Mountain lion exhibit near completion, finally
| Wednesday, Jun 23 2010 05:50 PM
Last Updated Wednesday, Jun 23 2010 09:08 PM
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CALM zoo manager, Lana Fain, checks out the work being done this summer on the newly constructed, mountain lion and bobcat living quarters at the California Living Museum.
Workers construct the new living quarters for mountain lions and bobcats at the California Living Museum on Alfred Harrell Highway. This is something CALM has been excited about and waiting to be built for many years.
Mike Rogers Jr., with Bakersfield Glass, works on the viewing windows for the new Mountain Lion/Bobcat headquarters at CALM.
With all of the construction going on and noise being made, this mourning dove seemed unaffected while nesting in the Mountain Lion/Bob housing area at CALM that is currently being built.
Construction workers put in a long day building the new headquarters for mountain lions and bobcats at CALM.
When are the mountain lions coming?
It's a question Lana Fain, zoo manager of the California Living Museum, has grown accustomed to answering in recent weeks.
Her answer?
Soon. Finally.
Mountain lions will make their long-anticipated return to CALM around the end of August, ending a hiatus of more than a decade.
"It's hard to express my excitement," Fain said. "We've been promising this community that we're gonna bring mountain lions back, and we're finally doing it."
CALM struggled to replace the specially protected species at its facility in northeast Bakersfield after Whisker -- a mountain lion and also the zoo's first animal -- died in the 1990s from valley fever.
But efforts to bring back the elusive mammal, which stalled and sputtered in the years following Whisker's death, did not go to waste.
The $1.6 million exhibit, located across the creek from the aviary in the eastern section of the campus, was funded by the Cerro Foundation and Diane Lake, as well as by proceeds from the zoo's month-long "Holiday Lights" event and small donations from members.
CALM will host two mountain lion kittens and eventually may add a third, Fain said.
The site, construction for which began last fall, will feature an 18-foot rock cascade with four platforms for resting. A man-made waterfall will culminate in a shallow pool below a large glass window at the front of the exhibit, construction consultant Randy Rowles said.
Logs, branches and shrubbery will complement oak trees that have existed since CALM was established in 1983.
"We're trying to recreate their natural environment," Rowles said.
Visitors will be able to scan the 4,000-square-foot landscape from several vantage points, including a cave-like structure with two viewpoints designed to accommodate young children.
Interactive displays will teach patrons all about mountain lions, reclusive animals that are known as cougars and pumas in other parts of the country.
Fain hopes visitors take away a better understanding of mountain lions and wildlife in general.
"There is a lot of misconception -- fear that doesn't need to be there," Fain said. "The goal is to educate the community about wildlife and hopefully instill respect for all wildlife."
Whether or not they knew the reason for the construction, patrons Wednesday afternoon said they were looking forward to the return of the mountain lions.
Christine Tijerina, who was browsing the gift shop with her two children, Niecy and A.J., hadn't heard about the forthcoming exhibit but sounded excited considering she recently purchased a year membership.
"That would be cool," she said. "I think people are gonna like it."
Brad McNaughton has a season pass to CALM and said he often walks on the pathway near the site to see how it's coming along. He plans on bringing his four grandchildren to check it out once it opens.
"They'll really enjoy it," McNaughton said.
Bakersfield resident Nichole Davenport, who was eating lunch with her two kids in the shaded outdoor patio, had read about the upcoming display in a CALM newsletter.
"I've never ever seen a mountain lion," said her 9-year-old son, Trennyn.
Pretty soon, though, he will.
"It's been a long time coming," Fain said. "But the dream is coming true."
