A second coyote spotted on the wildlife crossing over the 101 Freeway. ‘Word gets out in the animal world’
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The word might be out among Agoura Hills’ coyotes.
On Thursday, a coyote was spotted on top of the world’s largest wildlife crossing, nearing completion over the 101 Freeway — the first large mammal documented on the structure itself, the National Park Service announced.
The milestone comes just eight days after a coyote became the first large mammal spotted venturing up a slope leading to the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing, which is slated to open Dec. 2. Both instances were recorded on recently installed remote cameras.
For Beth Pratt of the Wildlife Crossing Fund, the sighting inspired “awe and the feeling of rightness.”
A coyote became the first large mammal documented exploring the massive Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing over the 101 Freeway, which doesn’t officially open until next month. Some see it as an early, hopeful sign that the structure is working.
Research has shown that wildlife in the Santa Monica Mountains are hemmed in by freeways and development. Mountain lions in particular are suffering from the effects of inbreeding. The structure is intended to provide safe passage — and a lifeline.
“I wouldn’t have said this even a couple weeks ago, but I now think there’s a chance we’ll have a mountain lion use it before ribbon cutting,” said Pratt, who is the public face of the project. “Word gets out in the animal world, so who knows what’s going to happen?”
Initially, Pratt bet a deer would be first to venture over the crossing. But she called coyotes “bold explorers” and “extroverts,” noting it was perhaps not surprising they’d be the pioneers. Scientists believe the two sightings were of different coyotes, though they aren’t certain.
When the first coyote was photographed on the southern end of the crossing last week, a steep dropoff between its two overpasses made it impossible to get to the other side. But continued grading and construction soon made it possible for larger animals — including bobcats, mountain lions and coyotes.
That’s why Jeff Sikich, a wildlife biologist with the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, raced to install six cameras on the crossing itself two days ago.
Scientists, however, don’t believe this second coyote made a full traverse.
It’s believed to have come from the Simi Hills, north of the freeway. At 1:30 a.m., one of the cameras captured the animal moving south across the overpass spanning the freeway where more than 300,000 cars pass every day, said Seth Riley, wildlife branch chief for the recreation area, a unit of the National Park Service.
But three subsequent photos showed the animal heading in the opposite direction, suggesting it had doubled back, he said. By 1:47 a.m., it was at the northern end of the crossing.
A photo shared in a Facebook post shows the coyote walking away from the camera toward vegetation surrounded by a pitch-black sky. It’s carrying something in its mouth — possibly a bone or a stick.
Riley said the fact that it spent some 20 minutes up there is a good sign. If it had been spooked by light or noise, he said it wouldn’t hang out that long.
“We’ve spent a ton of time and effort and money, not just to build the crossing, but to make it feel as natural as possible,” he said.
A lush landscape of 6,000 native plants sits atop the 101 overpass. An adjacent overpass over Agoura Road, as well as a land bridge still being built between the structures, are currently bare. Planting there won’t start until after the ribbon cutting and certain animals might be less inclined to use areas without the cover it provides, such as bobcats, Riley said.
Mountain lions prefer cover but Riley doesn’t think they’ll be deterred. Sitting at the top of the food chain, they don’t have much to fear.
More ways to get a glimpse are on the way. Eventually more than 50 cameras taking still photos, along with four thermal video cameras, will capture the action on and around the crossing, Sikich said.
Scientists will use GPS collars to track mountain lions, coyotes, bobcats, deer and gray fox.
They’re also implanting devices known as biologgers into deer and mountain lions to monitor physiological data including body temperature, heart rate and fat reserves.
“We’ve been spending decades, literally decades, documenting how wildlife has become isolated in the Santa Monica Mountains, and what makes us scientists excited is now we have this opportunity to study what happens when we reconnect it,” Sikich said.
The stakes are existential for the mountain range’s mountain lions, which are contending with critically low genetic diversity as close relatives mate. They’ve already shown alarming signs of inbreeding, including kinked tails and deformed testicles.
Scientists say the crossing will let the big cats seek mates in the Simi Hills and beyond — and allow fresh blood to travel into the Santa Monicas.
“We’ve seen these warning signs happening, so the crossing cannot have come at a better time,” Sikich said.
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