The threat of extinction faced by mountain lions inhabiting the Santa Monica Mountains of Greater Los Angeles has attracted researchers' attention.
The survival and procreation of the mountain lions of Los Angeles have been constrained by the rampant expansion of human development in the hill area. Upcoming 10 lane freeways are cutting off lion population from the species in neighboring habitats and are endangering their genetic diversity.
The 150,000-acre region has freeways running on both sides with a dense agricultural belt of Oxnard engulfing the west. The warning of lions' extinction has been sounded by wildlife ecologists of UCLA and National Park Service.
Lead author and wildlife ecologist John Benson of the La Kretz Center for California Conservation Science published the findings in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B. The study described the plight of the mountain lions in the Santa Monica range.
The researchers at UCLA, UC Davis and Utah State University have assessed that the lion population at Santa Monica Mountains would be wiped off within 50 years.
Adding to their isolation is the threat of inbreeding that may mutate the lions' genetic diversity fast. When inbreeding related genetic deficiencies are factored in, the percentage of cumulative extinction threat will zoom to 99.7 percent.
"Over time a population mating between close relatives will closely erode genetics in a negative way," said Seth Riley, park service wildlife ecologist and a UCLA professor, noting that inbreeding among lion population at Santa Monica Mountains remains a serious threat to the biodiversity of the species.
A precarious situation also exists. Even the death of a single puma among the 15 pumas living there can cause serious consequences. This is because breeding is fully dependent on two male lions.
"If it just so happens one month that one gets hit by a car and one dies of rodenticide poisoning, then all of a sudden you're out of males," noted Riley.
Now a solution has been mooted by the authors to address the problem. That is to develop a wildlife corridor that will allow mountain lions enter and exit the Santa Monica Mountains.
A proposal for a 165-foot-wide, 200-foot-long bridge over the 101 Freeway near Liberty Canyon Road in Agoura Hills to link the Santa Monica is on cards.
Such a passageway will also dispense with the need to relocate mountain lions physically from other habitats to the Santa Monica Mountains.
A Ray Of Hope For Santa Monica Lions
Despite mounting concerns of extinction, there is some hope in the words of lead author John Benson.
"We're not seeing any indication of inbreeding depression yet. We have documented very low genetic diversity. And our model suggests the decline of genetic diversity will continue at a fairly alarming rate over the next 50 years," told Benson to California radio station KPCC.
Now the priority is to take steps to pre-empt the expansion of inbreeding depression in the small lion population of Santa Monica Mountains to stem their impending extinction.
Photo: National Park Service | Flickr
