San Mateo neighborhood on alert for prowling mountain lion

SAN MATEO -- Residents of a San Mateo neighborhood were on alert after a prowling mountain lion jumped a backyard fence, seized a chicken and fled.

San Mateo police said a resident reported the mountain lion sighting  at 3:30 p.m. Sunday in the 100 block of Aragon Ave. At approximately 5:25 p.m., a different community member saw a mountain lion near a creek along a hiking trail at Laurelwood Park located at 3471 Glendora Drive. 

There was no security camera footage of either incident. Police said there have been three mountain lion sightings in San Mateo in the past nine days.

On Oct. 28, a mountain lion was spotted jumping into a backyard on Dalehurst Ct. before leaving the neighborhood at about 10 a.m.

Security camera footage captured the lion walking around.

If one encounters a mountain lion, California Department of Fish and Wildlife  officials urge people to face the mountain lion, make noise and try to look bigger. People are urged not to run and not turn one's back on the animal and not to crouch down or bend over.

Over the last year, mountain lion sightings have been on the rise across the Bay Area.

A mountain lion cub wandered into an empty classroom at Pescadero High School along the Peninsula in June. After several hours, CDFW personnel were able to safely remove the cub from the classroom.

Mountain lions have also been caught lurking in the shadows on security cameras in Millbrae. A handful of residents in the Oakland hills and Piedmont say they've seen mutilated deer carcasses in their neighborhoods. One wildcat was even caught in a tree in San Francisco's Bernal Heights neighborhood and transported to the Oakland Zoo while another broke into a San Bruno home filled with game trophies.

More than half of the state is mountain lion territory, and it's not too unusual to see them popping up in unexpected places, according to CDFW officials.

The species typically migrates during the dry season in search of ample food and water supplies, but they might be traveling further than usual as drought conditions are on the rise and deer populations are declining, department spokesperson Ken Paglia said.

"Be aware that we do share the state with other wildlife, like mountain lions or bears, they are around," Paglia said. "Even though they potentially can be dangerous, they're usually in the city because they're looking for food resources and they're not there to hurt us."

Despite the recent sightings, being attacked by a mountain lion is a rare occurrence.

"We want to make sure the public is safe, but we also want the animal to be able to live out his life in its own habitat. That's probably the best solution," Paglia said.

Installing motion center lights around the property, keeping pets indoors at night and adequately storing feed supplies are some of the ways residents can avoid encounters with mountain lions. More tips and tricks from the Mountain Lion Foundation can be found at https://issuu.com/mountainlionfoundation/docs/cdfw_mlf_conflict_brochure_booklet_final_2020.