A mountain lion prowling a San Francisco neighborhood was captured Friday morning after multiple residents spotted the big cat in their front yards.
The sightings unfolded around 44th Avenue and Ulloa Street in the Outer Sunset, where videos posted to X showed the animal wandering behind bushes in the small yards of multiple homes. One clip, shared by @CKaftonKTVU, captured the mountain lion with a window above it slightly open. Another video showed the predator crouched low behind a bush, with the person who posted it noting that Animal Care & Control had arrived at the scene.
Officials tranquilized the mountain lion Friday morning and transferred it to California Department of Fish and Wildlife game wardens. “The incident has been resolved, there is no danger to the public,” an update stated, according to KRON4.
Authorities had issued specific guidance to residents who might encounter the animal. “If a mountain lion approaches — make yourself ‘big,’ wave your arms, shout, throw something, and again, do not run,” officials said. They previously advised against running if residents came face-to-face with the predator, recommending instead that people slowly back away.
The capture ended a tense morning for the coastal neighborhood, where one resident’s post on X showed Animal Care & Control responding at Ulloa and 44th with the message: “A surprise visitor for people living in the Sunset in San Francisco.”
The Friday incident marked the second mountain lion sighting in San Francisco this month. On Sept. 5, a person walking a dog near Golden Gate Park noticed a mountain lion climbing a tree with dense foliage near Fell and Baker streets in the Panhandle neighborhood. The thick leaves made the animal easier to hide, and when city animal control officers reached the scene, they launched a drone and illuminated the tree canopy in an unsuccessful search. California Department of Fish and Wildlife spokesperson Krysten Kellum confirmed that wardens never spotted that animal, suggesting it may have already left before team members arrived, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
The repeated appearances have put residents on edge in a city where mountain lion encounters remain rare despite California’s estimated population of 4,000 to 6,000 of the big cats. Wildlife officials typically seek to tranquilize and relocate urban mountain lions rather than euthanize them, though the animals face significant survival challenges once moved to unfamiliar territory.
The captured mountain lion from Friday’s Outer Sunset incident was expected to be released into the wild following evaluation by state wildlife veterinarians.