Mountain lion spotted on home surveillance camera in Northern California neighborhood

A mountain lion was spotted early Thursday morning in an Northern California foothills neighborhood, according to police.

The lion was initially spotted on Auburn Folsom Road and Eagles Nest, the Auburn Police Department said before posting screenshots of surveillance footage of the cougar on a nearby patio. The state Department of Fish and Wildlife was notified, according to officers.

Police said residents who encounter the cat should call 911 or Fish and Wildlife officials at 916-358-2917.

Mountain lion sightings have grown in prominence since a deadly attack on two brothers last spring near Georgetown in the Sierra Nevada Foothills. Facebook pages have been created to report mountain lion sightings, including one for El Dorado County that has nearly 12,200 members.

The sighting came nearly three weeks after a mountain lion was spotted in downtown Vacaville on Aug. 17.

The large cats drew headlines on Monday when a 5-year-old boy was attacked by a mountain lion at Malibu Creek State Park west of Los Angeles. The animal was later found and euthanized by park rangers after the boy was airlifted to the hospital with moderate injuries, officials said.

Experts say mountain lions rarely attack people and they often try to avoid human interaction. The attack last spring was the state’s fourth that resulted in a death of the 21 known attacks since records started being kept in 1986.

When encountering a mountain lion, people are encouraged to stand tall, shout and throw something at the cat if necessary, according to Capt. Patrick Foy of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s law enforcement division.