A young mountain lion spotted in San Francisco’s Pacific Heights neighborhood was tranquilized and captured Tuesday after being spotted there a day earlier, according to the city’s Department of Animal Care and Control.
The mountain lion had been seen early Monday morning near Lafayette Park and then was spotted Monday night near Octavia Street and Pacific Avenue, city officials said.
The big cat was located Tuesday morning and Animal Care and Control officials confirmed early Tuesday afternoon that it had been tranquilized and captured after an hours-long standoff.
The mountain lion “will be released to a more suitable habitat,” according to Animal Care and Control, which worked with San Francisco police and firefighters, the San Francisco Zoo, and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife to capture the animal safely.
Animal Care and Control officials said experts believe the mountain lion is about a year old and may have been trying to move south out of the city.