
The National Park Service has discovered and tagged six new mountain lions. Four of the cougars, named P-109 through P-112, are healthy, female blue-eyed kittens. There are also two adult female lions. A biologist used radio to follow the mother while colleagues tagged the kittens in their den. They will all be part of the National Park Service study, which is attempting to monitor genetic diversity and inbreeding. Several mountain lions in the study have had tail kinks, possibly indicating a genetic abnormality. The Liberty Canyon wildlife bridge, currently under construction, is being built to allow the local mountain lion population to roam freely and reduce inbreeding due to range limited by the freeway.