Fewer Mountain Lions and Fewer Visitors Counted in County Parks

Mountain lions, the beautiful but dangerous creatures which attacked children and frightened visitors last year in Orange County parks, seem to have faded into the scenery--at least for the time being, according to a park official.

During March there were 14 sightings of cougars reported by park rangers in the county--eight at Ronald W. Caspers Wilderness Park just east of San Juan Capistrano, and six at O’Neill Regional Park in Trabuco Canyon.

By contrast, there were only three sightings in April--two at Caspers and one at O’Neill-- and at least one of those probably was not a mountain lion at all, but more likely a bobcat, said Tim Miller, manager of regional facilities for the county’s Parks and Recreation Department.

He said keeping of records of lion sightings began in March.

Miller said he had no explanation for the fewer sightings but added that it was easy to figure out why attendance at both the big parks had dropped off in recent months, especially at O’Neill.

He pointed out that both parks had been closed because of mountain lion forays, then reopened with more stringent rules for the safety of visitors.

“In March of 1986 (before the cougar scare there) O’Neill Park had 12,779 visitors,” Miller said. “In March this year, there were only 3,591.”

The change at Caspers was not so drastic: 3,284 in March, 1986, and 2,709 in March, 1987.

At O’Neill, however, Supervising Ranger Richard Dyer said all but 400 acres of the approximately 1,400-acre park have been closed to the public as a safety measure. Thirty of the original 182 campsites have been sealed off, and in addition, under the new rules, children are not allowed to camp there overnight.

O’Neill, Dyer said, traditionally attracted more family and youth groups than Caspers, and regulations now are very strict concerning the activities of children.

A 5-year-old girl was seriously mangled by a cougar at Caspers on March 23, 1986, and a 6-year-old boy was attacked in the same park on Oct. 19, 1986.

Caspers was closed after both incidents, reopening April 15, 1986, after the mauling of the little girl, then reopening again on Jan. 2 of this year after the boy was hurt.

No attacks on humans occurred at O’Neill, but that park was shut down on Dec. 26, 1986, after several mountain lions had been sighted, at least one near a camp site and refreshment stand.

The apparent shortage of big cats in the parks last month, while difficult to explain, has not caused any concern among animal experts.

Larry Sitton, wildlife biologist for the state Department of Fish and Game, said it’s “probably just a short-lived coincidence” that perhaps as few as three cats had been seen during April.

“There is not any sign that there actually are fewer lions in the Santa Ana Mountain sectors near the parks,” Sitton said. “We figure there are about four to six lions per 100 square miles in that part of the mountains. That’s just 10 miles by 10 miles, just about enough to cover both parks.

“It could be that herds of deer have moved away from the parks temporarily.” Deer are the mountain lion’s natural prey.

Jeffrey B. Froke, western area manager of the National Audubon Society, who lives on and takes care of the Audubon Starr Ranch, located between Caspers and O’Neill parks, said the movements of mountain lions are “very unpredictable” but added that deer are fawning now and are “being very secretive and keeping well-hidden,” which could affect lion activity.

Also, Froke said the Audubon Society has dropped out of a project to establish an official statewide lion population count.

State Fish and Game officials estimated in April that there were 5,100 lions in California and approved sport hunting to begin Oct. 10 in Northern and Central California, but not in Southern California. However, some disputed the 5,100 figure, so state and county wildlife experts, along with the Audubon Society, were asked to make a more accurate count.

Froke said the Audubon Society dropped out of the project, which has not yet begun, “because we didn’t feel the benefits would justify the effort.”

“Also, as a volunteer organization, we couldn’t afford to get involved in any legal entanglements that might ensue,” he said.

He said such “entanglements” could arise if an attorney representing persons attacked by cougars used figures gathered during the census as the basis for a case.

State and county officials are expected to carry out the census effort, Miller said, but a completion date has not been set.