Mountain Lion Spotted On Pepperdine Campus

MALIBU, CA — A resident near Pepperdine University reported seeing a mountain lion Monday night.

At 8:09 p.m., the resident told the university’s public safety department that they saw the lion on the driveway to Tiner Court, right near the school’s Center for Communication and Business, according to a post on the university website. The lion was last reported on the hillside along Tiner Court and President’s Drive, near the Student Assistance Center.

Pepperdine’s Public Safety team was not able to locate the lion, but the sighting was reported to the Malibu-Lost Hills Sheriff’s Station and the Department of Fish and Wildlife.

National Park Service Field Biologist Jeff Sikich said that there is only one adult male mountain lion in the Santa Monica Mountain that his team is tracking. The Department of Fish and Wildlife estimates that there are currently 6,000 big cats in California as of February 2020. In April, the California Fish and Game Commission voted unanimously to provide temporary endangered species status to the vulnerable species, and expects they may be granted full status by 2022.

Mountain lions are already listed as “highly protected mammals” in California, and hunting them has been illegal since 1990. In February, a public outcry arose after a property owner killed a 5-year-old collared mountain lion being tracked by the National Park Service he claimed was threatening his livestock. People can obtain “depredation permits” to kill mountain lions, but only if the animals are threatening their livestock, and they can prove that they tried nonlethal methods first.

Pepperdine Public Safety says that upon encountering a mountain lion, people should maintain eye contact, move away slowly, avoid running, and remove any pets or small children from the scene.