EL DORADO COUNTY, Calif. — Family of the two men attacked by a mountain lion in El Dorado County has identified them as 21-year-old Taylen Brooks and 18-year-old Wyatt Brooks, both of Mt. Aukum.
According to a statement from the Brooks/Welsh Family, the two brothers grew up in El Dorado County and loved hunting and fishing.
“We would like to express our sincere thanks for the outpouring of support and prayers from family, friends and the community. We are all devastated by the tragic loss of Taylen yet thankful Wyatt is still with us and are well aware the outcome could have been even worse,” wrote the family.
Wyatt, 18, is in the Mt. Adams Fire Academy and hopes to work for Cal Fire. He plays baseball and is a bow-hunting enthusiast.
According to family, 21-year-old Taylen loved fishing and was a talented guitar player. They are still finalizing plans for his memorial.
What happened?
According to the El Dorado County Sheriff's Office, Taylen and Wyatt were walking down Skid Road near Georgetown around 1 p.m. Saturday to look for deer antler sheds.
As the two brothers were walking down the dirt road, they saw a mountain lion, which came up to both of them.
The pair raised their hands, yelled and threw a backpack at the lion to scare it off – but their attempts were unsuccessful.
The lion charged Wyatt, bit his face and took him down to the ground. As Taylen started beating the lion, Wyatt wrestled it to the ground and it began clawing at Wyatt’s midsection.
The lion released Wyatt, charged Taylen and bit him in the throat. Wyatt, who had severe cuts on his face, continued to beat the lion to get it to release Taylen.
Wyatt tried to call 911 but there was minimal cell service so he ran back toward the car and the call went through. He drove back to the scene but Taylen and the mountain lion were gone.
Wyatt met deputies at the intersection of Darling Ridge and Skid Road. He was taken to Marshall Medical Hospital in Placerville and later to UC Davis Medical Center for reconstructive surgery. He is now home.
Deputies searched the area and found a mountain lion crouching over a man’s body. They discharged their guns safely to scare off the lion and found Taylen dead.
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife tracked the lion, captured it and euthanized it. Later DNA testing confirmed the lion they killed was the same one who attacked the two brothers.
Mountain lion attacks
Mountain lions have attacked humans previously, but the last fatal encounter was in 2004 in Orange County, according to a verified list kept by the Fish and Wildlife Department. In El Dorado County, the most recent fatal attack was in 1994.
According to CDFW, “mountain lions are classified as a 'specially protected' species in California following the passage of The California Wildlife Protection Act of 1990 (Proposition 117)… Statewide mountain lion population estimates are considered stable based on the best scientific knowledge, research, and methods available… Increased sightings and reports of mountain lions are likely due to the increased presence of home security cameras (e.g., ring doorbells), social media, and personal trail cameras often used for hunting, wildlife photography and leisure purposes.”
Mountain lions have not been hunted in California since 1972, though CDFW does allow someone who has had property – like livestock – damaged or destroyed by a mountain lion to apply for something called a depredation permit. That allows someone to kill or capture a mountain lion and requires them to turn the cat or its body over to Fish and Wildlife. Starting in 2019, CDFW says, the department started issuing separate permits for “lethal take” – or killing the mountain lion - and “non-lethal take.” Prior to that, the permits were for lethal takes.
Counties with the most permits issued in the past decade include El Dorado, Nevada, Calaveras, Tuolumne, Amador and Placer. The most mountain lions reported killed in a year was in El Dorado County in 2015, where 21 were killed using a depredation permit. In most years and counties, however, fewer than five – and often no – mountain lions are killed. San Joaquin County, for example, had just two depredation permits issued between 2001 and 2022 and no reported kills or captures.
WATCH MORE ON ABC10: Mountain lion euthanized after attacking brothers, killing 1 in Northern California
