(KRON) — Three orphaned mountain lion cubs just lately discovered within the Santa Cruz Mountains of San Mateo County are actually recovering on the Oakland Zoo, in response to officers. The cubs had been rescued on Sunday after weeks of monitoring them within the wild confirmed no indicators of their mom returning.
The three younger lions, one feminine and two males, had been named Fern, Thistle and Spruce, respectively, by the zoo’s employees. After examination, veterinarians stated that they’re roughly three months previous.
The kittens had been first noticed wandering a Portola Valley neighborhood by native residents and had been later discovered hiding underneath a automobile, the Oakland Zoo stated. The California Division of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) monitored the world with the help of the Midpeninsula Open House District utilizing path cameras and native safety cameras. Over a interval of two weeks, wildlife officers stated they’d no confirmed sightings of an grownup feminine lion looking or calling for her cubs.
Three orphaned mountain lion cubs had been rescued on Jan. 26, 2025, from Portola Valley in San Mateo County by the California Division of Fish and Wildlife. The cubs had been transported to the Oakland Zoo for examinations and remedy. (Picture: Oakland Zoo)Three orphaned mountain lion cubs had been rescued on Jan. 26, 2025, from Portola Valley in San Mateo County by the California Division of Fish and Wildlife. The cubs had been transported to the Oakland Zoo for examinations and remedy. (Picture: Oakland Zoo)Three orphaned mountain lion cubs had been rescued on Jan. 26, 2025, from Portola Valley in San Mateo County by the California Division of Fish and Wildlife. The cubs had been transported to the Oakland Zoo for examinations and remedy. (Picture: Oakland Zoo)Three orphaned mountain lion cubs had been rescued on Jan. 26, 2025, from Portola Valley in San Mateo County by the California Division of Fish and Wildlife. The cubs had been transported to the Oakland Zoo for examinations and remedy. (Picture: Oakland Zoo)
A 3rd of a mile away on Portola Valley Highway, a feminine mountain lion had been hit by a automobile and was discovered useless. Officers imagine that she was the mom of the three orphaned cubs. Nonetheless, after many witnesses reported the useless lion, the carcass had disappeared. With out the carcass, officers are unable to check the lion’s DNA to the cubs.
State wildlife officers are investigating the case of the disappearing lion carcass. The California Wildlife Safety Act of 1990 established mountain lions as a specifically protected mammal and the possession of any a part of a mountain lion is towards the regulation.
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“Due to their disoriented behavior, lack of a mother for two weeks, and proximity to where the adult female was hit, CDFW decided to capture the kittens for evaluation with help from the Midpeninsula Open Space District,” zoo officers stated.
Three orphaned mountain lion cubs had been rescued on Jan. 26, 2025, from Portola Valley in San Mateo County by the California Division of Fish and Wildlife. The cubs had been transported to the Oakland Zoo for examinations and remedy. (Picture: Oakland Zoo)Three orphaned mountain lion cubs had been rescued on Jan. 26, 2025, from Portola Valley in San Mateo County by the California Division of Fish and Wildlife. The cubs had been transported to the Oakland Zoo for examinations and remedy. (Picture: Oakland Zoo)
After being transported to the East Bay “relatively healthy but thin,” the Oakland Zoo’s Veterinary Hospital employees performed examinations and remedy.
Fern, Thistle and Spruce will be unable to return to the wild, the zoo defined, as a result of mountain lion cubs want two years with their mom to study survival expertise. The zoo is working with CDFW to discover a perpetually residence at an applicable establishment.