Mountain lion caught on camera evading capture in San Francisco before being tranquilized, released

A mountain lion evaded capture for several hours in San Francisco on Friday after it was spotted in the busy Sunset District, the city’s largest neighborhood.

Officials, including police, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, animal control, and the San Francisco Zoo, surrounded the animal in Outer Sunset and eventually tranquilized it.

It was later released back into the wild.

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Animal Care & Control shared a couple of videos of the cougar getting out of its crate later in the day and heading back into a wooded area.

The mountain lion was wearing a collar which it didn’t previously have.

“We’re happy to report that our mountain lion visitor has been released back to the wild by our friends at the California Department of Fish and Wildlife,” the organization wrote on Facebook.

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The group added: “We’re so grateful for the collaboration today between so many agencies and organizations. It takes a village to wrangle a mountain lion! Thank you to the San Francisco Zoo for their expertise darting the lion and documenting the scene. Thank you to the San Francisco Police Department for having our backs and thank you to the wonderful Santa Cruz Puma Project! 

“And of course, thank you to our fabulous Animal Control Officers who go above and beyond helping animals and people every single day!”

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A mountain lion was spotted in the city’s Panhandle neighborhood earlier this month, but it went back into the woods on its own.

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It’s unclear if it was the same mountain lion on Friday.