P-22 finds himself in an urban wildlife Romeo and Juliet situation, but rather than feuding families, he and his love are separated by the notorious 405 and 101 freeways.
While our friend P-22 has plenty to eat, and has managed to make his eight-mile territory work for him, one problem he encounters while living at Griffith Park is that he can’t find a soulmate.
Lucky for him, the National Wildlife Federation (NWF) has been keeping an eye out for his special lady and we’ve found her: P-23!
Alas, Freeways and the cars on them keep them apart. Between December 2016 and January 2017, we lost P-39 and her three kittens who were killed on the 118 Freeway and more recently, P-32, a female was struck and killed on the Interstate 5.
As we observe P-23, we suspect that she and P-22 aren’t related, which is extremely important. Mating within a family (inbreeding) is sadly a big problem for cougars in the Santa Monica Mountains. That’s why it is so important to build the Wildlife crossing at Liberty Canyon Road in Agoura Hills.
Together we can keep mountain lions in the Santa Monica Mountains and help ensure that people and animals thrive together for generations to come. The National Wildlife Federation sees #SaveLACougars as a model that sets the stage for the future of urban wildlife conservation. The proposed wildlife crossing at Liberty Canyon, as well as P-22’s celebrity, demonstrate how humanity can join together through actions large and small and begin to fix the unintentional negative impacts we have had on wildlife and the environment.
A gift in support of #SaveLACougars will help advance the wildlife crossing project at Liberty Canyon Road in Agoura Hills to the next phase of design.
During the Federation’s inaugural Los Angeles Urban Wildlife Week in October 2016, the Annenberg Foundation announced a very generous challenge grant in support of #SaveLACougars: It will match contributions from private foundations dollar for dollar up to $1 million.
If you are interested in making a contribution please contact Molly Judge, Director of Philanthropy West Coast at 415-505-1041 or judgem@nwf.org. Contributions via check can be mailed to the Federation’s California Regional Center at P.O. Box 64 Midpines, CA 95345.