What is Californias mountain lion population? [Video]

(FOX40.COM) — Knowing the population of wildlife is important to gain a full understanding of a species’s health and the health of the environment they live in. But what are researchers supposed to do when the elusive mountain lion is the species in question?

The Sequoia National Forest, operated by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), says that gaining a statewide mountain lion population will most likely always be a “guesstimate.”

Mountain lion attack kills one in El Dorado County, sheriff’s office says

Researchers know that mountain lions can be found across the United States, Canada, Mexico and parts of South America, but pinpointing their exact population count is nearly impossible.

Rough estimates place California’s mountain lion population somewhere between 4,000 and 6,000, with the most accurate guess being around 4,500, according to the USDA and the Mountain Lion Foundation.

In California, biologists and wildlife researchers have been working …