Wildlife officials announced last Thursday that two new mountain lion kittens were discovered in the Santa Monica Mountains.
The pair was found in a den up in the mountainous area above the greater Los Angeles area and have been implanted with tracking devices by researchers, according to the National Park Service.
The brother and sister, named P-46 and P-47, are the latest additions to a mountain lion population that continues to grow, despite dangers from a relatively urbanized natural habitat.
“ … these kittens have many challenges ahead of them, from evading other mountain lions, to crossing freeways, to dealing with exposure to rat poison,”Jeff Sikich, a biologist for the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, said in a statement.
Researchers were able to determine that their mother, mountain lion P-19, was about the den by the pattern of her movement that was tracked via GPS, said the park service.
Two kittens were also discovered in Malibu Creek State Park in the Santa Monica Mountains in August of last year.