P-91, the female, is bolder, while P-92, the male, is laid back, according to the wildlife sanctuary. They are now about three months old and are showing typical wild cat behaviors вЂ“ stalking, wrestling, and climbing. (credit: Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area)ДЄfter the unsuccessful fostering attempt, the kittens went back to the LA Zoo temporarily, and were then moved to the Southwest Wildlife Conservation Center in Scottsdale, Ariz., where they will spend the rest of their lives. вЂњOur shared goal for this project all along was to keep the kittens in the wild and, although the new mother did not accept them, we gained considerable knowledge from this experience,вЂќ Christine Thompson, a Fish and Wildlife biologist said in a statement. On July 20, the researchers checked P-65вЂ™s former den and saw the orphaned kittens had been left behind, and P-65вЂ™s kittens were nowhere to be found. Biologists tracked P-65вЂ™s movements over the next few days and saw that she moved her den, which they say was not unusual for mother lions. On July 16, while the new mom was away, the mountain lion researchers brought the two orphans to her den and rubbed urine from one of P-65вЂ™s kittens onto P-91 and P-92 so they would smell like her own offspring. National Park Service biologists teamed up with the Fish and Wildlife and the Los Angeles Zoo, which housed the kittens until they could attempt to foster them with P-65. вЂњI had tried this on black bears on a previous research project and it had worked, but situations can vary for different species and individuals.вЂќ READ MORE: Expert Believes Gas Prices Will Soon Decrease вЂњThese five kittens were all approximately the same age, which meant we had this unique opportunity to attempt fostering and give these kittens a chance to live in the wild,вЂќ Sikich said in a statement. And another mountain lion, P-65, had recently given birth to P-88, P-89 and P-90, who were discovered just the day before. National Park Service officials say fostering has been successful in other large mammals like black bears and wolves, and in zoo animals. вЂњThe story of this fostering attempt is remarkable,вЂќ National Park Service Superintendent David Szymanski said in a statement. But then another mountain lion researcher with California Department of Fish and Wildlife made an unusual suggestion вЂ“ why not try to foster the kittens with another mountain lion that had also just given birth? Mountain lions in California cannot be raised or rehabilitated, then released, so captivity is generally the only other option, according to the National Park Service. But their mother, P-67, was found dead just a few days after the kittens were discovered on July 7 in the Simi Hills, south of Simi Valley.ДЄt that point, P-91 and P-92 were just three weeks old and could not survive without their mother, according to Jeff Sikich, a wildlife biologist who leads the research on Santa Monica MountainвЂ™s population of mountain lions. P-91 and P-92 were part of a big baby boom this summer in the Santa Monica Mountains, where a total of 13 mountain lion kittens were born. The mother of P17, P18 and P19, has been confirmed to be P13.(credit: Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area) READ MORE: Cast Of Paramount Plus' SEAL Team Recognize Veterans Before Chargers Game

P12 is genetically different and if the father of the kittens, the genetic diversity will play an important role in the future success of the local mountain lion population.

With limited movement, thanks to the surrounding development, mountain lions in the range stand a good chance to mate with family members. In the past five years, at least two North American black bears have made it across the freeway into the mountains.Д«ut P12's new home in the Santa Monicas means something else: fewer chances of inbreeding. That in itself was exciting news as biologists are concerned about wildlife connectivity in the area. In the Spring of 2009, P12 made headlines after it crossed, over or under, the 101 Freeway from the Simi Hills in to the Santa Monica Mountains in the Agoura Hills area. The three kittens are exciting for scientists as the unconfirmed father could be P12 (P stands for Puma, another name for mountain lion, which is also the species' genus - Puma concolor). Currently, nine are being tracked via GPS or VHF, which makes it the largest number of lions being tracked at the same time. A total of 19 pumas have been tracked during the study, including the three kittens. Since 2002, biologists having been tracking and studying the movements of mountain lions in the Santa Monica Mountains, Simi Hills and Santa Susana Mountains to better understand how they live surrounded by development.

Baby mountain lion