Protecting Orange County’s Big Cats

There’s a stealthy, powerful presence in the Santa Ana Mountain area of the NROC: our local mountain lions.

Puma concolor is a vital element of Orange County’s ecosystem. As a keystone species and one of our region’s top predators, these impressive cats help keep the whole habitat in balance, and their existence signals the overall health of our wildlands.

But houses, highways, and general human influence have put our mountain lion population at risk, eroding their habitat, cutting off their roaming range, and even shrinking their numbers with exposure to rodenticide. Southern California research led by Dr. Walter Boyce and Dr. Winston Vickers of the Wildlife Health Center at UC Davis aims to understand these issues so we can better address them.

As part of the ongoing study, which takes place on the Nature Reserve of Orange County, as well as areas of Riverside and San Diego counties, researchers are tracking mountain lions with GPS collars, setting up cameras at key crossings, and studying everything from genetics to disease. Their research has offered vital insights into the ways mountain lions move, their biggest threats, and how we can better share the land. Every data point collected informs better conservation, helping us strategize for these important cats’ survival.

The NROC’s mountain lions exist almost exclusively in the Central Reserve, an area crucial to the population’s existence. Just another reason these protected lands are so important, and a reminder that here in Orange County, wilderness is woven right into every aspect of our landscape.