Kaliforniens Berglöwen werden nachtaktiv, um menschlichen Aktivitäten auszuweichen. Laut einer neuen Studie verlagern Berglöwen im Großraum Los Angeles proaktiv ihre Aktivitäten, um den Kontakt mit Radfahrern, Wanderern, Joggern und anderen Freizeitsportlern zu vermeiden.

I’ve linked to the news release in the post above. In this comment, for those interested, here’s the link to the peer reviewed journal article:

Human recreation influences activity of a large carnivore in an urban landscape

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0006320724003744

Abstract

Human recreation influences the diel activity of animals and elucidating these responses informs management of species of conservation concern. We studied how mountain lions (Puma concolor) persisting in greater Los Angeles, California, USA adjust diel activity patterns in response to spatial and temporal variation in human recreation by combining publicly available data on recreation with GPS telemetry and accelerometer data. Mountain lions reduced diurnal activity, shifted timing of dawn activity, and became more nocturnal in areas with high recreation. There were differences in temporal responses between the sexes that might reflect behavioral shifts by females to avoid potentially dangerous male conspecifics. We found no evidence that mountain lions modified their behavior based on differences in recreation between weekdays and the weekend. The lack of a weekend effect may be a function of mountain lions being mostly nocturnal, which may be sufficient to avoid most recreation regardless of intraweek variation. Mountain lions have persisted within greater Los Angeles despite being limited spatially in this human-dominated landscape. Our work suggests that mountain lions are also constrained temporally through shifts in their diel activity.

From the linked article:

California’s Mountain Lions Are Becoming Nocturnal to Avoid Human Activity

Mountain lions in greater Los Angeles are proactively shifting their activity to avoid interacting with cyclists, hikers, joggers and other recreationists, finds a study from the University of California, Davis, Cal Poly Pomona and the National Park Service.

The study, published Nov. 15 in the journal Biological Conservation, found that mountain lions living in areas with higher levels of human recreation were more nocturnal than lions in more remote regions who were more active at dawn and dusk. The authors said their findings offer a hopeful example of human-wildlife coexistence amid a large, dense human population.

Still, the authors note, this doesn’t mean mountain lions should do all the work. People can help protect themselves and mountain lions by being aware that dawn or dusk is prime time for mountain lion activity. They can also be extra cautious when driving at night, when mountain lions in populated areas are more likely to be active.

So are coyotes, at least in urban areas:

>[Those coyotes living in urban areas will become nocturnal to avoid human activity when sleeping and most other activities because it is safer.](https://a-z-animals.com/animals/coyote/coyote-facts/are-coyotes-nocturnal-or-diurnal/#:~:text=Coyotes%20commonly%20sleep%20in%20prairies,activities%20because%20it%20is%20safer.)

This is great. I really want predators to come back (in a well-managed and safe way), but interactions with humans can lead to lethal repercussions for them. I’m glad they’re adapting. I wonder how much of it is driven by prey cycles as well. I know boars have been switching to nocturnal to avoid humans for instance.

They built this nice paved biking/running trail between two new subdivisions in the foothills near Valley Springs, Ca. This woman went out jogging one morning and disappeared. Search and rescue found her partially eaten body in a den just a few hundred yards from the trail. There was a mother and two cubs. There are deer around, but they run faster then people. Mountain lions are opportunistic hunters.

I don’t think proactive means what that author thinks it means.

So are birds in urban areas – starting to sing around 2:00 AM.

I do the same to be honest

When I lived near the aptly named Los Gatos back in the late 1990s, a cougar killed three people over the course of a few months. I remember how surreal that was. One young woman had the cat bite through her skull. Reading that felt like it was happening on another planet. How was it even possible?

Uhh…there are mountain lions in greater los angeles??