Posted on 07/14/2008 9:06:38 AM PDT by jazusamo
An animal tracker hired by city officials was heading into Foothills Park in Palo Alto tonight to hunt down and kill a mountain lion that attacked a man over the weekend, authorities said.
Foothills Park and the adjacent Pearson-Arastradero Preserve were closed today after officials learned of the incident, the first known mountain lion attack in Palo Alto, said Palo Alto Police Agent Dan Ryan.
The 50-year-old hiker was uninjured but narrowly escaped with his life after the cat leaped onto him from behind about 4 p.m. Saturday, sending man and beast tumbling down an embankment, Ryan said.
The Portola Valley man, whose name was not released, was hiking along a trail that parallels Los Trancos Creek, Ryan said, when the cat lunged at him from above, hitting the man about shoulder height and sending him rolling down the slope toward the creek.
The man tumbled about 15 feet before he hit a tree, which blocked his fall. Looking up, he saw the lion roll past him down to the creek, pick itself up and scamper away, Ryan said.
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
Mountain lion Ping!
I heard it was a cougar? ;)
Nah, the guy got away. :)
once you stop hunting dangerous animals, they are emboldened.
in areas where cougar hunting is licensed and regulated, and they are chased by dogs on a regular basis, you don’t have predation on humans.
the state of California once again gets what it deserves.
The same problem and the same protectionist crap will also cause ‘bear’ attacks in Jersey.
They do realize it, they just don't care...because to environmentalists, a human life is not more important than a mountain lion's.
Unless it's theirs, of course. That's why the only sane comment was that the lion be captured and released in Golden Gate Park.
You’re exactly right plus because lions are territorial and with their numbers increasing the younger ones are forced into more popualted areas. They quickly become accustomed to humans and the animal rights nuts believe we should live in harmony with them, however they are still wild and dangerous.
Cougar, Mountain Lion, Puma, aka a BFC.
You make a very good point, they only care if it affects them.
also known as Panther (ie Florida Panther) or Painter.
Is there open carry in Kalif??
Many years ago when I lived there it was legal but I believe it’s only legal to carry unloaded now, not positive though.
 |
  |
 |
|
| Send FReepmail if you want on/off SVP list | |
| The List of Ping Lists | |
How many young children have gone missing within 20 miles of that attack in the last few years that were never found again?
Next time you go to the zoo, watch the cats. When a toddler comes in they all stalk the toddler from their cages. Children give off “prey” signals that no predator can ignore, and cats are excellent predators.
That animal knows humans are prey, it has to be stopped.
Yes! I do it all the time.
excerpt:
PALO ALTO (CBS 5) ― State Fish & Game officials on Monday afternoon halted efforts by an animal tracker to hunt for a mountain lion in a Palo Alto park after determing that a reported attack on a 50-year-old man was unlikely to have occured.
There was "no evidence of any such attack" that could be found, officials told CBS 5.
Let me be the first to call BULL SQUAT on this whole story....
No cat misses a jump on a prey as clumsy as a man..
The cat would have left SOME mark on the prey — claw, tooth — something..
The cat would have to have been sick or very damned old to have lost his footing or control and “roll down an incline”.....
I live nearby — and several folks have been attacked over the years, NONE have escaped unmarked.... NONE.
Agree, check post #22.
The cat will get better with practice. We got a warning. Will we use it?
This may be a phony report, check post #22.
I figured....
I should have read all the posts before my post....
This area is covered up with dumb asses and hero wannabes..
It’s amazing to see how some folks around here dress and equip themselves for a walk in the park....
I’ve run into some who are better equipped and loaded down with more gear than Marines we took through the mountains and jungles of I Corps in Vietnam! At the opposite extreme - you have the clowns who venture into the mountains or forests in flip flops, one bottle of water, no map, no compass, no gear and no brains.....
We’ve had our own close calls with the local Mountain Lions... I live on the fringe of the coastal mountains which can be quite wild and remote once you get a few hundred meters off the road.
Last year we had to have a Lion killed in a tree on the border of the local High School..... Another one was taken alive just a few blocks away....
LOTS of “Missing Cat” or “Missing Dog” posters showing up in the neighborhood is a good sign of successful Lions coming down for a change in diet.... I guess they get tired of the plentiful deer - or too slow to kill them..
I got several media alerts on this yesterday and thought it might be a phony but this morning when I saw the tracker story I figured DF&G verified it as on the up and up. I guess they wanted a tracker to check it out for physical evidence before they called the guy a liar. lol
Yes, except the California ones have better tans.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.