TUCSON, Ariz. — The Arizona Game and Fish Department said it had to kill three mountain lions that fed on human remains at Pima Canyon Trail near Tucson.
The mountain lions are not suspected of killing the victim, whose body was found a mile into the hiking trail Monday evening.
An autopsy is scheduled for Thursday as the death investigation continues.
“Mountain lions are not routinely scavengers. A mountain lion eating human remains is abnormal behavior. Those that do are more likely to attack a human being in the future,” said Regional Supervisor Raul Vega of AZGFD in Tucson in a statement Wednesday.
Vega also said the lions ate the remains yards away from the popular hiking trail and within sight of homes.
The lions showed no fear of responding officers and posed "a clear and present danger to public safety," the statement added.
The Pima Canyon Trail has reopened since the remains and the three lions were removed.
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