Search Continues For Mountain Lion In Nevada County Attack

NEVADA CITY (CBS13) - Department of Fish and Game search crews have not yet been able to locate a mountain lion that attacked a Bay Area man over the weekend near Nevada City.

Crews will work through the July 4 holiday and beyond, according to a DFG press release Tuesday.

Search crews identified lion tracks near the attack site where the 63-year-old man was sleeping, but success of the search effort depends entirely upon locating a fresh scent, the department said.

"So far the teams have had an extremely difficult time locating fresh scent," said DFG Capt. Brian Naslund. "Any unnecessary disturbance, or human presence in the area, jeopardizes the quality of the scent, and therefore a successful outcome."

The victim, a Marin County man, continues to recover from his injuries. He sustained severe bites and scratches to his scalp, his left arm and armpit. He also suffered several scratches on his back.

DFG wildlife forensics scientists extracted DNA from saliva from the armpit area of his shirt where the lion's canine teeth went through, and that confirmed the attack was from a female mountain lion.

The victim has requested not to be identified. He was traveling through Nevada County on the way to a hiking spot when he decided to camp overnight on Sunday and was awoken about 1 a.m. by the mountain lion's attack.

DFG crews will continue the search using specially trained dogs and motion sensor cameras. Warden Patrick Foy said the animal will be killed once it is located.

Sunday's mountain lion attack was just the 15th confirmed in California since 1890.