DEPREDATION ON YOUR OPERATION
obtaining permits to take matters into your own hands by Noah Lopez for the Rancher Technical Assistance Program Here at the Rancher Technical Assistance Program (RTAP) we receive questions about all kinds of issues from ranchers all over the state. Occasionally patterns start to emerge from these questions. Recently we’ve received several inquiries regarding the process for obtaining mountain lion take permits after a livestock depredation. These inquires have been for good reason; it can be difficult to find information about the process and when it can be found it often leaves the reader confused. As such, we thought it may be helpful to review the polices that make up the process for mountain lion take permit issuance. In doing so it is useful to remember that there are two different policies for two different areas: the policy within the Central Coast and Southern California and the policy outside of the Central Coast and Southern California.
Encounter Provision
However, before looking at take permit issuance for a depredation that has already occurred, it is important to be aware of the ‘encounter provisions’ allowed under Proposition 117. Proposition 117, passed by the California voters in 1990, addressed mountain lion management in California. The portion relevant to mountain lion encounters was codified in California Fish and Game
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Code Section 4807 and allows a property owner or their employee or agent to lethally take “any mountain lion that is encountered while in the act of pursuing, inflicting injury to, or killing livestock or domestic animals…”. The take must then be reported to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) within 72 hours so that they may investigate and issue a take permit. If the Department is not satisfied that the mountain lion was in the act of “pursuing, inflicting injury to, or killing livestock,” the producer may be liable for the illegal take of the mountain lion. If the provision is exercised, it is important that producers preserve evidence of the mountain lion encounter and promptly report the event to CDFW. In our experience, RTAP has found that many producers are unaware of this important provision which allows property owners to protect their livestock during a mountain lion encounter. Importantly, this provision is available to all property owners throughout the state, regardless of location.
Central Coast & Southern California
Within the Central Coast and Southern California, mountain lions are proposed as candidates for threatened...CONTINUED ON PAGE 18