Climate Change
Are Southern California Fires Outpacing Wildlife’s Ability to Adapt?
The increased frequency and size of conflagrations like those burning in LA threaten even species that evolved with wildfires, including the region’s struggling mountain lions.
As fires spread with alarming speed through the Pacific Palisades region of Los Angeles Tuesday, Jan. 7, a local TV news crew recorded a mountain lion trailed by two young cubs running through a neighborhood north of the fire. The three lions were about three quarters of a mile from the nearest open space. Another TV crew captured video of a disoriented, seemingly orphaned fawn trotting down the middle of a street near the Eaton Fire in Altadena, her fur appearing singed, her gait unsteady.
Are Southern California Fires Outpacing Wildlife’s Ability to Adapt?