A population of mountain lions faces possible extinction in the future
According to a new study, a population of mountain lions faces probable extinction in the coming future due to inbreeding.
Wildlife scientists from the National Park Service and experts at the University of California are warning that the mountain lions could perish in the next 50 years if modern development advances to isolate them in their native habitat.
Around 15 mountain lions are now living in Santa Monica and are unable to leave the area and find the rest of their species because of the changes humans made. If there are no changes performed to help them shortly, they will have more problems in the next few years.
Moreover, many people consider that taking care of the jeopardized species is not their problem.
John Benson, a wildlife ecologist from the Los Angeles Kretz Center for California Conservation Science at UCLA, mentioned that unless a way is discovered to assist them to make a passing from one domain to another, extinction could be only decades apart.
The mountain lions are separated from other animals in neighboring wildlands by the 101 Freeway, which holds 8 to 10 lanes of some of the substantial traffic in the United States.
Due to the freeway, lions from the north in the Simi Hills, Los Padres National Forest, and Santa Susana Mountains can’t reach them, causing poor breeding opportunities.
Unfortunately, the two males in the group partner with their offspring, producing severely low genetic diversity which can point to extinction and poor health.
Experts associated the L.A. animals with a group of Florida panthers (mountain lions and panthers are the same species) that almost went extinct because of low biodiversity, a condition usually identified as inbreeding depression. It then led to Florida lions forming holes in their hearts while the males became sterile.
An NPS wildlife ecologist, Seth Riley said that this made the population more susceptible to disease and weaker. Moreover, Florida took in eight panthers from Texas, and the community climbed from 25 to 200.
While this is an answer, the scientists wish something different could be done shortly to improve the biodiversity of the mountain lions in the Santa Monica Mountains.
However, an overpass over the 101 Freeway or a side road for the mountain lions and other animals that want to connect with more of their species could be the best solution.
Image source: Wikipedia
Roxanne Briean
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