Wildlife officials are raising concerns over a second "weakened" and "sickly" mountain lion spotted in Santa Cruz County, with an eye on a possible link to last year’s destructive wildfires.
Coming just days after another cougar was spotted and captured near downtown Santa Cruz, Wildlife Emergency Services posted a statement to Facebook on Tuesday warning of "another sickly lion" seen about eight miles north of Ben Lomond, near Newell Creek.
They posted a video of the thin-looking cat taken by a mounted camera.
The area was hit particularly hard by the CZU Lightning Complex.
"Our concern is, the lion is malnourished, and a desperate cat is a dangerous cat," the statement explained.
Officials think the appearance of a second emaciated cougar in the same area points to a larger problem, perhaps "related to the fires that ravaged through these mountains…something in the water, like fire retardant, is it exposure to rodenticides, or something else."
The sightings are two of many in the Bay Area in recent months, highlighted by a young mountain lion captured in San Francisco in June.
The animals are generally shy and known to avoid people.
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