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On February 12, 2026, the California Fish and Game Commission (Commission) voted 3-0 to list mountain lions (Puma concolor) in Southern and Central California as endangered under the California Endangered Species Act (CESA). The listing decision is based on concerns that the mountain lion population in Southern and Central California could become extinct in the foreseeable future due to fragmented habitat, barriers to movement, and human removal. Mountain lions are now protected from take without a permit in the affected region, which includes the counties of Ventura, Los Angeles, Orange, San Diego, San Bernardino, Riverside, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Monterey, Santa Cruz and parts of the Bay Area.
The decision stems from the June 25, 2019 petition from the Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) and the Mountain Lion Foundation (collectively, "Petitioners") to list one or more mountain lion populations from six subpopulations as a Threatened and Evolutionarily Significant Unit (ESU). Petitioners proposed that the Commission find that the six populations comprise a single Southern California/Central Coast ESU, or decide that the six populations singularly or in various combinations comprise ESUs. Petitioners identified the following populations for review: (1) Santa Ana Mountains; (2) Eastern Peninsular Range; (3) San Gabriel/San Bernardino Mountains; (4) Central Coast South (Santa Monica Mountains); (5) Central Coast North (Santa Cruz Mountains); and (6) Central Coast Central. Following the petition, the Commission voted to advance the candidacy of the Southern California and Central Coast mountain lion for listing consideration based on a finding that protections may be warranted. Mountain lions are distributed across much of the western United States. One data source estimates that the current population nationwide is between 35,000 and 49,000.
In accordance with the CESA listing process, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (Department) completed a status review of the petitioned species based upon the best scientific information available to the agency. The Department estimated that the current statewide population ranges from 3,645 to 4,750 mountain lions, and that 1,449 mountain lions are located within the petitioned region. The status review also identified threats to mountain lions primarily related to habitat fragmentation resulting from agricultural, residential, and industrial development. Modern transit and infrastructure were also cited as causing habitat fragmentation and creating barriers to movement. Up until 2020, the top sources of mountain lion mortality were vehicle strikes and legal removal in response to livestock or property damage. The Commission considered vehicle strikes one of the most significant sources of mortality, accounting for 535 recorded deaths between 2015-2022. Other threats to the population include diseases, toxicants, and wildfires.
In the status review, the Department elected to determine whether one or more populations merit listing by assessing whether they constituted distinct population segments (DPSs) rather than ESUs. Both concepts are borrowed from federal practice in applying the federal Endangered Species Act. Whereas the federal Act expressly defines species to include DPSs (in addition to species and subspecies), CESA does not (limiting listing to species and subspecies only). Nonetheless, California courts and the Commission and Department have interpreted CESA to authorize listing of DPSs.
The Department determined that, with a slight adjustment to the proposed geographic boundary, a discrete and biologically significant species of mountain lion met the DPS criteria for listing. The Department's recommendation deviates slightly from the proposed boundaries, but still broadly affects the communities of central and southern California. Accordingly, the Department recommended listing the southern California/Central Coast Mountain lion DPS, delineated in the status review report, as threatened under the CESA due to concerns that it could become extinct in the foreseeable future.
As a listed species, the mountain lion will be subject to a number of management and recovery actions designed to conserve the current population. The recommendations include increasing habitat connectivity, such as developing strategic locations for wildlife crossings at locations across the DPS region, protecting remaining habitat, and reducing human-related mortality rates. The Commission will adopt specific findings related to its mountain lion listing decision at future meetings.
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