UPDATE: Mountain Lion Slips Away After Being Spotted In Backyard of Daly City Home
DALY CITY (CBS SF) -- A prowling mountain lion was spotted early Tuesday in the backyard of a Daly City home triggering a warning to neighbors and response from a fire department crew and police officers.
The alert was sent out on social media at 6:55 a.m. for the sighting in the 4100 block of Callan Blvd.
"There is a mountain lion in the backyard of a residence," the post read. "The Fire Dept is attempting to get the Department of Fish and Game to respond. PLEASE do not go in your backyards or walk outside with your pets."
At 9:28 a.m., police tweeted that the Dept. of Fish and Game had cleared the scene without finding the mountain lion, and urged residents to be careful.
Over the last several months, mountain lion sightings have been on the rise across the Bay Area.
Mountain lions have 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 officials from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.
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.
