Home › News › County News
Park closed after mountain lion sighted
STORY TOOLS 
More from County NewsVentura's Parks Division shut down Arroyo Verde Park in Ventura over the weekend after reports of a mountain lion sighting and may reopen it Tuesday, according to a Ventura Police Department official.
The Police Department received two calls about 10:30 a.m. Saturday, with each caller having spotted the animal near the entrance of the park, Lt. Jerry Thurston said.
Officials from the California Department of Fish and Game did not find anything and could not confirm if the animal was a mountain lion or bobcat, Thurston said.
Mountain lions are larger than bobcats and more likely to attack animals or people, he said.
The park will reopen Tuesday if there are no reports of other sightings, said Thurston, who encouraged people to go to other city parks, which are open.
Officials closed a portion of Arroyo Verde Park in June after mountain lion sightings.
Anyone who sees a mountain lion should not approach the animal or run, Thurston said. The person should fight a mountain lion if it attacks, he said, and people should call 911 to report a sighting.
If a mountain lion is found at the park and poses no threat, Fish and Game officials will not do anything to it, said Steve Martarano, supervising information officer. Officials can take action if a lion attacks a pet or is a safety risk to the public, he said.
For information, visit www.ci.ventura.ca.us and click on "Mountain Lion Sighting — Arroyo Verde Park Closed" near the top of the Web page.
Posted by sslocal on August 27, 2007 at 9:55 a.m. (Suggest removal)
We will get more of these sightings and attacks until they allow hunting of these cats again. They are clearly enroaching into human areas and need to be culled.
Posted by jjmount on August 27, 2007 at 10:55 a.m. (Suggest removal)
"culled"? - you part of a cult or something? =]
Posted by propmanxl on August 27, 2007 at 11:56 a.m. (Suggest removal)
The big cats are encroaching into human areas? Get a clue--we've been encroaching on them ever since Ventura became a city...And with the way that developers are getting the go ahead to build, it'll happen more and more.
Posted by surfmedic91 on August 27, 2007 at 1:07 p.m. (Suggest removal)
sslocal, stay at the beach and you won't have to worry about it. It's actually called the "Skyline Sabertooth" and escaped from one of the neighboring houses.
Posted by sslocal on August 27, 2007 at 1:20 p.m. (Suggest removal)
When it hauls off your pet or your child let me know how you feel about it.
I understand that you cannot eliminate dangerous preditors from the surrounding green belts. However, you can slim down the population a bit so that one is not forced to identify a loved ones body after it is taken.
Posted by CruJones on August 27, 2007 at 2:54 p.m. (Suggest removal)
It's ok, cougars only eat stupid people. It's a win-win for the cats and us. I wonder if the fire is displacing them and they're ending up closer to "our" turf.
Posted by vicki.swenson on August 27, 2007 at 4:15 p.m. (Suggest removal)
This is their home, people moved into their space. Get used to it, and move your pets inside. They're thirsty and hungry, they have a right to live as any of us do.
Posted by waasup_H8RS on August 27, 2007 at 11:47 p.m. (Suggest removal)
its so stupid to close the park, as already stated we are in the home of the lions, and an attack could happen annytime when there hasnt been sighting, just as it could after sightings. Let the park remain open... I would hope people going there would understand the type of environment they are entering.
(Requires free registration.)
Article discussions on this site are to support community debates of issues related to our stories and editorials.
Discussions should not stray from the subject of the story or editorial.
We do not allow the following:
We reserve the right to delete threads and/or ban users for these or other reasons we deem necessary.
Opinions are the sole responsibility of the person posting them. You agree not to post comments that are off topic, defamatory, obscene, abusive, threatening or an invasion of privacy. Violators may be banned. Click here for our full user agreement.