The big cat stared at the photographer clutching his camera for about five minutes, then started slowly walking closer.
Mark Girardeau stumbled upon the mountain lion in Trabuco Canyon on Wednesday, July 14, while checking on cameras set out in discrete spots to document the region’s wildlife. He shares the footage that’s been collected since 2015 with UC Davis researchers.
Girardeau said he started calling the cat Uno a few years ago due to an injured eye that doesn’t give a nighttime reflection on video. He said he thinks she’s about 6 years old. Last year, she had four kittens, all of which died, but due to her growing belly, she might be pregnant again, he said.
This week’s encounter wasn’t his first in-person with Uno.
In 2021, Girardeau and a friend were hiking in the same area when they had a two-minute stare down with Uno. Girardeau barked at her, remembering what he learned about showing dominance when encountering a mountain lion.
“Get back mountain lion! Get back!” he yelled during that intense encounter also caught on camera, where Uno came to within 5-to-10 feet from the duo, who stood their ground before the lion took off.
During a second encounter last year, Girardeau was in his car as she passed by.
In this third encounter, he said he saw an object up on the hill and it took him a few seconds to realize what he was seeing.
“She was just taking in the view. You could tell I just happened to stumble upon her while she was relaxing,” he said.
Despite his shaking hands, Girardeau said he got his camera out to record the interaction. He knew he had to document the encounter, he said, especially because he was out of cell service reach and if something did happened, he wanted to make sure it was documented.
Then for five minutes, they stood there in silence, staring at each other, he said.
“I knew not to turn my back. She’s in a mellow state, not hunting or being aggressive at all, I just knew it was good to not turn my…
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