Ecologists worry legal cannabis farms could spell doom for mountain lions

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (KGO) -- Some ecologists in Santa Cruz worry that the transition to legal status for cannabis farms next year could spell doom for mountain lions.

The lions go out of their way to avoid humans, and the Santa Cruz Sentinel reports the fear is they will leave their habitat if infrastructure, such as cannabis farms, continues to grow in rural mountain areas.

Early signs don't indicate a big increase in the number of pot farms, which must meet several requirements that are set to go into effect on the first of the year.