A young mountain lion caused alarm in San Francisco’s Outer Sunset neighbourhood after roaming through residential streets and gardens on Friday morning. Residents were told to stay indoors while police, wildlife officials and animal-control crews attempted to contain the animal, which repeatedly evaded them; it was eventually tranquilised and captured after about four hours.

Officials identified the lion as a two- to three-year-old male weighing roughly 78 pounds (35kg). Fish and Wildlife spokesperson Peter Tira said it was a young dispersing animal that had recently left its mother and become trapped in the urban area, but stressed that it posed no public-safety threat; residents were advised to keep away, leash dogs and avoid running if they encountered it.