Los Angeles to unveil bronze statue honoring iconic mountain lion P‑22 in Griffith Park

Los Angeles will honor its most famous mountain lion with a bronze sculpture in Griffith Park, the 4,200‑acre urban wilderness where the cougar once roamed.

The lion, known as “P‑22” after the biologists who first identified him, became a national symbol after photographer Steve Winter captured an iconic image of him prowling through the park with the Hollywood sign in the background.

The artwork, created by Los Angeles artist Adam Matano, will be installed at the park’s visitor center, according to the National Wildlife Federation, which spearheaded the effort through its Safe LA Cougars campaign.

The sculpture depicts a muscular P‑22 stepping down from one podium, adorned with reliefs of native Southern California animals, onto a second perch featuring local flora.

Matano said he sought to convey “the idea of the wild entering Los Angeles and awakening the city to the nature already within it,” transforming P‑22 “into a king not because he dominated the territory but because he lived true to his nature and captured the heart of a city.”

Funding for the project came entirely from private philanthropy.

The GPS‑collared lion amassed a devoted following, with his movements regularly featured in local news coverage.

Born likely in the Santa Monica Mountains, P‑22 crossed roughly ten lanes of traffic on LA’s congested freeways to make Griffith Park his home.

His daring journey helped inspire the Wallis Annenberg wildlife crossing, set to open in December and becoming the world’s largest such structure, aimed at improving genetic diversity in the Santa Monica Mountains where inbreeding concerns exist.

Wildlife officials euthanized P‑22 in December 2022 after he attacked a leashed dog and showed signs of declining health, possibly due to a vehicle strike. He was estimated to be about 12 years old.

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