3 days ago
Resident issues warning after security cameras capture surprising footage of mountain lion in yard: 'If that cat attacks, it's going to hurt you'
One Las Vegas resident, after receiving a motion alert for his backyard security camera, was surprised to see that a mountain lion had entered his yard, local NBC affiliate 3LV reported.
The homeowner, William Champion, told 3LV that he was surprised by the sighting. While he's seen coyotes over the years, he said, he had never seen a mountain lion — let alone in his own backyard. It was unnerving, he told reporters.
"That was maybe a 100-pound cat, and if that cat attacks, it's going to hurt you," he said.
In the video, the mountain lion can be seen sniffing briefly around the yard before settling in for a quick "cat nap" and then continuing on to jump into a neighboring backyard.
Champion was perplexed by the lion's foray, describing his area — situated close to a major highway — as a "busy junction" with "lots of moving up and down" and "people on the move pretty much 24/7."
He alerted his neighbors of the sighting, warning them to bring their pets inside at night to protect them from any encounters.
"Nobody's ever seen anything like that in this area," he said.
While this particular neighborhood hadn't seen a mountain lion before, human-animal encounters have become increasingly common with the continued expansion of human settlements.
The global human population has exploded in the last two centuries, growing more than eight times its size since 1800, according to Our World in Data. This has resulted in the rapid expansion of settlements, which has meant a corresponding reduction in wildlife habitat. And unfortunately for many species, that means either being forced to struggle in near-urban environments or simply dying off.
And in the case of an accidental encounter, both the human(s) and the animal(s) involved can find themselves in grave danger. This can even happen when an encounter has not occurred, but is merely likely. It's a common situation in national parks, where animals can become accustomed to human presence and therefore euthanized to avoid any unwanted interaction.
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In the case of the Vegas mountain lion, Champion notified Nevada's Department of Wildlife in order to contribute to their monitoring efforts. The agency generally advises residents to contain their pets at night in addition to removing anything that might attract wildlife, particularly food scraps and trash. They also suggested installing motion-activated lights and sprinkler systems to scare animals away.
More broadly, in order to coexist with wildlife, you can learn about the native species in your area and how to respond calmly and safely in the event of an encounter. You may also find yourself in a position to rescue a wounded animal and help wildlife in that way.
You can also promote continued biodiversity and ecosystem health by installing native plants in order to provide habitat for local pollinators and other species.
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