LOS ANGELES (KNX) — A mountain lion known for taking up residence in Los Angeles’ Griffith Park, dubbed P-22, was sighted traversing the East Side residential neighborhoods in recent days.
The National Park Service confirmed on Thursday that there were reports of the 12-year-old male mountain lion in Silver Lake as recently as Tuesday night. It marked the farthest south the cat has ventured in the 10 years parks officials have been tracking him.
P-22 was in the area at around 7 p.m. Several residents snapped photos of the cat.
The Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area posted on Thursday to its Facebook page that P-22 had returned to his “regular stomping grounds in Griffith Park.”
NPS Santa Monica Public Affairs Officer Ana Beatriz Cholo told KTLA that P-22 has been spotted in residential areas near the park before — and was once found in a basement in Los Feliz.
Park officials have warned anyone who encounters P-22 in their neighborhood to give the animal a wide berth.
“Don’t try to get that selfie with him,” Cholo warned. “Keep in mind that he is a wild animal. And wild animals can be unpredictable.”
Although mountain lions don’t ordinarily view humans as prey, “it’s just smart to give him space and let him walk away and don’t get close,” Cholo said.
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