Slain Mountain Lion Would Have Brought New Genetics to Santa Monica Mountains

Preliminary DNA results show that a mountain lion killed on the 101 Freeway in Agoura Hills was new to the Santa Monica Mountains.

The lions in the Santa Monica Mountains are isolated because of freeways, mountains and the Pacific Ocean, making it crucial for new lions to be able to safely cross over into the area, according to the National Park Service. 

The lion was found near Liberty Canyon Road on the southbound side of the freeway. According to witness reports, the lion came from the north and tried to cross lanes in the early hours of Oct. 7. 

Local wildlife advocates have been lobbying for a wildlife corridor at Liberty Canyon for years. 

If this lion had successfully crossed the freeway and mated, he would have brought new genetic material to the population south of the freeway, the NPS reported. 

“The fact that this young male chose to cross – unsuccessfully – at Liberty Canyon shows how critical this wildlife corridor is for maintaining genetic diversity in the Santa Monica Mountains,” said Dr. Seth Riley, an expert on urban wildlife with Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, a unit of the National Park Service. 

Caltrans has twice applied for federal transportation funding for the $10 million project, but it was not approved. Caltrans is expected to apply again in early 2014.

“This section of the 101 Freeway is the ideal path into the Santa Monica Mountains because of the natural habitat on both sides of the freeway and the connections to large areas of open space,” said Riley, who has been working with the Robert Wayne Lab at UCLA and the Holly Ernest Lab at UC Davis on genetic differences in populations north and south of the 101 Freeway.

They have documented several cases of inbreeding in which a father mates with his offspring.

Of more than 30 lions tracked during the decade-long National Park Service study, only one has successfully crossed the 101 Freeway.