Young Cougar on the Prowl Has San Clemente on Alert : Wildlife: Mountain lion has shown no aggression but officials urge caution after latest in rash of sightings.

A bold young mountain lion has been spotted roaming the canyons east of Interstate 5, prompting officials to send out dog teams to find the animal before it attacks a person or a pet.

At one local school, Our Lady of Fatima, 290 students are being made to eat lunch indoors to avoid encountering the animal.

Officials said that one resident even reported seeing the mountain lion drinking from a front-yard birdbath, and another person saw it stroll through the parking lot of a restaurant on El Camino Real.

The animal is described as 2 to 3 years old and weighing about 70 pounds. Officials said that although it hasn’t been aggressive, it appears to be unafraid of people, which is unusual for a cougar.

“The best analogy is that this guy is in his ‘terrible twos,’ ” said San Clemente Fire Chief Gene Begnell, who is also the city’s animal control officer. “He’s curious, but that doesn’t mean he won’t do something stupid.”

Begnell urges caution and awareness but said the mountain lion’s presence is not cause for panic.

This is the latest in a growing number of wild cougar sightings in Southern California.

For several hours on Tuesday a thin, dazed and thirsty mountain lion wandered the streets of downtown Escondido in northern San Diego County before being sedated with a tranquilizer dart and carted off to a wild animal rehabilitation center.

Although such animals are generally afraid of people, half a dozen confirmed mountain lion attacks on humans have occurred since the mid-’80s, said Patrick Moore, a California Department of Fish and Game spokesman.

In 1986, 5-year-old Laura Small was left partially paralyzed when a mountain lion grabbed her by the head with his powerful jaws as she hiked in Ronald W. Caspers Regional Park in Orange County.

“There are more opportunities for confrontations with mountain lions now,” Moore said. “We’re taking their habitat away from them, and they haven’t been hunted in many years. They may be becoming more bold around people because of that loss of fear.”

According to the Department of Fish and Game, in 1920 only about 200 mountain lions were left in California. But today, after they were classified as a “special protected mammal” in 1990, they number between 4,000 and 6,000.

In the San Clemente sighting, officials have sent flyers to about 700 people who live near where the cougar has been spotted.

Dogs were sent out on May 28 and June 4 to track the mountain lion. On both occasions--the first behind the 20 block of Santa Clara and the second in the canyon between Avenida San Pablo and Avenida Salvador --the dogs picked up a trail but could not find the cougar.

Our Lady of Fatima Catholic School and Ole Hanson Elementary School have also sent home warnings to parents.

Anna McCluskey, principal of Our Lady of Fatima, said that the 290 students must now eat lunch indoors, instead of on the outdoor picnic tables. Parents monitoring playtimes are being extra vigilant for signs of the mountain lion, she said.

Residents said that they are used to warnings about coyotes and bobcats but that mountain lion sightings are rare.

Fish and Game wardens think the cougar may be making its way into the canyons above City Hall and south of Rancho San Clemente from the wilderness area of Camp Pendleton. Mountain lions can travel up to 15 miles a night, typically in staking out a territory.

Begnell said the cougar might be one of two mountain lion cubs born in the southern part of the city several years ago.

Officials suggest that people not hike alone and or leave pet food out overnight. If confronted by a mountain lion, they say, don’t approach it or run away. Instead, raise your arms to make yourself appear larger and strike back if the mountain lion attacks.

If the cougar is caught, authorities will determine whether it is a candidate for removal to a remote wilderness area or must be destroyed.

In the case of the lion that was loose in downtown Escondido on Tuesday, after it was tranquilized and taken to an animal rehabilitation center, it was released in the Aqua Tibia wilderness area of the Cleveland National Forest.

That was the third mountain lion incident in San Diego County in the past month. Two mountain lions were killed in May by hunters in the Descanso portion of the Cleveland National Forest. One of the lions had menaced a young boy, and the other was spotted by a rancher who feared for his livestock.

Times staff writer Tony Perry contributed to this report from San Diego.

Dealing With Mountain Lions

Here are some steps you can take to keep mountain lions at bay:

AROUND HOME * Keep pets secure * Install outdoor lighting * Do not feed wildlife IN THE WILD * Do not hike alone * Do not run * If confronted, try to make yourself appear larger by raising your arms * If you are attacked, fight back with a stick, a hat or even bare hands * Notify authorities immediately MOUNTAIN LION PROFILE * Adults may be more than eight feet from head to tail * Full-grown females weigh 80 to 100 pounds; males weigh 120 to 160 pounds * Usually live to 12 years old in the wild * Fast runners over short distances, but lack lung capacity needed for long runs * Usually hunt alone at night * Prey on large animals, such as deer, but often eat skunks and opossums * California population has risen from 600 in 1920 to 4,000 to 6,000 today

Source: California Department of Fish and Game