Mountain Lion Killed By Vehicle In Santa Monica Mountains

AGOURA HILLS, CA — A female mountain lion was hit and killed by a vehicle Friday in the Santa Monica Mountains, authorities said.

The big cat was killed just one day before the groundbreaking ceremony of a historic wildlife crossing over the 101 Freeway in Agoura Hills.

The lion, which was radio-collared and identified as P-54, was struck on Las Virgenes Road, near Piuma Road and Mulholland Highway.

"P-54 will be taken to the California Animal Health and Food Safety Lab in San Bernardino for a full necropsy," the National Park Service said in a statement. "The female adult mountain lion is the 29th mountain lion (and 10th radio collared one) to be killed by a vehicle in our study area since 2002."

P-97's mother was also killed near the same location in 2018, National Park Service officials said. Her death marks the importance for the incoming Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing, which will span the Ventura (101) Freeway in Liberty Canyon near Agoura Hills. The $85 million project will be the largest crossing of its kind in the world — a fully landscaped passage for wildlife that will stretch 210 feet over 10 lanes of highway and pavement.

The groundbreaking ceremony was set to be held Saturday.

The Wildlife Crossing is being developed following 20 years of studies from the National Park Service that found roads and urban development are deadly for animals trying to navigate the Los Angeles area. Urban development has also created islands of habitats that can genetically isolate the region's animals.

Researchers have estimated that the mountain lion population in the Santa Monica Mountains could become extinct within 50 years without an influx of genetic diversity. The lions are largely isolated due to freeways that act as barriers to movement across the region. The crossing aims to provide a connection between the small population of mountain lions in the Santa Monica Mountains and the larger and genetically diverse populations to the north.

City News Service contributed to this report.