting.” Cougars are almost never seen.
“I spoke to a runner who uses these trails almost every day. He told me he saw one once about four years ago,” said Sauvajot’s NPS colleague, wildlife ecologist Seth Riley.
Data gathering is slow and not made easier by the fact that collars are programmed to fall off to avoid injury. The male is currently uncollared.
A huge question mark in the study is the deer population, on the cougar’s diet. It appears to be large and stable but counting is tough. Elsewhere, deer can be counted by aircraft. In other locales, cougars are treed by dogs when researchers want to capture them. Neither method works here.
“The cats are doing really well and moving around well,” Sauvajot said, and since they eat two to three deer a month and are “in great shape,” it appears there are plenty of deer. “We would really like to get better information on the deer, all we know is that the cougars appear to be getting enough prey.”
The ultimate question is how to find ways for animals to travel back and forth from wildland “fragments” to larger, wilder areas. Riley described fragments as “areas of open space surrounded by development.”
“We haven’t documented a lion crossing the 101 (Freeway),” Sauvajot said, “but we do know one lion crossed the 118 Freeway between the Simi and San Fernando valleys 18 times.”
Animals usually cross under freeways along culverts, underpasses and other existing routes. Researchers would like to build paths to facilitate crossings. Enlarging or providing ground cover for existing paths might even work better.
How to cross the road is a question of increasing importance to the young cougars in this study. The males may soon be driven to find the answer by the pressure of an angry father and the drive to find a mate.