Los Angeles Zoo recently suffered an unfortunate tragedy when its zookeepers discovered the carcass of one of its koalas that was 14 years of age.
The investigation goes on, although without proper video footage to reveal who the attacker was, speculation is all the Zoo has to go by. Nevertheless, there is circumstantial evidence to suggest that it was the work of P-22, a mountain lion that is well-known in the Griffith Park area.
According to those familiar with the event, the mountain lion was spotted around the area on the night of the unfortunate koala’s mauling.
Jeff Sikich, a biologist for the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreational Area, suggests that mountain lion attack calls have been more prevalent within the last year likely because of human landscaping and habitation taking away from the homestead of the animals.
With that being said, the number of mountain lions probably isn’t increasing in the area, because the population is pretty well regulated by those licensed to put down potential threats and by fellow mountain lions, which attach others over territory.
This is not the first time that mountain lions have been responsible for killing domestic animals; it’s something that occurs every so often and the LA Times reports local mountain lions can be quite terroristic and have been known to kill up to ten domestic animals at a time while only eating one.
Zoos like Los Angeles Zoo need to take extra measures to ensure that they keep their animals protected from mountain lions. By having an open top to the cages, it allows the mountain lions to simply leap right into the cage and the victim animal has nowhere to go.
It’s still unknown what is to become of P-22, but without any evidence to suggest it was the fault of the mountain lion, officials are unlikely to do anything about it. Instead, the Zoo will just need to toughen its animals’ security to keep them safer.
Source: Los Angeles Times