BOULDER, Colo. — A young mountain lion that decided to hang out in a high pedestrian area of Boulder was tranquilized and relocated on Tuesday morning, according to Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW).
The mountain lion was spotted on a fence in the neighborhood around Adams Circle, according to the Boulder Police Department. That's just east of 28th Street and south of Colorado Avenue.
CPW spokesman Jason Clay said the lion, which was a sub-adult male, was near a residential complex in a high traffic area. A dead raccoon was found next to the wall, so the lion likely did some hunting before he picked out a shady place to rest, Clay said.
Wildlife officers safely tranquilized the lion, and he was released in a less populated area in northern Boulder County, Clay said.
> Above video: Another encounter near Boulder with a mountain lion in April.
Mountain lions sometimes make their way down into the metro area. Another one was spotted in August in Aurora, next to Rocky Ridge Park near East Mississippi and South Chambers Road.
RELATED: Mountain lion on the prowl in Aurora
Mountain lions have the largest geographic range of any American native mammal other than humans – from western Canada to Argentina, according to CPW. Mountain lions historically inhabited most ecosystems in Colorado, but currently most viable populations are in the foothill and mountainous regions of the state.
An estimated 3,800 to 4,400 independent/mature mountain lions live in Colorado.
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