Two brothers who were lifelong outdoorsmen were identified Monday as the victims mauled by a mountain lion in Northern California this weekend in what appears to be the first fatal cougar attack in the Golden State in two decades.
Taylen Robert Claude Brooks, 21, died in the attack, and his brother, 18-year-old Wyatt Jay Charles Brooks, was severely wounded but is expected to survive, according to the El Dorado County Sheriff’s Office.
The Brooks brothers, both of Mount Aukum in southern El Dorado County, grew up together hunting and fishing frequently in the scenic region known to many as Northern California’s Gold Country, according to a statement from the Brooks family, shared by the sheriff’s office.
“These two young men being as close as any two brothers could be, lived a full energetic life enjoying the outdoors,” the statement said. “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.”
Deputies responded to a call Saturday from Wyatt Brooks that he and his brother had been attacked by a mountain lion in a remote area of Georgetown, in northern El Dorado County, where they had been combing a forested area for deer antlers, officials said.
Wyatt Brooks suffered “traumatic injuries” to his face and was separated from his brother during the attack, according to a news release from the sheriff’s office. Emergency responders first located and began treating Wyatt Brooks, before finding the mountain lion crouched next to his slain brother. Officials shot toward the animal, scaring it off.
Officials with the Department of Fish and Wildlife and an El Dorado County trapper later shot and killed the mountain lion, which remained within “close proximity” of where the attack occurred, said Sgt. Kyle Parker, with the sheriff’s office. The body of the animal was taken in for examination to “figure out why the attack occurred,” Parker said.
Taylen Brooks worked with his father painting houses and cutting firewood.
“He truly enjoyed fishing and was an extremely talented guitar player,” the family said in the statement. “He was a very kind and gentle soul and will be deeply missed by all who knew him.”
Plans for a memorial have not yet been finalized, the family said Monday.
Wyatt Brooks, who was training to become a firefighter, underwent multiple surgeries for his injuries and is expected to make a full recovery, officials said.
The Brooks family has set up an online fundraiser in memory of Taylen Brooks and to support Wyatt Brooks.
The state’s last known deadly attack by a mountain lion was in 2004, when a puma in Orange County killed 35-year-old cyclist Mark Reynolds. Before that, another attack occurred in El Dorado County in 1994, when Barbara Schoener, a jogger, was killed on a trail in the Sierra foothills.
Fatal attacks by the animal remain very rare, but wildlife officials say encounters between humans and mountain lions are expected to increase as the cats’ habitat shrinks and human development continues to spread into wilderness areas.