A necropsy shows that a mountain lion which was struck, and killed by a car in the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation area was loaded with multiple types of rat poison.
The mountain lion known as P-54 died in June, as she was trying to cross Las Virgenes Road near Mulholland Highway. She was pregnant at the time. Because she was part of an ongoing study of the big cats, her body was taken to a San Bernardino County facility for a full necropsy.
The tests showed that P-54 had five different types of rodenticides in her system. And, because they could test mountain lion fetuses for the first time, they found three different types of rat poison in their systems.
Biologists say it’s the latest sign of the ongoing issue of rodenticides ending up in the mountain lion food chain. They are urging people who live in the region not to use the chemicals to kill rats, and other pests because of the problems they create for the big cats.
