Just spotted a mountain lion face to face (literally 4 feet away separated by a window) right in my backyard! Thought it was a massive dog at first, and realized I was wrong immediately.
I had a in heat female, caterwauling under my window a few years back. And, she then peed on all of my possessions. It was the beginning of a deep connection with her, her mate, and at least one of her daughters, who has chosen to live on this ranch with me. They are amazing
I started turkey hunting with bow and arrow in Pennsylvania in 1960 and have seem beautiful cougars many time since then in the wild. I have cougars on my property now and never had any problems. They are pets I cannot pet.😾😺😼❤️
I worked at a wildlife rescue where we cared for two mountain lion kittens... a brother and sister whose mother had died when they were too young. The main priority is always rehabilitation, but I admit a small part of me wanted to keep them close for ever and ever! Just observing them from a distance filled my heart with so much love, and my mind with so much awe and wonder.
Great news . Thanks so much for protecting these beautiful animals from the trophy cowards out ther who are trying to destroy these lovely animals . Keep up the good work 👍
I've lived in California for my entire life and am absolutely intrigued by these amazing creatures. I've primarily lived in Northern California and in walking distance of rural, river areas where Mountain Lions have historically always inhabited. Never seen one in the wild which is probably a good thing but I have no doubt that a cougar has probably seen me. Mountain Lions are so beautiful and amazing and deserving of respect and a rationale caution/fear. Amazing video, I hate watching such powerful, apex predators being caught in a cage but I do understand that the intention is to study and understand for preservation.
I live in the Santa Cruz Mountains of California. I’m here watching this because around 5am this morning I saw a mountain lion in our front yard. They must be spreading their population. I’ve lived in this area all my life (44 years). There hasn’t been sightings in this specific location, Summit Road..at least not that I’m aware of. It was a trip! I thought it was a dog at first, but then realized it’s tail was too long. Super intimidating yet breathtaking creature.
They are being relocated here from all over. Peninsula Open Space Trust to name but one allows the lions from elsewhere to be dumped in our county. None of these decisions are made by professional wildlife managers. It’s cruel to the animals and with total disregard for the residents and their pets and livestock.
Fantastic Video. I have been involved with Enviromental and Wildlife Conservation. As a second generation LA resident dating back to 1892. I have seen so much change in the areas of the Santa Monica mountains. I Remember when the 101 and 405 freeways weren't there to 10 and 14 lanes of 24-hour, 7 day a week traffic. I am proud and so happy to see the Wildlife Overpass in the Agoura area being constructed. Being a supporter of Save LA Cougars since the inception, local people getting together to make this happen needs to be a part of life around the world. This problem exists all over, including countries like South Africa. Please everyone needs to do what they can to make living with nature the top priority.
Dr. Vickers is an articulate and passionate man. Thanks to him and the many others depicted in the series maybe the Mountain Lions of California have a chance. I met Dr. Vickers recently at another Mountain Lion symposium and he's just as dedicated as I imagined. Great job on the documentary.
I lived in Los Gatos for 40 years, including living in the Santa Cruz Mountain area of the town for 25 of those years, often hiking for miles several times a week. Los Gatos was named by Spanish residents before the Gold Rush because the area nestled against the mountain terrain of Redwood forest where many Mountain Lions and Bobcats made their home. In all the time I lived there, I only spotted *one* of each species once. I'm sure I hiked past them several times as they hid in the brush, and I occasionally saw the corpses of their kills. I was very disappointed, and saddened by their rarity in a place named after them!
Fellow Los Gatos resident. Hiker too. Never see the mountain lions, a rare bobcat. But we have a cabin in the Sierras @ 4200' and since the growing popularity of outdoor cameras in the subdivision, surrounded by Big Trees and national forest, for the past 3 years, it's AMAZING. The mountain lions are there and people post the clips. They are huge. They come at night. Santa Cruz Mtns. must have a lot, such a big area. My BF came upon a mom & her cubs in Fremont Older in Cupertino while mountain biking. He first noticed the vultures circling, then saw cubs playing on the trail and he stopped and backed out--he said, I know mom was there eating and there's no way I' was getting near the cubs. That was a weekday morning and no one else on the trail, no humans, I mean.
They’re out there, you’re just not seeing them because they don’t want you to see them. I live not far from you and am outdoors on my coastal range farm at night. I see them several times a year at night. I also see signs all the time, tracks after rain, kills, scratched trees. I’ve never seen one in the day time when hiking.
@@cerberus3426 obviously? How else would they eat and also they were here first. He is on their territory. This is the normal food chain. Let the lions eat I say.
Great series, I love mountain lions, beutiful animals,,, happy to see so many caring ppl helping to keep them alive and healthy,,I'm from New York city, and I thank you all.. Tomy.....
The reclusive ghost of the california woods. Every time I go hiking, I know that they could be watching. Even if I cannot see them. Beautiful kitty cats.
@@josha3891 Since GatCat has not answered I hope my experience might help. I have been an active backpacker and rock climber since I was very young. Even worked as a Park Ranger in the Sierra Nevada mountains a few seasons. Mountain lions are very solitary animals, often times avoiding humans at all costs. Depending on where you live "as long as there is a healthy deer population in the area you are hiking" you should never have a run in with one. Let alone one with any interest in you. Heavily forested areas away from civilization tend to be the best. In California there have only been 18 attacks in the past 37 years. All open areas. Hope this helps. Best wishes.
I live near Whiting Ranch Wilderness Park near Lake Forest where Mountain Lion sightings can be quite frequent. They mostly keep to themselves and won’t bother you due to all the hikers and bicyclists. Always in awe whenever I see them but always keep my distance too.
See the Issue is... people don't seem to accept Reality..... (WILD ANIMALS) ARE "WILD UNTAMED ANIMAL'S" They don't live by Human Rules... Until this Earth is transformed back into a Paradise where Humans and Animals Peacefully live together. In the meantime, How about people stay away from them unless you want to gamble with your Life.....
I live there too, and I’ve been hiking in the Wilderness Park several times with various people. On one of my first hikes when I was new to the area, I went with a group of women from church. I soon realized that they were very experienced hikers and had been on the hikes many times, so they would scale the steep hills very rapidly, not caring what scenery or flowers there were to potentially view! I had to do the quick glance technique, like you do when you’re driving! Either that, or get left behind, because they would stop at nothing!! So after scaling many steep hills for about seven miles, I was getting extremely tired and my legs were feeling like rubber bands! This feeling could easily have been prevented, had we just stopped to rest even for two minutes here and there to enjoy the scenery and maybe look at a flower or two! I’m not even sure what we saw on that hike! 😂 Well, when we were nearing the end, after three hours or so, having hiked a round trip, and needing to scale one more steep trail to get up to the end, where our cars were parked at a neighborhood park, the three other women who were still with us went up this last one even faster! The trail turned so that no one could be seen near the top for several minutes before reaching it, which meant that those near the bottom also couldn’t be seen! My legs, being like rubber bands, and my lungs and heart, having to breathe and beat so rapidly while scaling the hill, and already being so exhausted, wouldn’t obey my will to not be left alone at the mercy of a potential lion! So, that’s how I suddenly found myself!! 😮 …All alone and worried about lions!! What I would have done, I had no idea, except maybe to perish! What would my three children have done with no mom? I tried not to think of it! I tried my hardest to keep at least some kind of pace!!! I kept going up and up, trying to not pause for more than ten seconds to catch my breath here and there! …Finally, I was much nearer the park, where I felt so much safer, like I’d have a chance if I did see a mountain lion! At least they’d hear my screams and maybe come running! I made it safely to the top, and felt victoriously safer! Plus our hike was over! THEN, I allowed myself to enjoy the good feeling you have when a long hike is over and you can rest for a little while!!! 😊 And I was so very grateful that I made it safely out in one piece, even though I had been left alone against my will! Whew!!!
I wish it were that simple but people here are not as kind as where you are I suppose… animals are not of importance for these Americans, at least in my opinion- because yes they may bitch about my comment but will never campaign for roads to be built for animals… because that would have to get political honesty for the most part to have happen- and even then, good luck (me saying that sarcastically). I think it’s a great idea what you have expressed about these roads and it makes me sad that these animals don’t have the same amenities you do where you live. Thanks for listening- my family is from Northern Italy. But I live in Florida now and had lived in California for several years. We have big cats in both states and they are quite beautiful creatures especially since I love apex predators!!
They are building one in Aurora Hills just outside of Los Angeles across the 101 freeway where every year mountain lions get hit by cars. It's funded by a private donor I think
Only one time did I see a live one in the wild and it disappeared into a landscape where that shouldn't have been possible, there was no significant cover in miles and I was on the only high vantage point. Other than that we were thrilled to see their tracks in the mud on occasion tho I always assumed they were always watching us from a distance. Elusive is right.
Thank you for uploading this video. I've learned about California mountain lion from this video. Time to time, I've heard from the news about mountain lion killed in freeway. I hope projects in this video helps/ save California mountain lion. They are beautiful creatures.
A suggestion to protect livestock that most wild cats might fear. Circulating lights that turn on and off at different locations surrounding the livestock
I’m from the U.K. but live in CA and I’ve recently taken to hiking. Thus was useful to understand the mountain lion culture here. I will be doing more research.
I was born in California in 1940 and raised in what was once country In Contra Costa County, We had a horse pasture and as a kid, I would play in the hills there. A Mountian Lion lived in a brush-covered gorge my sister and our only neighbors' kids would play around. Every once in a while we would see it running by but it never bothered us or our horses. It was a bit scary walking home from the school bus stop in the winter which was about a mile from our house. I would sing really loud when I passed under the trees hoping to scare it off if it was in them waiting to pounce, but of course, it never did. My dad who was a hunter once got a look at it from a distance and went over to check out its tracks. They went deeper in the mud then his so it must have been a pretty big cat. I lived in Orinda until high school living and camping in those hills. I think cats know what's off-limits and in the years that followed I developed a theory that if you see one running away from it is the worse thing you can do.
You have had the good fortune to see these wonderful big cats in their natural habitat. In Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula is the habitat of the Balkan lynx, which is a subspecies of the Eurasian lynx, but unfortunately in Bulgaria, my homeland, it is almost extinct. Wolves and bears remain from the predators in the Bulgarian mountains.
In designing bridges for wildlife look also on to other countries like Germany - they set up bush and small trees at the sides of the crossings to give anmals cover and so make them feel more secure while crossing over . . Keep up your great efforts! Thanks for the fantastic video.
Well, Americans will literally demolish every inch of wilderness with the only exceptions being what the rich folks wants to hunt or the government wants to control for another source of revenue… if there isn’t any land left to build on, they’ll build directly on top of existing property. Thank god I’m fortunate enough to live in a rather rural area and that is only for now. It won’t be long until I can’t stand in my own yard and take a piss.
Install wildlife underpasses every few miles on the roads. It works in Washington and Nevada. Cameras show animals learn where to cross and actively use them. It's safer for the animals and people. No one wants to hit an animal with their car, they will swerve and possibly lose control. This ain't exactly rocket science.
Thank you for watching! The National Wildlife Federation is trying to build an overpass in the Santa Monica Mountains right now: savelacougars.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/SaveLACougars_Campaign.pdf The problem is is funding. It isn't funded by tax dollars but privately.
They don’t want them to be able to have the accessibility because basically on one side of the freeway it’s canyon and on the other side it is suburban neighborhoods and towns
You would think that most of us would agree for under or overpasses being built for our wildlife. However, there are a lot of people that think that those kinds of projects are not worth it and that the populations of pumas only need to be "controlled".
This documentary shows that many different people are involved in the battle to save the mountain lion. Lots of crossing points of the major highways is clearly the answer, so the animals avoid being killed by cars and trucks. The mountain lion is a magnificent beast and I hope it can survive in this world of highways and urban sprawl.
To have survived so long proves how smart they are. They come down from the hills here in Oakland chasing deers every now and then. Beautiful creatures
Lived in California my whole life! The 2nd house I grew up in refrained the whole neighborhood from moving in because there were a few mountain lions spotted! Even ran into a baby mountain lion when I was like 10 walking home from school - I ran all the way back home bc I knew the mamma had to be close LOL
I live near Yosemite and have never seen a mountain lion except on a camera trap. I have found their tracks on my property and hear them calling out occasionally. It's cool and a little scary at the same time.
@Sinister Veritas 😂 oh I know. I was really into animal planet those days and my gut instinct told me where there is baby , there is mama. Run lmao Me and my friend never ran so fast in our life man haha
I never saw a mountain lion even once in California. I came across a coyote a few times in a park which is right next to homes.(Paso Nogal park, Pleasant Hill). He would spot me from a distance, and quietly move into the shrubs. I have seen deer and snake many a time. I used to hike alone quite a bit - in the Mt. Diablo area by Regency Drive, Concord, in King's Canyon Park Moraga, Redwood Regional Park Oakland, the upper rim trail in Lafayette Reservoir, Las Trampas near Danville, the hills in Lafayette close to Highway 24, etc. Maybe it was for the better that I didn't run into any!
There’s all types of wildcats in wildcat canyon in el sorbrante and I have also seen a dead one on the side of the road near Livermore my pops said there used to be a lot in the Berkeley hills when he was a kid too
I’ve seen their tracks out in black diamond mines near the chapparal areas,its crazy how we can go hiking in all these spots in prime ML habitat in the east bay and rarely see them. They most definitely see us though 😅
thats gunna be very hard with the large amount of mountains the state has not to mention the massive amount of debt it now has to deal with as well, don't hold your breath on that one.
I hope this doesn't seem too corny - but somehow I feel better about life in general knowing the lions are out there - it just makes me feel more optimistic about things. Great video btw - thanks.
I built a custom home for some folks in a small rural community is Southern Colorado. The homeowners planted many small trees and the deer population pretty much devoured those trees. The homeowner tried different sprays and things to prevent the deer from eating his expensive trees but those things seems to attract deer. Then one morning I went to work and there were lion tracks around the home we were building. From then on there were no deer to devour the scrubs and trees.
me ,too. in germany we are just getting the timberwolf back, never heard a wolf howling until a few years ago, wich gives me confidence in saying humans will never destroy the planet or nature, just ourselfes maybe
That's a lovely sentiment. And, indeed, over the last decades, concern about and action in favor of the natural environment has SKYROCKETED. Optimism is VERY out of fashion these days, but it's a much nicer way to live, isn't it?!
I’ve only seen one, a glimpse. I’ve had multiple encounters. Had one tracking me at night while hiking back from the Forks of the Kern. Had on walk around my camp, back country, and got within 10’ of my tent. Had them within 20 yrds of my camp multiple times. Beautiful animals. Dont mind the competition for deer. 😂
I live in Orange County and I have a TH-cam channel showing the wildlife in Orange County, and I recently just got my first mountain lion. They're a really cool species and we need to protect them in whatever way we can.
Love it. Wonderful thing you guys are doing. It's past time for humans to see that we're not the only ones that inhabit God's beautiful earth. People are ignorant and selfish. They don't see...animals and people are one precious web. Can't have one without the other. Love this film. Way to go California!
My opinion will probably be extremely unpopular but I’d hazard to say that humans need the animals but animals would be SO much better off without humans. Mother Nature would balance everything, right our wrongs.
@@yourekittenme.Maybe a world exists out there without humans, though I’d venture to say that the Bible makes it clear that in our world, God first prepared it for us, including putting animals on it, then he placed humans on it right before his last day of creation. It is true that he did command us to take care of the earth and all that is in it, so we haven’t always done an effective job of this!! It seems it IS usually greed and desires for gain that cause us to forget our stewardship over the earth! On the other hand, it seems when there has been a world without humans, it doesn’t thrive as long as it might, as in the case of the extinct dinosaurs and other animals of the time when there were no humans on the earth.
@@deboraholsen2504 Dinosaurs and many other animals have been around way longer than us. They did not destroy the world. However, we tend to make many species extinct at 100 time the rate than average. Humans have been around a lot shorter than dinosaurs, but have done a lot of damage.
Great to get information about this..I will be spreading awareness of this to everyone I encounter....information is vital to this...Thanks for putting video's like this out there...caught my eye 👁 and now my attention and how as a California resident I can help,funds,awareness, education,...God bless your work,your success...God bless God's creation of the Mountain lions
I saw one from my car in the foothills. I stopped and watched for the 10secs it took for it to see me and return from whence it came. Lol it was absolutely beautiful and a tad bit exciting to say the least I was on my way to a campsite and have decided never to walk alone in the dark on that road again LOL
They have done just that in several places in my City. But the cost is horrendous, in the millions, because it has to be built to the same standards as a regular over pass and many are planted with Shrubs to provide cover for the wild life and encourage them to use the bridges.
@Shane Dugan We need to start dismantling our "civilization" to save them. They cannot cross 10 lane highways where trucks fly with 120km/h; they cannot live on dead land , like our parking lots and lay-down yards. This is why I said "too late". I see no politician who will stop population growth and start turning parking lots into fertile forests; or one who will stop the trucks , trains and airplanes. Maybe the virus could do that if it could kill 100% of those infected.
Felines are very reclusive and elusive creatures. I would not doubt that they may have seen you a few times during that period. I live in Western Massachusetts. Sadly, our ancestors here in the east were so fearful of these cats, that they were hunted to extinction. Occasionally, a wandering male may be spotted in the area, but apparently there are no thriving populations of them here. They say that bobcat populations pretty much thrive in every state, and am pretty sure there are plenty of them here in my state. But in my 66 years, i have only seen one of them in the wild. And i have spent most of my life in and near rural wooded areas. I have seen many black bear, deer, moose, fox and many other smaller animals, but only one bobcat. I would not doubt that they have seen me many times though. Have a great day sir. I hope you may see one someday. I really wish i could. I really hate what our ancestors have done out here.
At 3:37, I swear my house cat does the EXACT SAME MOTION but at the kitchen floor and with nothing there to even bury his leftover food with!!! But he does the same thing with his paw and I have always wondered why! He’s “cacheing”!!! It must be instinct. It’s amazing how you can see the relation between these 2 “cousins”! One is huge and wild, but even my little snuggly kitty has some mountain lion in his genes!!! Amazing!
4:29 Was that a... Hummingbird Hawk-Moth? Hummingbird Hawk-Moths are Eurasian species, and are not supposed to be seen in California - why is it included?
There are four species of hummingbird moths native to North America, they don’t only live in Eurasia. They aren’t in the same family but they have evolved the exact same adaptations to the Eurasian species. The species they showed is native to California.
I live in the Santa Cruz mountains near Boulder Creek. I have had the pleasure to see several mountain lions and bobcats on my property and on Bear Creek road lately. I am amazed every time I see them. Usually around 9pm when I am driving BCR.
Interesting, I was stealth camping in some nature preserve on a canyon near the Bay Area. Had a confrontation with one at around 10pm. Seem to be active around then. It was strangely aggressive towards me and kept hissing, I may have been on its path. It kept hissing angrily as it finally conceded to go around me.
Really informative...i shuld have known there this close to Chula Vista.... Corridors are the keys for wild animals to travel safely...we just have to make sure people arnt using thrm as a camp ground.
Everywhere the mountain lion exists it needs to be there. We need to do all we can to protect these magnificent & essential apex predators from habitat loss, vehicle strikes to poaching & everything in between!!! The environment needs the mountain lion as it's a predator critical to regulating deer populations & those of smaller prey.
Here in Southern Colorado my neighbors loved to see the mountain sheep so they began feeding them. This in turn gave the mountain lions an advantage in hunting the sheep. One evening as my neighbors were watching the mountain sheep feed on the food they had placed a mountain lion burst from the forest and harvested a sheep. The neighbors were aghast. They called the Division of Wildlife in order to have something done about the mountain lion. By the time the DOW officer arrived the lion had removed the sheep to a more secluded area near the neighbors home to dine. Nothing was done about or to the lion because it was doing what lions do. The neighbors on the other hand were cited and given an education on why you do not feed the wildlife. We have a lot of lions in this area and the population is growing even with sport hunting. It is very closely regulated. We are able to determine how healthy the food supply is for the lions by determining how many household pets disappear.
There wild animals that what that do I don’t know what the heck your neighbors where thinking feed wild animals and now that got the cougar visting there place because the cougar is going to think there’s food there your neighbors cause more harm and no good
people are stupid and should be fined out of existence for messing with the delicate balance of wildlife, wolves are coming back to Colorado, your lion populations will drop when wolf packs get established, in Wyoming wolves lowered lion populations by 39 percent, wolves prey on lion kittens and chase lions off of their kills, although in Wyoming lions killed a lot of solo wolves as well
"The mountain lion 'harvested' the mountain sheep" ??? Come On! Just say that the mountain lion killed the sheep. That's what predators do!...kill for food. They're not harvesting fruits and veggies. SMH
I actually walked between 2 cougars in Nevada's Valley of Fire because thhey were totally silent and restig outside normal periferal vision. My fear of sidewinders led me to see a fresh trackk in the sand. looking around I saw 1 in a gully below mf and the other on a ledge above me {both resting}. About 20 people had preceeded me 5 minutes earlier w/o noticing them.
I fully expect a YT video in the near future with a puma saying, "Why I am leaving California." I just hope they can secure a rental from U-Growl. It costs a mountain lion 5 times more to rent from California to Texas than it does from Texas to California.
They do, but not as many as there should be. And those that do, as you watched in the video, druggies, homeless and whoever are taking over those underpasses and the cats avoid them.
You would think that most of us would agree for under or overpasses being built for our wildlife. However, there are a lot of people that think that those kinds of projects are not worth it and that the populations of pumas only need to be "controlled".
Just the same, people make a religion out of charismatic wildlife. They would say "build more underpasses" until they are blue the face simple because it's a feel good cause. And then you need to hire someone full time to keep the bums out of the underpasses, which is surprisingly difficult, and then you run into another feel-good cause for naive people. Next thing you know, CA is a utopia of stupid people throwing money at problems while getting nothing done.
California Cougar or Mountain Lion is a valuable animal to the entire WILDLIFE chain of this state and should be preserved...! I very much like the efforts to preserve them shown in this video...!! Thank you for all your efforts.....!! Ed Decker
@@JaySoul711 it was really close one once, at night, it was maybe 30 feet away from me, looked like we both got surprised seeing each other, I rushed towards it, yelling, with my hands up and it got scared. On another occasion, I just made a lot of noise and threw stones towards its direction and it also got scared. I guess I was lucky.
@@MichalOlender the night one is super scary! Damn you’re brave.! Quick thinking tho! For the morning one did you already have rocks in your pockets or did you bend over to pick some up? I once thought i heard one purrrr at me during the day. But i couldn’t see it. It could’ve been a Bob cat or something smaller. But i hiked back down fast and tried not to turn my back. I didn’t want to investigate if it was an actual mountain lion who made that purrr!
Once I was sleeping in a volcanic mountain near Mono Lake (CA) -- one of the oldest lakes in the world. I woke up in a ponderosa forest and I knew there was a mountain lion nearby. The lion said it preferred to be called a puma. I immediately went back to sleep. The next morning as I was leaving, I saw puma tracks in the lava sand ...
There’s one the roams around my area here in Santa Barbara. Saw one walking up the creek bed back to the mountains in the early morning last year and someone actually got a photo on one on the road! Never seen that let alone a photo of it. I hike a lot here and while odds are low.. they’re on my mind when I’m up there alone.
Most people are totally oblivious to the wlldlife that lives right in our backyards. Working as a Community Service Officer in Highland, CA, I have seen this first hand. People have a hard time understanding why a large cat has scaled their 7 ft. block wall and taken their dogs or kittys. They must realize it is they who are encroaching.
@@karinam4488 , We need to learn to live with the cougar by taking our responsibility to our pets, livestock, and especially, children, seriously. Just as we immunize our pets, make sure they are not left vulnerable in the cougars hunting hours, dusk to dawn. It's sad, but children are seen as fair game and measures should be taken by parents who live in cat country, as I do, including broad daylight. I don't want to live in a country that doesn't include these noble and mysterious creatures, unfortunately humans have been claiming and picking at more and more of their native habitate, where there used to be very rare encounters, most of which we knew nothing about because the cat saw us first and would silently split. Now they have become more brazen and curious about the other Apex Predator in the neighborhood. Extermination would leave our species all the poorer. Once, we too were mighty warriors, who fought, tooth and club for our food and the safety of our families. Now we have powerful tools and poisons to kill things that are scary to our softened skin or inconvenient to us in our elevated feign-glory. The adaptations and education we need are well within our power, and, if you think about it, fall well within our responsibility as steward species of this world. Let us show our nobility as well, and benefit by having a little bit of mystery and danger still living in the forest, before everything gets paved, regulated and outlawed.
@@imdawolfman2698 thank you for that comment. Everything you said, I agree and support 100%. Honestly I got sidetracked last night when I was writing my comment, I even accidentally posted it before finished writing 🤦🏻♀️ I’ve read your other very well written comments in this video. You sound intelligent, I’d love to pick your brain one day! In the middle of the pandemic, when all the shelters were closed, we adopted a family of stray cats from the alley. We fixed the females first, but the male’s turn never came - he was taken by the coyotes, I saw them dragging away his lifeless, limp body....and till this day my husband and I blame ourselves for not fixing him right away. He constantly wanted to be outside, especially during the nights. It’s sad, but it’s our fault!!! Coyotes just happen to be not very cute (to most people), and seem evil, intimidating. Everyone wants to kill the coyotes, blame them for the pets / livestock disappearances / demises. But the coyotes are just doing what the nature intended them to do - hunt to survive. We don’t realize that we’ve encroached on their, and many other species’, territory and we are not intending to stop anytime soon. The cities are growing, wildlife gets misplaced and cut off the food/water sources and when the wildlife gets too close to our backyards we freak out and want them gone. Humanity needs to finally understand that we can’t keep on killing / destroying everything that doesn’t fit into our little minds, lifestyles, or houses. We’ve gone too far already, but it’s not too late to turn things around!!! On the positive note, everyday I meet more and more people like you and me. People that care, compassionate, kind, understanding and appreciative of nature. That makes me feel that not all is lost and that wildlife has yet a chance at survival. Thank you again, for being YOU, for bringing awareness, and for sharing your views with the rest of us 🙏 God Bless
Wonderful documentary and thoroughly enjoyed all the caring scientific and educational input. The producer, Karen Remsen, compiled an informational gem. Production date ?? It would be a travesty to lose the puma (mountain lion) because of either or all three of the following: human spread/encroachment, limitation of genetic diversity and excessive use of pesticides/rodenticides/poisons. Greedy humans: understand the fragile situation, get involved, vote or pack up and leave earth.
They are very reclusive if you saw one and escaped unscathed you are fortunate. They see you way before you see them. I had a Lion on my roof, but didn’t realize it in Black Canyon City, AZ. Suddenly I heard a scream just above my head. I jumped back in the house. My neighbor working for us in our garage pointed out the huge paw prints behind my garage, not more than 10-15 feet from the back door to my house. Two weeks later in our local newspaper pictures of a 150 pound cat was killed. They are gorgeous animals but I wouldn’t want to see one up close. They grab you by your throat and disembowel you with their back legs. Not an encounter you want to have! You have to know your surroundings and like the man said know what to do. They were here first so respect wild life, or move to a city!
About 6 years ago after I moved to farm country in Northern CA interior, we had a pack of mountain lions living near the property. We also had wild boars come to our road and dig up the landscape overnight. I believe they are gone now due to illegal hunting. The coyotes are also gone. They were definitely shot by the ranchers here. So sad. Still makes my heart hurt.
See the Issue is... people don't seem to accept Reality..... (WILD ANIMALS) ARE "WILD UNTAMED ANIMAL'S" They don't live by Human Rules... Until this Earth is transformed back into a Paradise where Humans and Animals Peacefully live together. In the meantime, How about people stay away from them unless you want to gamble with your Life.....
How about some gratefulness & appreciation. Because had it continued like it was, next time the boars wouldn’t have been digging up your precious landscape….they would have been digging up your dead body. Keep that in mind the next time you wanna cry animals rights there, slick
About safe way passages/ cprridors. In the Netherlands we got special natural looking passages on bridges and tunnels. Ecoducts. (At 58:49 you see an example we already have for decates. 59:52 This looks identcal to the ecoduct south of the place called Apeldoorn). These are mostly the large area called the Veluwe. You can look it up. Accidents do still happen. But animals who know the way easely avoids the nasty confrontation.
Hi! We totally agree and wish there was a simpler way to track these animals. The reason why they are so big is due to the battery to make it last at least 2 years. Otherwise, we'd have to go in and capture the lion more frequently which would be more invasive than the collar as it is now. Collars are used all over the world! On African cats, wolves, even elephants. However, it's just like wearing a necklace: They don't even notice it and studies have shown it doesn't hinder their behavior, hunting abilities, or mating abilities. Thanks for your concern though!
@@kateremsen6645 Thanks for considerate, informative reply. More efficient electronics and batteries will move things in the right direction over time.
With the socialist taxation in California, there should be enough funds to put diamond-studded collars on every puma, but they would have to agree not to move out of state for at least 2 years.
Jan Conway. The mountain lions that can legally be killed for eating livestock or pets should be captured and relocated. These puma,s then could be evaluated and tagged as well. It wouldn't be easy and would require the cooperation of pet owners and farmers.
There should be reassessments of existing rodeway infrastructure countrywide! Even if they do not pass the infrastructure Bill in Congress, the states and counties should locate the busiest crossings of the highway by wildlife and build an underground passageway at that point! The best thing would be to put an underground passageway every 3- 5 miles or so! If this was done routinely we could save thousands and thousands of animals from being run over by vehicles!
As long as federal money isn’t used, I’m in!! We are in such massive debt as it is, I don’t think middle America can continue to deal with the rising inflation…butttt if local funds can be raised, GREAT!!!👌
The part about people sleeping in and hanging out in the passageways under freeways is key. It would be good if these could be patrolled somehow. This is done in parts of Africa, where e.g. the elephant is in distinct danger of extinction.
Watching this bc I just came waaaay too close to a mountain lion in California at 3AM walking to my car. Didn't see her until I was about 15 feet away and she made a noise and scared the crop outta me. I got loud and she ran off but my heart was racing.
As a hunter I actually love and respect predators. They have it tough daily. I strictly shoot it, I eat it (unless diseased or hit by a car). I see Cougars as my spirit animal. They are both feared and misunderstood. Like me. I strongly believe that if there is not enough room for “them”, there is not enough room for humans! You enter their environment, you are the trespasser. You forget that, you pay the price. They were here first. Don’t forget it. Edit....I will never hunt a predator. I will take a picture, but unless rabid or dying, I will leave them be!
Im also a hunter and i love the respect your showing twards mountain lions they are lovers moms daughters. They are a loving animals they just need room to roam ive seen them where i grew up in oregon on a ranch as long as they have game to eat we never lost a animal
Thank you for being a respectable hunter. Your ideas mimic mine, even though I don't hunt. I have known many a hunter with your beliefs. I consider them true hunters. Unfortunately I've known too many who hunt, just to kill. Some justify killing predators as a means of protection, whether it be for their family, their livestock, or their prey. A friends family owns a large hunting ranch. They encourage the members to kill all predators, as they see them as competition. I'm glad your kind are still out there.
I personally could never hunt, I actually don’t eat meat, or any animal products, but I have so much respect for people who go out and catch and kill their own food humanely and quickly, as a pose to disgusting factory farms. Trophy hunting makes me sick, and I know it makes many hunters who hunt for food sick. Large predators like mountain lions do not need human interference, their numbers are controlled by prey availability. It’s good to see people have respect for these animals
@@oceanbliss1923 lots of agriculturalists do not understand that the populations of large predators are directly influenced and limited by the populations of their prey.
@@oceanbliss1923 well said. And thank you for being respectful, even if you don't eat meat. I too don't hunt, but I occasionally eat meat. And I also loathe trophy hunters, and respeehunters that consume what the kill, and only kill what they will use to feed them and their families. To me that is within the boundaries of nature.
Just spotted a mountain lion face to face (literally 4 feet away separated by a window) right in my backyard! Thought it was a massive dog at first, and realized I was wrong immediately.
I had a in heat female, caterwauling under my window a few years back. And, she then peed on all of my possessions. It was the beginning of a deep connection with her, her mate, and at least one of her daughters, who has chosen to live on this ranch with me. They are amazing
They will attack
Im a solo hiker and there's few things i fear more than the mountain lion but with equal admiration for these beautiful creatures.
Bears are probably more dangerous but I wouldn't want to tangle with a Mt lion either. 😮
@@metalmamasue3680 I’d rather deal with a mountain lion than with a bear. You can scare off mountain lions, but you can’t scare off bears.
I started turkey hunting with bow and arrow in Pennsylvania in 1960 and have seem beautiful cougars many time since then in the wild.
I have cougars on my property now and never had any problems.
They are pets I cannot pet.😾😺😼❤️
@@osamanazzal4302you can scare off bears
Years ago near my home in Trabuco Canyon was attacked and killed by a cougar while riding her bike.
I worked at a wildlife rescue where we cared for two mountain lion kittens... a brother and sister whose mother had died when they were too young. The main priority is always rehabilitation, but I admit a small part of me wanted to keep them close for ever and ever! Just observing them from a distance filled my heart with so much love, and my mind with so much awe and wonder.
I'm from California and we should do everything we can as Californians to protect these beautiful animals. A treasure we should never lose.
Shoot them all
@Luis Serrano That wasn't very nice Mr. Luis. God loves all living things...Even you sir.
@Luis Serrano They have more right to be here than us.
BigT209 if your that scared of them you should just stay in your house
Great news . Thanks so much for protecting these beautiful animals from the trophy cowards out ther who are trying to destroy these lovely animals . Keep up the good work 👍
I've lived in California for my entire life and am absolutely intrigued by these amazing creatures. I've primarily lived in Northern California and in walking distance of rural, river areas where Mountain Lions have historically always inhabited. Never seen one in the wild which is probably a good thing but I have no doubt that a cougar has probably seen me. Mountain Lions are so beautiful and amazing and deserving of respect and a rationale caution/fear. Amazing video, I hate watching such powerful, apex predators being caught in a cage but I do understand that the intention is to study and understand for preservation.
I live in the Santa Cruz Mountains of California.
I’m here watching this because around 5am this morning I saw a mountain lion in our front yard.
They must be spreading their population. I’ve lived in this area all my life (44 years). There hasn’t been sightings in this specific location, Summit Road..at least not that I’m aware of.
It was a trip!
I thought it was a dog at first, but then realized it’s tail was too long. Super intimidating yet breathtaking creature.
They are being relocated here from all over. Peninsula Open Space Trust to name but one allows the lions from elsewhere to be dumped in our county. None of these decisions are made by professional wildlife managers. It’s cruel to the animals and with total disregard for the residents and their pets and livestock.
Lived there 20 years and only ever saw 2 of them. They are extremely elusive and rare to see.
With all due respect ma’am, I’d not blame one for wanting to bite you, but only gently. 😍
Have ya seen one since?.
@@ErinWaageAstrologer be careful looked what happened to two brothers in Georgetown ca couple months back
Fantastic Video. I have been involved with Enviromental and Wildlife Conservation. As a second generation LA resident dating back to 1892. I have seen so much change in the areas of the Santa Monica mountains. I Remember when the 101 and 405 freeways weren't there to 10 and 14 lanes of 24-hour, 7 day a week traffic. I am proud and so happy to see the Wildlife Overpass in the Agoura area being constructed. Being a supporter of Save LA Cougars since the inception, local people getting together to make this happen needs to be a part of life around the world. This problem exists all over, including countries like South Africa. Please everyone needs to do what they can to make living with nature the top priority.
Amen! Bravo, everyone involved!
Dr. Vickers is an articulate and passionate man. Thanks to him and the many others depicted in the series maybe the Mountain Lions of California have a chance. I met Dr. Vickers recently at another Mountain Lion symposium and he's just as dedicated as I imagined. Great job on the documentary.
I lived in Los Gatos for 40 years, including living in the Santa Cruz Mountain area of the town for 25 of those years, often hiking for miles several times a week. Los Gatos was named by Spanish residents before the Gold Rush because the area nestled against the mountain terrain of Redwood forest where many Mountain Lions and Bobcats made their home.
In all the time I lived there, I only spotted *one* of each species once. I'm sure I hiked past them several times as they hid in the brush, and I occasionally saw the corpses of their kills. I was very disappointed, and saddened by their rarity in a place named after them!
Fellow Los Gatos resident. Hiker too. Never see the mountain lions, a rare bobcat. But we have a cabin in the Sierras @ 4200' and since the growing popularity of outdoor cameras in the subdivision, surrounded by Big Trees and national forest, for the past 3 years, it's AMAZING. The mountain lions are there and people post the clips. They are huge. They come at night.
Santa Cruz Mtns. must have a lot, such a big area. My BF came upon a mom & her cubs in Fremont Older in Cupertino while mountain biking. He first noticed the vultures circling, then saw cubs playing on the trail and he stopped and backed out--he said, I know mom was there eating and there's no way I' was getting near the cubs. That was a weekday morning and no one else on the trail, no humans, I mean.
They’re out there, you’re just not seeing them because they don’t want you to see them. I live not far from you and am outdoors on my coastal range farm at night. I see them several times a year at night. I also see signs all the time, tracks after rain, kills, scratched trees.
I’ve never seen one in the day time when hiking.
@@Libertarian_Neighbor i hope you don’t shoot them. Even if they kill your livestock. They deserve it.
@@puertoricanpapi1356 they deserve to kill his livestock?
@@cerberus3426 obviously? How else would they eat and also they were here first. He is on their territory. This is the normal food chain. Let the lions eat I say.
Great series, I love mountain lions, beutiful animals,,, happy to see so many caring ppl helping to keep them alive and healthy,,I'm from New York city, and I thank you all.. Tomy.....
The reclusive ghost of the california woods. Every time I go hiking, I know that they could be watching. Even if I cannot see them. Beautiful kitty cats.
That doesn't scare you? I've gotten to the point where I can't even go hiking anymore out of fear of these things.
@@josha3891 Since GatCat has not answered I hope my experience might help. I have been an active backpacker and rock climber since I was very young. Even worked as a Park Ranger in the Sierra Nevada mountains a few seasons. Mountain lions are very solitary animals, often times avoiding humans at all costs. Depending on where you live "as long as there is a healthy deer population in the area you are hiking" you should never have a run in with one. Let alone one with any interest in you. Heavily forested areas away from civilization tend to be the best. In California there have only been 18 attacks in the past 37 years. All open areas. Hope this helps. Best wishes.
I live near Whiting Ranch Wilderness Park near Lake Forest where Mountain Lion sightings can be quite frequent. They mostly keep to themselves and won’t bother you due to all the hikers and bicyclists. Always in awe whenever I see them but always keep my distance too.
See the Issue is... people don't seem to accept Reality..... (WILD ANIMALS) ARE "WILD UNTAMED ANIMAL'S" They don't live by Human Rules... Until this Earth is transformed back into a Paradise where Humans and Animals Peacefully live together.
In the meantime, How about people stay away from them unless you want to gamble with your Life.....
I live there too, and I’ve been hiking in the Wilderness Park several times with various people. On one of my first hikes when I was new to the area, I went with a group of women from church. I soon realized that they were very experienced hikers and had been on the hikes many times, so they would scale the steep hills very rapidly, not caring what scenery or flowers there were to potentially view! I had to do the quick glance technique, like you do when you’re driving! Either that, or get left behind, because they would stop at nothing!! So after scaling many steep hills for about seven miles, I was getting extremely tired and my legs were feeling like rubber bands! This feeling could easily have been prevented, had we just stopped to rest even for two minutes here and there to enjoy the scenery and maybe look at a flower or two! I’m not even sure what we saw on that hike! 😂 Well, when we were nearing the end, after three hours or so, having hiked a round trip, and needing to scale one more steep trail to get up to the end, where our cars were parked at a neighborhood park, the three other women who were still with us went up this last one even faster! The trail turned so that no one could be seen near the top for several minutes before reaching it, which meant that those near the bottom also couldn’t be seen! My legs, being like rubber bands, and my lungs and heart, having to breathe and beat so rapidly while scaling the hill, and already being so exhausted, wouldn’t obey my will to not be left alone at the mercy of a potential lion! So, that’s how I suddenly found myself!! 😮 …All alone and worried about lions!! What I would have done, I had no idea, except maybe to perish! What would my three children have done with no mom? I tried not to think of it! I tried my hardest to keep at least some kind of pace!!! I kept going up and up, trying to not pause for more than ten seconds to catch my breath here and there! …Finally, I was much nearer the park, where I felt so much safer, like I’d have a chance if I did see a mountain lion! At least they’d hear my screams and maybe come running!
I made it safely to the top, and felt victoriously safer! Plus our hike was over! THEN, I allowed myself to enjoy the good feeling you have when a long hike is over and you can rest for a little while!!! 😊
And I was so very grateful that I made it safely out in one piece, even though I had been left alone against my will!
Whew!!!
Why dont they build a bridge for animals to cross the roads? We do it like that in the netherlands and it works good.
I wish it were that simple but people here are not as kind as where you are I suppose… animals are not of importance for these Americans, at least in my opinion- because yes they may bitch about my comment but will never campaign for roads to be built for animals… because that would have to get political honesty for the most part to have happen- and even then, good luck (me saying that sarcastically). I think it’s a great idea what you have expressed about these roads and it makes me sad that these animals don’t have the same amenities you do where you live. Thanks for listening- my family is from Northern Italy. But I live in Florida now and had lived in California for several years. We have big cats in both states and they are quite beautiful creatures especially since I love apex predators!!
They are building one in Aurora Hills just outside of Los Angeles across the 101 freeway where every year mountain lions get hit by cars. It's funded by a private donor I think
thanks beautiful people! may all people become aware of the interconnectedness. may wild life thrive!
Cougars are beautiful, elusive, magnificent creatures
Only one time did I see a live one in the wild and it disappeared into a landscape where that shouldn't have been possible, there was no significant cover in miles and I was on the only high vantage point. Other than that we were thrilled to see their tracks in the mud on occasion tho I always assumed they were always watching us from a distance. Elusive is right.
absolutely!
Until they attach themselves to your face! LOL! Thankfully this is a rare occurrence.
So you really love your wife?
THEY ARE BEAUTIFUL AND TALENTED LIVING IN MANY CLIMATES.
Thank you for uploading this video. I've learned about California mountain lion from this video. Time to time, I've heard from the news about mountain lion killed in freeway. I hope projects in this video helps/ save California mountain lion. They are beautiful creatures.
Very well produced Kate, thank you for a gret insight into these Beautiful animals!
Beautiful big cats continue to preserve their space and well-being
Awesome share
A suggestion to protect livestock that most wild cats might fear.
Circulating lights that turn on and off at different locations surrounding the livestock
I’m from the U.K. but live in CA and I’ve recently taken to hiking. Thus was useful to understand the mountain lion culture here. I will be doing more research.
bring an air horn hiking
I read this in an UK accent
we have them in the uk aswell. remnents of exotic animal ban in the 70's
I was born in California in 1940 and raised in what was once country In Contra Costa County, We had a horse pasture and as a kid, I would play in the hills there. A Mountian Lion lived in a brush-covered gorge my sister and our only neighbors' kids would play around. Every once in a while we would see it running by but it never bothered us or our horses. It was a bit scary walking home from the school bus stop in the winter which was about a mile from our house. I would sing really loud when I passed under the trees hoping to scare it off if it was in them waiting to pounce, but of course, it never did. My dad who was a hunter once got a look at it from a distance and went over to check out its tracks. They went deeper in the mud then his so it must have been a pretty big cat. I lived in Orinda until high school living and camping in those hills. I think cats know what's off-limits and in the years that followed I developed a theory that if you see one running away from it is the worse thing you can do.
You have had the good fortune to see these wonderful big cats in their natural habitat. In Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula is the habitat of the Balkan lynx, which is a subspecies of the Eurasian lynx, but unfortunately in Bulgaria, my homeland, it is almost extinct. Wolves and bears remain from the predators in the Bulgarian mountains.
In designing bridges for wildlife look also on to other countries like Germany - they set up bush and small trees at the sides of the crossings to give anmals cover and so make them feel more secure while crossing over . . Keep up your great efforts! Thanks for the fantastic video.
Well, Americans will literally demolish every inch of wilderness with the only exceptions being what the rich folks wants to hunt or the government wants to control for another source of revenue… if there isn’t any land left to build on, they’ll build directly on top of existing property. Thank god I’m fortunate enough to live in a rather rural area and that is only for now. It won’t be long until I can’t stand in my own yard and take a piss.
Install wildlife underpasses every few miles on the roads. It works in Washington and Nevada.
Cameras show animals learn where to cross and actively use them. It's safer for the animals and people. No one wants to hit an animal with their car, they will swerve and possibly lose control. This ain't exactly rocket science.
Exactly, and keep people from living/camping there.
Thank you for watching! The National Wildlife Federation is trying to build an overpass in the Santa Monica Mountains right now: savelacougars.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/SaveLACougars_Campaign.pdf The problem is is funding. It isn't funded by tax dollars but privately.
They don’t want them to be able to have the accessibility because basically on one side of the freeway it’s canyon and on the other side it is suburban neighborhoods and towns
Kate Remsen this is one thing I would like my tax money to go if it was up to me, rather than all super expensive wars.
You would think that most of us would agree for under or overpasses being built for our wildlife. However, there are a lot of people that think that those kinds of projects are not worth it and that the populations of pumas only need to be "controlled".
This documentary shows that many different people are involved in the battle to save the mountain lion. Lots of crossing points of the major highways is clearly the answer, so the animals avoid being killed by cars and trucks. The mountain lion is a magnificent beast and I hope it can survive in this world of highways and urban sprawl.
To have survived so long proves how smart they are. They come down from the hills here in Oakland chasing deers every now and then.
Beautiful creatures
Lived in California my whole life! The 2nd house I grew up in refrained the whole neighborhood from moving in because there were a few mountain lions spotted! Even ran into a baby mountain lion when I was like 10 walking home from school - I ran all the way back home bc I knew the mamma had to be close LOL
I live near Yosemite and have never seen a mountain lion except on a camera trap. I have found their tracks on my property and hear them calling out occasionally. It's cool and a little scary at the same time.
@@davidrains6531 probably more scary than cool lol
Cocaine Is a hell of a drug yeAh my heart was thumping lol
nope she was off hunting for food ... you should've grabbed the baby I will buy it from you
@Sinister Veritas 😂 oh I know. I was really into animal planet those days and my gut instinct told me where there is baby , there is mama. Run lmao
Me and my friend never ran so fast in our life man haha
Again I thank you all for an excellent post ❤ revisted July 14 2024 A Voice in the Mall ❤❤❤❤ Dobie Wan Kanobie ❤❤❤❤
People need to realize that we are not alone in this world. Thank you for teaching us
i didn't realize that i wasn't alone in the world thanks for letting me know 👍.
They are beautiful to see they jump so high so fast they really vanish
I never saw a mountain lion even once in California. I came across a coyote a few times in a park which is right next to homes.(Paso Nogal park, Pleasant Hill). He would spot me from a distance, and quietly move into the shrubs. I have seen deer and snake many a time. I used to hike alone quite a bit - in the Mt. Diablo area by Regency Drive, Concord, in King's Canyon Park Moraga, Redwood Regional Park Oakland, the upper rim trail in Lafayette Reservoir, Las Trampas near Danville, the hills in Lafayette close to Highway 24, etc. Maybe it was for the better that I didn't run into any!
they’ve probably seen you even if you’ve never seen them! especially up in mt. diablo! i’ve seen tracks on trails as far south as livermore
There’s all types of wildcats in wildcat canyon in el sorbrante and I have also seen a dead one on the side of the road near Livermore my pops said there used to be a lot in the Berkeley hills when he was a kid too
I’ve seen their tracks out in black diamond mines near the chapparal areas,its crazy how we can go hiking in all these spots in prime ML habitat in the east bay and rarely see them. They most definitely see us though 😅
One European country, maybe Sweden if I remember right, or Germany, has built vegetated overpasses for wildlife. They may be able to offer advice.
We germans did. It works pretty well. Sure it didn't save all animals, but at least a few.
The Netherlands and they're called ecoducts.
th-cam.com/video/qs9EbkJKiG0/w-d-xo.html
thats gunna be very hard with the large amount of mountains the state has not to mention the massive amount of debt it now has to deal with as well, don't hold your breath on that one.
most of us do that whenever new infrastructure is being build
its really not that hard to implement and benefits wildlife a lot
This is a lovely film. Very patiently explaining what the animals need to survive.
We’ve seen black panthers in central Alabama while riding horses over the years. It’s rare to see them.
I hope this doesn't seem too corny - but somehow I feel better about life in general knowing the lions are out there - it just makes me feel more optimistic about things. Great video btw - thanks.
I built a custom home for some folks in a small rural community is Southern Colorado. The homeowners planted many small trees and the deer population pretty much devoured those trees. The homeowner tried different sprays and things to prevent the deer from eating his expensive trees but those things seems to attract deer. Then one morning I went to work and there were lion tracks around the home we were building. From then on there were no deer to devour the scrubs and trees.
me ,too. in germany we are just getting the timberwolf back, never heard a wolf howling until a few years ago, wich gives me confidence in saying humans will never destroy the planet or nature, just ourselfes maybe
That's a lovely sentiment.
And, indeed, over the last decades, concern about and action in favor of the natural environment has SKYROCKETED.
Optimism is VERY out of fashion these days, but it's a much nicer way to live, isn't it?!
Lions are like God.
You must be white to say such thing
I’ve only seen one, a glimpse. I’ve had multiple encounters. Had one tracking me at night while hiking back from the Forks of the Kern. Had on walk around my camp, back country, and got within 10’ of my tent. Had them within 20 yrds of my camp multiple times. Beautiful animals. Dont mind the competition for deer. 😂
I live in Orange County and I have a TH-cam channel showing the wildlife in Orange County, and I recently just got my first mountain lion. They're a really cool species and we need to protect them in whatever way we can.
Where at?
@@DeweyDecimal29 wdym
God always knows how to create a majestic creature. His creation is endless and filled with beauty.
Love it. Wonderful thing you guys are doing. It's past time for humans to see that we're not the only ones that inhabit God's beautiful earth. People are ignorant and selfish. They don't see...animals and people are one precious web. Can't have one without the other. Love this film. Way to go California!
My opinion will probably be extremely unpopular but I’d hazard to say that humans need the animals but animals would be SO much better off without humans. Mother Nature would balance everything, right our wrongs.
@@yourekittenme.Maybe a world exists out there without humans, though I’d venture to say that the Bible makes it clear that in our world, God first prepared it for us, including putting animals on it, then he placed humans on it right before his last day of creation. It is true that he did command us to take care of the earth and all that is in it, so we haven’t always done an effective job of this!! It seems it IS usually greed and desires for gain that cause us to forget our stewardship over the earth!
On the other hand, it seems when there has been a world without humans, it doesn’t thrive as long as it might, as in the case of the extinct dinosaurs and other animals of the time when there were no humans on the earth.
@@deboraholsen2504dinosaurs are fiction and they faked the moon landing.
@@deboraholsen2504 Dinosaurs and many other animals have been around way longer than us. They did not destroy the world. However, we tend to make many species extinct at 100 time the rate than average. Humans have been around a lot shorter than dinosaurs, but have done a lot of damage.
Incredible photography. Sooo clear.
Great to get information about this..I will be spreading awareness of this to everyone I encounter....information is vital to this...Thanks for putting video's like this out there...caught my eye 👁 and now my attention and how as a California resident I can help,funds,awareness, education,...God bless your work,your success...God bless God's creation of the Mountain lions
so beautiful video nature and documentary, and like California mountain lions.
I saw one from my car in the foothills. I stopped and watched for the 10secs it took for it to see me and return from whence it came. Lol it was absolutely beautiful and a tad bit exciting to say the least I was on my way to a campsite and have decided never to walk alone in the dark on that road again LOL
Constructing bridges for animals (as similar it can be to natural environment, with plants, wood etc) can assist in avoiding car accidents.
J
too little, too late
They have done just that in several places in my City. But the cost is horrendous, in the millions, because it has to be built to the same standards as a regular over pass and many are planted with Shrubs to provide cover for the wild life and encourage them to use the bridges.
@Shane Dugan We need to start dismantling our "civilization" to save them. They cannot cross 10 lane highways where trucks fly with 120km/h; they cannot live on dead land , like our parking lots and lay-down yards. This is why I said "too late". I see no politician who will stop population growth and start turning parking lots into fertile forests; or one who will stop the trucks , trains and airplanes. Maybe the virus could do that if it could kill 100% of those infected.
Its been working in Canada and other countries. No sense in why we shouldn't do it in the States.
I love the narrative. Such a pleasure to watch! Thank you.
California is the ultimate state, it literally has everything from sandy beaches to snowcapped mountains such a cool place
I saw mountain lions, way bigger when I lived in the redwoods.
Such beautiful animals
I live in Northern California im 50 years old and ive never yet seen a Mountain Lion in the wild
Felines are very reclusive and elusive creatures. I would not doubt that they may have seen you a few times during that period. I live in Western Massachusetts. Sadly, our ancestors here in the east were so fearful of these cats, that they were hunted to extinction. Occasionally, a wandering male may be spotted in the area, but apparently there are no thriving populations of them here.
They say that bobcat populations pretty much thrive in every state, and am pretty sure there are plenty of them here in my state. But in my 66 years, i have only seen one of them in the wild. And i have spent most of my life in and near rural wooded areas. I have seen many black bear, deer, moose, fox and many other smaller animals, but only one bobcat. I would not doubt that they have seen me many times though. Have a great day sir. I hope you may see one someday. I really wish i could. I really hate what our ancestors have done out here.
I'm a patrol officer in the pacific palisades , sad to say we lost a mountain lion in our last big fire here last year
Where if you find it’s remains
I live in Fresno, California and we have a lot of mountain lions here
And gangs🤣
@@shayneyates6707 obviously.....its a big city
@@thatdudee5344 true but there’s a lot of cities that are small that have a lot of crime
Well done research on California cougars
Terrific documentary.
At 3:37, I swear my house cat does the EXACT SAME MOTION but at the kitchen floor and with nothing there to even bury his leftover food with!!! But he does the same thing with his paw and I have always wondered why! He’s “cacheing”!!! It must be instinct. It’s amazing how you can see the relation between these 2 “cousins”! One is huge and wild, but even my little snuggly kitty has some mountain lion in his genes!!! Amazing!
One of our cats does that too. There was a piece of bread on the counter and he tried to bury it 😄
4:29 Was that a... Hummingbird Hawk-Moth? Hummingbird Hawk-Moths are Eurasian species, and are not supposed to be seen in California - why is it included?
There are four species of hummingbird moths native to North America, they don’t only live in Eurasia. They aren’t in the same family but they have evolved the exact same adaptations to the Eurasian species. The species they showed is native to California.
This is the most wholesome comments section I've seen in some time. Thanks cougars!
I live in the Santa Cruz mountains near Boulder Creek. I have had the pleasure to see several mountain lions and bobcats on my property and on Bear Creek road lately.
I am amazed every time I see them. Usually around 9pm when I am driving BCR.
Interesting, I was stealth camping in some nature preserve on a canyon near the Bay Area. Had a confrontation with one at around 10pm. Seem to be active around then. It was strangely aggressive towards me and kept hissing, I may have been on its path. It kept hissing angrily as it finally conceded to go around me.
@@maaz322 chances are, it had a cub around the area, but who knows, just don't ever give them your back
Really informative...i shuld have known there this close to Chula Vista....
Corridors are the keys for wild animals to travel safely...we just have to make sure people arnt using thrm as a camp ground.
Everywhere the mountain lion exists it needs to be there. We need to do all we can to protect these magnificent & essential apex predators from habitat loss, vehicle strikes to poaching & everything in between!!! The environment needs the mountain lion as it's a predator critical to regulating deer populations & those of smaller prey.
Here in Southern Colorado my neighbors loved to see the mountain sheep so they began feeding them. This in turn gave the mountain lions an advantage in hunting the sheep. One evening as my neighbors were watching the mountain sheep feed on the food they had placed a mountain lion burst from the forest and harvested a sheep. The neighbors were aghast. They called the Division of Wildlife in order to have something done about the mountain lion. By the time the DOW officer arrived the lion had removed the sheep to a more secluded area near the neighbors home to dine. Nothing was done about or to the lion because it was doing what lions do. The neighbors on the other hand were cited and given an education on why you do not feed the wildlife. We have a lot of lions in this area and the population is growing even with sport hunting. It is very closely regulated. We are able to determine how healthy the food supply is for the lions by determining how many household pets disappear.
There wild animals that what that do I don’t know what the heck your neighbors where thinking feed wild animals and now that got the cougar visting there place because the cougar is going to think there’s food there your neighbors cause more harm and no good
people are stupid and should be fined out of existence for messing with the delicate balance of wildlife, wolves are coming back to Colorado, your lion populations will drop when wolf packs get established, in Wyoming wolves lowered lion populations by 39 percent, wolves prey on lion kittens and chase lions off of their kills, although in Wyoming lions killed a lot of solo wolves as well
Yes very important, do not feed wildlife!
"The mountain lion 'harvested' the mountain sheep" ???
Come On!
Just say that the mountain lion killed the sheep.
That's what predators do!...kill for food.
They're not harvesting fruits and veggies.
SMH
They just spotted a few in Folsom
Mountain lions need to be protected. They are beautiful creatures.
@M D They're still beautiful creatures and they do that for instinct and need to be protected.
Excellent reportage and efforts, thanks so much
I actually walked between 2 cougars in Nevada's Valley of Fire because thhey were totally silent and restig outside normal
periferal vision. My fear of sidewinders led me to see a fresh trackk in the sand. looking around I saw 1 in a gully below mf and the other
on a ledge above me {both resting}. About 20 people had preceeded
me 5 minutes earlier w/o noticing them.
before us - the world must be a wonderful and beautiful planetplace . . .
I fully expect a YT video in the near future with a puma saying, "Why I am leaving California." I just hope they can secure a rental from U-Growl. It costs a mountain lion 5 times more to rent from California to Texas than it does from Texas to California.
This documentary is entertaining and educational. It motivates & inspires sensitivity to coexist.
I’d like to see you live surrounded by lions for a few years. You know nothing but what this film brainwashed you to know.
Why can’t we make u make underpasses on the hwy & freeways
They do, but not as many as there should be. And those that do, as you watched in the video, druggies, homeless and whoever are taking over those underpasses and the cats avoid them.
You would think that most of us would agree for under or overpasses being built for our wildlife. However, there are a lot of people that think that those kinds of projects are not worth it and that the populations of pumas only need to be "controlled".
@@eliletts5158 It can be and is a difficult topic to solve.
@@markuse3472 indeed!
Just the same, people make a religion out of charismatic wildlife. They would say "build more underpasses" until they are blue the face simple because it's a feel good cause. And then you need to hire someone full time to keep the bums out of the underpasses, which is surprisingly difficult, and then you run into another feel-good cause for naive people. Next thing you know, CA is a utopia of stupid people throwing money at problems while getting nothing done.
im literally crying. i hope we can preserve the species.
what a beautyfull animal ! wild free and majestic
They're so gorgeous.
Thank you for this video. Fantastic quality.
Fabulous film. I learned so much.💛🌻
Yes, we have them here in NewYork State too.
Seriously?
I’ve seen one of these critters in the field
Chapter 2 is especially fascinating! Thanks!
California Cougar or Mountain Lion is a valuable animal to the entire WILDLIFE chain of this state and should be preserved...! I very much like the efforts to preserve them shown in this video...!! Thank you for all your efforts.....!!
Ed Decker
3:22 that adorable skunk when it charges the lion!
cougar makes sure to keep her mouth shut
I had few close encounters with mountain lions here in the mountains of Southern California, scary, but such majestic creatures.
What did you do?
@@JaySoul711 it was really close one once, at night, it was maybe 30 feet away from me, looked like we both got surprised seeing each other, I rushed towards it, yelling, with my hands up and it got scared. On another occasion, I just made a lot of noise and threw stones towards its direction and it also got scared. I guess I was lucky.
@@MichalOlender the night one is super scary! Damn you’re brave.! Quick thinking tho! For the morning one did you already have rocks in your pockets or did you bend over to pick some up?
I once thought i heard one purrrr at me during the day. But i couldn’t see it. It could’ve been a Bob cat or something smaller. But i hiked back down fast and tried not to turn my back. I didn’t want to investigate if it was an actual mountain lion who made that purrr!
Just a couple days ago a lion was killed by a car struck here at the 76, in Oceanside, SoCal. 😢
Once I was sleeping in a volcanic mountain near Mono Lake (CA) -- one of the oldest lakes in the world. I woke up in a ponderosa forest and I knew there was a mountain lion nearby.
The lion said it preferred to be called a puma. I immediately went back to sleep. The next morning as I was leaving, I saw puma tracks in the lava sand ...
the lion said?
What kind of hippy lettuce are you inhaling?
@@The-GreenHornet hahahaha😂
There’s one the roams around my area here in Santa Barbara. Saw one walking up the creek bed back to the mountains in the early morning last year and someone actually got a photo on one on the road! Never seen that let alone a photo of it. I hike a lot here and while odds are low.. they’re on my mind when I’m up there alone.
Most people are totally oblivious to the wlldlife that lives right in our backyards. Working as a Community Service Officer in Highland, CA, I have seen this first hand. People have a hard time understanding why a large cat has scaled their 7 ft. block wall and taken their dogs or kittys. They must realize it is they who are encroaching.
Which why I offer up a cat a day to the locals
It's pretty much the same thing that happened to the original civilizations that were in the Americas when the Europeans colonized them.
I’m an animal lover and a vegetarian myself; sometimes when I’m driving or jogging I catch myself thinking exactly that - we r only guests here in
@@karinam4488 ,
We need to learn to live with the cougar by taking our responsibility to our pets, livestock, and especially, children, seriously. Just as we immunize our pets, make sure they are not left vulnerable in the cougars hunting hours, dusk to dawn. It's sad, but children are seen as fair game and measures should be taken by parents who live in cat country, as I do, including broad daylight.
I don't want to live in a country that doesn't include these noble and mysterious creatures, unfortunately humans have been claiming and picking at more and more of their native habitate, where there used to be very rare encounters, most of which we knew nothing about because the cat saw us first and would silently split. Now they have become more brazen and curious about the other Apex Predator in the neighborhood.
Extermination would leave our species all the poorer. Once, we too were mighty warriors, who fought, tooth and club for our food and the safety of our families. Now we have powerful tools and poisons to kill things that are scary to our softened skin or inconvenient to us in our elevated feign-glory.
The adaptations and education we need are well within our power, and, if you think about it, fall well within our responsibility as steward species of this world. Let us show our nobility as well, and benefit by having a little bit of mystery and danger still living in the forest, before everything gets paved, regulated and outlawed.
@@imdawolfman2698 thank you for that comment. Everything you said, I agree and support 100%. Honestly I got sidetracked last night when I was writing my comment, I even accidentally posted it before finished writing 🤦🏻♀️
I’ve read your other very well written comments in this video. You sound intelligent, I’d love to pick your brain one day!
In the middle of the pandemic, when all the shelters were closed, we adopted a family of stray cats from the alley. We fixed the females first, but the male’s turn never came - he was taken by the coyotes, I saw them dragging away his lifeless, limp body....and till this day my husband and I blame ourselves for not fixing him right away. He constantly wanted to be outside, especially during the nights. It’s sad, but it’s our fault!!! Coyotes just happen to be not very cute (to most people), and seem evil, intimidating. Everyone wants to kill the coyotes, blame them for the pets / livestock disappearances / demises. But the coyotes are just doing what the nature intended them to do - hunt to survive. We don’t realize that we’ve encroached on their, and many other species’, territory and we are not intending to stop anytime soon. The cities are growing, wildlife gets misplaced and cut off the food/water sources and when the wildlife gets too close to our backyards we freak out and want them gone. Humanity needs to finally understand that we can’t keep on killing / destroying everything that doesn’t fit into our little minds, lifestyles, or houses. We’ve gone too far already, but it’s not too late to turn things around!!!
On the positive note, everyday I meet more and more people like you and me. People that care, compassionate, kind, understanding and appreciative of nature. That makes me feel that not all is lost and that wildlife has yet a chance at survival.
Thank you again, for being YOU, for bringing awareness, and for sharing your views with the rest of us
🙏 God Bless
Our daughter once photographed one in her backyard near San Diego.
With a flip of that massive tail, they can change direction in mid air, which is their favorite way to hunt, jumping down on prey
I saw one in the mountains of Fremont in people’s republic of california. And he sure did made us all run back down at that mountain trail. 😅😅😅😅
Wonderful documentary and thoroughly enjoyed all the caring scientific and educational input. The producer, Karen Remsen, compiled an informational gem. Production date ?? It would be a travesty to lose the puma (mountain lion) because of either or all three of the following: human spread/encroachment, limitation of genetic diversity and excessive use of pesticides/rodenticides/poisons. Greedy humans: understand the fragile situation, get involved, vote or pack up and leave earth.
They are not endangered or even threatened. In fact without other predators they will very quickly deplete their own food supply.
They are very reclusive if you saw one and escaped unscathed you are fortunate. They see you way before you see them. I had a Lion on my roof, but didn’t realize it in Black Canyon City, AZ. Suddenly I heard a scream just above my head. I jumped back in the house. My neighbor working for us in our garage pointed out the huge paw prints behind my garage, not more than 10-15 feet from the back door to my house. Two weeks later in our local newspaper pictures of a 150 pound cat was killed. They are gorgeous animals but I wouldn’t want to see one up close. They grab you by your throat and disembowel you with their back legs. Not an encounter you want to have! You have to know your surroundings and like the man said know what to do. They were here first so respect wild life, or move to a city!
Excellent documentary!
I thank God for bringing this video to my attention!
About 6 years ago after I moved to farm country in Northern CA interior, we had a pack of mountain lions living near the property. We also had wild boars come to our road and dig up the landscape overnight. I believe they are gone now due to illegal hunting. The coyotes are also gone. They were definitely shot by the ranchers here. So sad. Still makes my heart hurt.
Very sad to read😢😢😢
See the Issue is... people don't seem to accept Reality..... (WILD ANIMALS) ARE "WILD UNTAMED ANIMAL'S" They don't live by Human Rules... Until this Earth is transformed back into a Paradise where Humans and Animals Peacefully live together.
In the meantime, How about people stay away from them unless you want to gamble with your Life.....
Very sorry to hear. But is it then legal to hunt coyotes? Are park rangers shooting them?
Kind regards
How about some gratefulness & appreciation. Because had it continued like it was, next time the boars wouldn’t have been digging up your precious landscape….they would have been digging up your dead body. Keep that in mind the next time you wanna cry animals rights there, slick
About safe way passages/ cprridors. In the Netherlands we got special natural looking passages on bridges and tunnels. Ecoducts. (At 58:49 you see an example we already have for decates. 59:52 This looks identcal to the ecoduct south of the place called Apeldoorn). These are mostly the large area called the Veluwe. You can look it up. Accidents do still happen. But animals who know the way easely avoids the nasty confrontation.
Why do they put them damn big collars on them , don't they make smaller ones to track them
I agree but I think if they were smaller they could RIP them off
Hi! We totally agree and wish there was a simpler way to track these animals. The reason why they are so big is due to the battery to make it last at least 2 years. Otherwise, we'd have to go in and capture the lion more frequently which would be more invasive than the collar as it is now.
Collars are used all over the world! On African cats, wolves, even elephants. However, it's just like wearing a necklace: They don't even notice it and studies have shown it doesn't hinder their behavior, hunting abilities, or mating abilities. Thanks for your concern though!
@@kateremsen6645 Thanks for considerate, informative reply. More efficient electronics and batteries will move things in the right direction over time.
With the socialist taxation in California, there should be enough funds to put diamond-studded collars on every puma, but they would have to agree not to move out of state for at least 2 years.
14:57: actual footage of me as a human parent dragging my daughter to the car when its time to leave the park 😂
In Poland we are doing passes for wild animals above - like wide green bridge - or under the roads like smal tunels. I am not sure but belive it works
Good idea (safe crossing points) very interessting documentry,thanks.
Mountain lions are such a beautiful animal with such dominant markings, great documentary, would love to see their numbers increase.
Jan Conway. The mountain lions that can legally be killed for eating livestock or pets should be captured and relocated. These puma,s then could be evaluated and tagged as well. It wouldn't be easy and would require the cooperation of pet owners and farmers.
Amazing job! greetings from Banff National Park -Canada
There should be reassessments of existing rodeway infrastructure countrywide! Even if they do not pass the infrastructure Bill in Congress, the states and counties should locate the busiest crossings of the highway by wildlife and build an underground passageway at that point! The best thing would be to put an underground passageway every 3- 5 miles or so! If this was done routinely we could save thousands and thousands of animals from being run over by vehicles!
Somebody get this word out
As long as federal money isn’t used, I’m in!! We are in such massive debt as it is, I don’t think middle America can continue to deal with the rising inflation…butttt if local funds can be raised, GREAT!!!👌
Um figuring out what should be done is easy. Figuring out how to pay for it is the hard part
I love you for this.
The part about people sleeping in and hanging out in the passageways under freeways is key. It would be good if these could be patrolled somehow. This is done in parts of Africa, where e.g. the elephant is in distinct danger of extinction.
We also have pumas here in the Ozarks (AR). Beautiful beasts.
Little Rock (AR)
Watching this bc I just came waaaay too close to a mountain lion in California at 3AM walking to my car. Didn't see her until I was about 15 feet away and she made a noise and scared the crop outta me. I got loud and she ran off but my heart was racing.
What city
Think it was last year a jogger in CO got attacked by a cougar and he choked it to death. Sounds crazy but my god that guy must have been adrenalized
@@rachelgraham444 Monterey
Beautiful footage and well made documentary, Thanks! I never forget that their species is far older and wiser than the human race.
As a hunter I actually love and respect predators. They have it tough daily.
I strictly shoot it, I eat it (unless diseased or hit by a car).
I see Cougars as my spirit animal. They are both feared and misunderstood. Like me.
I strongly believe that if there is not enough room for “them”, there is not enough room for humans!
You enter their environment, you are the trespasser. You forget that, you pay the price.
They were here first. Don’t forget it.
Edit....I will never hunt a predator. I will take a picture, but unless rabid or dying, I will leave them be!
Im also a hunter and i love the respect your showing twards mountain lions they are lovers moms daughters. They are a loving animals they just need room to roam ive seen them where i grew up in oregon on a ranch as long as they have game to eat we never lost a animal
Thank you for being a respectable hunter. Your ideas mimic mine, even though I don't hunt. I have known many a hunter with your beliefs. I consider them true hunters.
Unfortunately I've known too many who hunt, just to kill. Some justify killing predators as a means of protection, whether it be for their family, their livestock, or their prey.
A friends family owns a large hunting ranch. They encourage the members to kill all predators, as they see them as competition.
I'm glad your kind are still out there.
I personally could never hunt, I actually don’t eat meat, or any animal products, but I have so much respect for people who go out and catch and kill their own food humanely and quickly, as a pose to disgusting factory farms. Trophy hunting makes me sick, and I know it makes many hunters who hunt for food sick. Large predators like mountain lions do not need human interference, their numbers are controlled by prey availability. It’s good to see people have respect for these animals
@@oceanbliss1923 lots of agriculturalists do not understand that the populations of large predators are directly influenced and limited by the populations of their prey.
@@oceanbliss1923 well said. And thank you for being respectful, even if you don't eat meat.
I too don't hunt, but I occasionally eat meat. And I also loathe trophy hunters, and respeehunters that consume what the kill, and only kill what they will use to feed them and their families. To me that is within the boundaries of nature.
We need to build the wildlife crossings (overpasses, Etc.) ASAP.... Wildlife Corridors are are key to connectivity between the various habitats.