Pete Pollock <pollockp at lablink.ple.af.mil> asked about the recent
mountain lion attack on a birder near San Diego CA. The following
information and quotes come from an AP article by Sally Streff
Buzbee, as printed in the San Francisco Examiner of 12/13/94:

"Iris Kenna, 58, of San Diego was mauled to death Saturday morning
in popular Cuyamaca Rancho State Park, about 50 miles east of San
Diego. In April, 40-year-old Barbara Schoener was killed while
jogging on a path in the Sierra foothills near Sacramento.

"Before then, no one had been killed by a mountain lion in
California in more than 80 years. Historically, even minor
mountain lion attacks have been rarer than lightning strikes or
rattlesnake bites.

"But now the number of mountain lions is on the rise. And ever-
greater numbers of Californians are heading into the wild to jog
or hike, or building homes in spots that once were wilderness....

"The 116-pound, adult male mountain lion that killed Kenna was
healthy and had fresh deer kill in its stomach, indicating it
was able to attack normal prey....

"Kenna, an avid bird-watcher and a San Diego high school
teacher, was on a popular, hilly trail.

"Her body was found about 50 feet off a fire road, and her
knapsack was nearby. Investigators believe Kenna, who was hiking
or bird-watching alone, may have tried to run from the mountain
lion and been caught from behind.

"She had been bitten on the back of the neck--the common attack
point of mountain lions. Part of her scalp was found in the
mountain lion's stomach after trackers hunted down the animal
and shot it to death late Saturday, officials said....

"The number of cougars statewide is believed to have increased
to 6,000 from about 2,400 to 3,000 in 1982.

"But there is no public sentiment to change the 1971 law and
allow 'wholesale slaughter' of the animals, Jeff Weir of the
State Dept. of Fish & Game said. 'It's their state, too,' he
said."

In the article also, Weir is quoted as giving the following
advice:

Don't go hiking alone. Go in pairs.
Don't roam around at dawn or dusk--that's when lions are
looking for something to eat.
Most important: Don't turn and run.
Stand still, throw rocks, make noise. Don't turn your back.

Posted by Larry Tunstall Oakland CA
beedleum at netcom.com or beedlebum at aol.com