Mountain lion spotted climbing on car in San Jose

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Oct 9th 2014

 

Surveillance cameras are generally used to keep an eye on your property and ward off any unwanted guests -- but a resident in this San Jose, California, neighborhood was surprised by what he saw on his camera early Tuesday morning.

David Tang told KRON: "The moment I saw it, 'Wow! It's a mountain lion!' I've never seen a mountain lion in this neighborhood before. I don't expect to see one."

The cougar was spotted climbing on David Tang's car and just standing on it.

His neighbors say they've seen plenty of wildlife in the area, but nothing like this.

KGO-TV reports: "I've seen coyotes, turkeys, deer... not mountain lions," one neighbor said.

This might be part of the reason the mountain lion was in the area. Those animals listed are great meals for mountain lions, which eat both large and small mammals. They usually hunt at night, dawn or dusk and may travel long distances to find food.

All of that left local reporters on edge.

KGO-TV reporter Alan Wang admitted, "Yeah, pretty scary, which is why I keep looking up on this hill to make sure that cougar is not going to come back."

Mountain lion sightings aren't completely uncommon in the U.S., especially in the Southern and Western portions of the country.

These big cats can be dangerous, especially in residential settings.

A mountain lion was recently shot in California because it was thought to be the same cat that attacked a 6-year-old boy in mid-September.

San Jose Mercury News reported: "The lion jumped out of hiding and attacked, gripping the boy's head and neck and then dragging him into a bush."

Luckily this boy was with his family, who scared the big cat away. The boy was taken to the hospital and released the next day -- and experts say that behavior is unusual for the animal.

California Fish and Wildlife expert Kristen Macintyre told KPIX: "The fact that it attacked a person within a group of people is practically unheard of."

According to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, a fatal mountain lion attack hasn't occurred in the state since 2004.

The last documented cougar-related fatality occurred in 2008, when a New Mexico man was attacked.

Rare or not, it's important to know what to do If you encounter one. The Mountain Lion Foundation recommends appearing as large as you can, being loud, keeping eye contact and slowly backing away from the mammal.

The mountain lion in Tang's San Jose neighborhood hasn't been spotted again, but experts believe it will likely come back.


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