About a month ago, while recovering from the flu, our family
decided to take a walk along the new north extension of Uvas levee
trail.
About a month ago, while recovering from the flu, our family decided to take a walk along the new north extension of Uvas levee trail. We parked at the end of Laurel, and followed the trail north. We turned west at Third, crossed Santa Teresa at the new light, and, after Third Street dead-ended, followed a farm road parallel to Uvas Creek for another eighth of a mile before turning back.
There we found a deer skeleton, remarkably intact: vertebrae, ribs. We discussed taking it along, as Anne thought her nature co-op might like to see it, but there was still flesh attached, and we were still a little weak and nauseous from flu, so we left it.
Then we found a deer carcass, or about three-quarters of a carcass. The skull, vertebrae, ribs, a lot of the hide, and the hind-quarters were still there. The skull was broken, the brains missing. At least one rib was broken. It did not stink; cold weather had preserved it.
We discussed possibilities. A legitimate hunter could be ruled out immediately; the animal was not tagged, skinned, and butchered. Poacher? Probably not, since the hindquarters (steaks) were intact, and the brains and guts missing. Road kill? Possibly, though the road was still at a distance; it could have been hit and run this far to die, and been partially eaten by dogs, coyotes, or mountain lions.
It was pretty large, so although possible, it was not likely that it had been killed outright by dogs or coyotes. A mountain lion, however, can take down a full-grown deer; in fact, 60 percent of a mountain lion’s diet is deer.
We weren’t nervous, because we all knew that mountain lions rarely attack groups of people, or adults, and usually hunt at night. In fact, for years I have been training kids, in nature co-ops and at camp, about what to do if you see a mountain lion. Freeze your feet! Look big! Make a loud noise! If attacked, fight back; you can fight off a mountain lion!
Then, on Jan. 8, Anne Hjelle was attacked in Orange County by a mountain lion who did not seem to know any of these rules. I am indebted to Tom Chester for the detailed information posted at http://tchester.org/sgm/lists/lion_attacks.html.
“Anne Hjelle, 30, of Santa Ana, a former Marine who works as a fitness instructor, was jumped by a mountain lion … while she was riding her mountain bicycle. The lion quickly had Anne’s face in its mouth, despite the presence of Anne’s helmet. Her riding companion, Debi Nicholls, was about 30 feet behind Anne and witnessed the attack. Debi threw her bike at the mountain lion, to no avail, then grabbed Anne’s legs and screamed as the lion dragged both of them 30 feet down the slope into the brush.
The lion kept attacking Anne, alternating between her helmet, face, and neck. The screams brought Nils Magnuson, 33, of Long Beach, and Mike Castellano to the scene, who called 911 and scared off the mountain lion by throwing rocks at it.”
Anne was hospitalized in critical condition, though she has since been upgraded to fair. Later that day, the body of Mark Reynolds was found nearby, and later, a healthy young male lion was shot. “Initial tests found human skin tissue, and portions of a human lung and liver in the lion’s stomach. No fibers from Anne’s clothing, nor any slivers from her helmet, were found.”
A brief history of lion attacks in California: In 1890, a 7-year-old boy was killed in Siskiyou County. In 1909, a 10-year-old boy and a 22-year-old woman were mauled in Morgan Hill. The victims later died of rabies.
In 1972, mountain lion hunting was banned.
In the 1980s, in three separate incidents, two children were injured, and a family was chased by lions.
In the 1990s, in 11 separate incidents, three children were injured, three groups of people were menaced, a 17-year-old girl was charged, a bicyclist was bitten, and two women were killed by lions.
So far this year, one human has been killed and one critically injured. I prefer shy lions. I think we need to allow limited hunting.
