A young mountain lion that wandered into a Redwood City yard on Monday morning was successfully captured and will be released in an open space area in the Santa Cruz Mountains, authorities said.
Redwood City police have lifted an alert that was sent about 11 a.m. for a neighborhood around the 1800 block of Madison Avenue, for residents to keep their pets indoors.
Using drones, police and California Fish and Wildlife officials were able to safely track and then tranquilize the young female mountain lion, estimated to be 1 to 2 years old.
The big cat was fitted with a GPS-tracking collar for a UC Santa Cruz study and is being moved to an open space in the Santa Cruz mountains, said Krysten Kellum, a spokesperson for the state wildlife agency.
“This appears to be a no-harm, no-foul situation where a mountain lion has left nearby suitable habitat and wandered into a populated area,” Kellum said.
The agency’s response was to first assess the situation and the mountain lion’s health before tranquilizing it and moving it. The big cats avoid populated areas and are very wary of humans but sometimes make their way into cities, Kellum said.
“They will typically return to suitable habitat on their own but on occasion need CDFW’s intervention to get back to that open space,” Kellum said.