SANTA MONICA MOUNTAINS — National Park Service biologists and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife rescued an abandoned mountain lion cub from the Santa Monica Mountains and placed him in the care of the Oakland Zoo in late March. The male cub, later named Crimson, arrived at the zoo emaciated and unable to stand.

Crimson had been seen alone in the Santa Monica Mountains for days before the rescue took place. NPS biologists, who regularly monitor the recreation area's small mountain lion population, visited the cub's location on several occasions during that period. After repeated visits with no sign of the mother returning, the biologists surmised that she had likely moved to another den and abandoned the cub. Abandonment of offspring is rare among mountain lions.

Over the course of those days, Crimson appeared progressively weaker and was losing weight. In consultation with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, the biologists rescued the cub and arranged for his transfer to the Oakland Zoo.

When rescuers retrieved Crimson, the newborn cub was small enough to fit into cupped hands. He also had missing toes. Upon his arrival at the zoo's veterinary hospital in late March, staff placed him in an intensive care unit. Veterinarians began feeding Crimson with bottle feedings every three hours around the clock. During feedings, the cub emitted a noise that sounded like a cross between a purr and a light squeal.

"We never want to pull a mountain lion from the wild," said Nik Dehejia, Chief Executive Officer of the Oakland Zoo. "These cubs need their mother actively for nursing and socialization."

The zoo is now focusing on helping Crimson grow strong and weaning him off bottle feedings. The Oakland Zoo also currently houses a three-month-old mountain lion named Clover. In total, the zoo has rescued 33 mountain lions.

Habitat fragmentation, urban development and human-wildlife conflict have contributed to the zoo receiving distressed animals. "More often than not we are in their habitat versus they being in ours," Dehejia said. "This is a broader scale issue over how we build, how we live, how we co-exist with wildlife around us."