Mountain Lion Found Dead Near Verdugo Mountains

SUNLAND (CBSLA) — A roughly 10-year-old mountain lion has been found dead near the Verdugo Mountains, and wildlife officials are working to determine if the recent La Tuna Fire that scorched more than 7,000 acres in the area may have contributed to its death, authorities announced today.

The male lion, known as P-41, was found dead by a resident Wednesday near the Shadow Hills neighborhood south of the Foothill (210) Freeway, according to the National Park Service. The cause of the death could not be immediately determined, because the lion's body had deteriorated over a several-day period before it was discovered, officials said.

The La Tuna Fire started on Sept. 1 and burned 7,194 acres through the Verdugo Mountains. The mountain lion survived a few weeks after the fire, officials said.

A necropsy is planned in order to learn how the animal died.

"P-41 had already overcome a number of challenges to survive in a relatively small home range with habitat fragmented by roads and development,'' said Jeff Sikich, a biologist for the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, a division of the NPS. "Unfortunately, there are a number of challenges for mountain lions to survive in the area.''

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