Wildlife experts fear for mountain lion that crossed Highway 101 in North Bay
TIBURON -- For the past few days, wildlife advocates have been concerned about the safety of a young mountain lion that wandered across busy Highway 101 into the town of Tiburon. It appears he is now safe but the incident shows how much more of a threat man is to mountain lions, than the other way around.
From his computer in the offices of "True Wild" in Sonoma County, Dr. Quinton Martins is able to track the odyssey of the young male mountain lion named "P36." The cat was captured and began wearing a tracking collar at a very young age.
"We managed to capture him just at the time that he's leaving his mom and -- off he goes -- and just does this incredible journey, like sightseeing in California," Dr. Martins said.
P36 explored all the way up into Lake County before coming back down to the Mount Tamalpais watershed in Marin County. A few days ago he was tracked crossing Highway 101 into the Tiburon area.
"Between one and three in the morning, he crosses Highway 101 and then walks all the way down to the bottom of the peninsula," Dr. Martins said as he traced the route on his computer screen.
It's not the first time P36 has done that.
"Since we've collared him in March 2022, he's crossed (Highway) 101 five times," Dr. Martins said. "It's dangerous. One of the biggest threats to mountain lions in California is car strikes."
P36 has to stay on the move because he's still too small to fight to establish a territory of his own. That's why it is often the younger animals known as "dispersal cats" that are found in areas like streets or neighborhoods.
"He has no options," Dr. Martins said. "As a dispersal cat, he's in an area where there are these highways and he's forced to move there because there would be adult mountain lions that don't want him in their territory."
There are threats from nature and from man. As the urban interface expands, so do close encounters with mountain lions. Some places in the state are experimenting with creating safe-passage corridors under or over busy roadways. The most recent data show P36 only spent a short time in Tiburon before heading back across the highway. So he's safer -- for now.
"He's certainly in a much better area there and, hopefully, he'll just stay out of trouble," Dr. Martins said. "And if anybody's lucky enough to see him out there, enjoy the fact that you get to see a mountain lion in the wild and be glad that they still exist in our area."
Dr. Martins says it's important to realize that, when they cross paths with man, it is usually the mountain lion that is in the most danger. The tracking effort is part of the "Living with Lions" program, a joint project with True Wild and the Audubon Canyon Ranch conservation non-profit in rural Marin County.