CUPERTINO, CA-A mountain lion attacked and mauled a 6-year-old boy who was hiking with his family about midday on Sunday along a trail near here, and the hiking trails near the Picchetti Winery on Montebello Road were closed. He suffered lacerations and bites around the head and neck, but is expected to live.
More than 20 deputies, park rangers and officials from the state’s Department of Fish and Wildlife were asking the public to avoid the area as they searched for the animal.
“We know they’re up there,” said Santa Clara County Sgt. Curtis Stenderup. “We do get some calls about them, but most of the time, it’s ‘they crossed the road’ or ‘went by someone’s yard,’ ” Stenderup said. “If you live in the hills, you kind of expect that. But I think it’s rare to have a mountain lion attack a person, let alone a child. We’re going to look into it and figure out why that whole thing happened.”
The mountain lion population in California is growing and spreading rapidly due to the “no hunting” passage of Prop. 117, and they are losing their fear of man.
Recently changed rules from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife issued by DFW Director Charlton Bonham loosened up on the handling of dangerous lions, and rather than immediately killing lions that show no fear of humans, they are taking a less pro-active stance, endangering the public, and in many cases simply tranquilizing them and moving them somewhere else, as was done with a lion that wandered into Mountain View in May.
The circumstances of the attack were unclear, Stenderup said. If the mountain lion is found, the Department of Fish and Wildlife will ultimately decide what to do with it.
