Young mountain lion believed to have killed 3 marsupials at San Francisco Zoo

The lion was released into the wild before the deaths were revealed.

June 20, 2020, 4:09 PM

A young mountain lion is believed to have killed three marsupials at the San Francisco Zoo.

Two wallaroos and a red kangaroo were found dead earlier this week in their outdoor exhibit, the zoo said in a statement.

PHOTO: Surveillance camera shows a young mountain lion wandering through the KGO_TV/ABC7 station's parking lot in San Francisco, June 16, 2020. The animal was safely captured June 18 after he roamed the streets for two days.
Surveillance camera shows a young mountain lion wandering through the KGO_TV/ABC7 station's parking lot in San Francisco, June 16, 2020. The animal was safely captured June 18 after he roamed the streets for two days.
KGO-TV/ABC7

"Findings suggest a local wild carnivore is responsible," the zoo said. A young mountain lion was captured earlier in the week but released, and zoo officials are "investigating whether this could be the perpetrator."

That animal, released before the announcement of the dead marsupials, is being tracked through a collar as part of the University of California Santa Cruz Puma Project. The mountain lion's release could be seen on a video posted by the Oakland Zoo.

PHOTO: Entrance to the San Francisco Zoo in the Ocean Beach neighborhood of San Francisco, Calif.
Entrance to the San Francisco Zoo in the Ocean Beach neighborhood of San Francisco, Calif.
Smith Collection/gado/Getty Images

"We did not hear about these killings before the mountain lion was released," Ken Paglia, a spokesperson for California's Department of Fish and Wildlife, told ABC San Francisco station KGO.

The San Francisco Zoo said it has taken extra measures to keep animals safe, but declined to give specifics when reached by ABC News.

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