A 5-year-old boy was attacked by a mountain lion in California while picnicking at a park with his family over Labor Day weekend.
Officials with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife told Scripps News that state park rangers and deputies with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Office responded to the attack around 4:20 p.m. PT on Sunday at Malibu Creek State Park, which is located in Calabasas in Los Angeles County.
The young boy was with at least six adults and a few other children at the park. Officials said the children were playing in the nearby vicinity of the family’s picnic table when the mountain lion attacked.
One or more of the adults charged at the mountain lion, and it released the young boy before climbing up into a tree, officials said.
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The boy was airlifted to Northridge Hospital Medical Center for treatment, but his injuries were not considered life-threatening. Officials said he was released from the hospital Monday morning.
The mountain lion remained in the tree until state park rangers arrived at the scene and, deeming the animal a threat to public safety, a ranger shot and killed it.
Officers with the CDFW obtained evidence samples from the victim, which they said is standard protocol, to confirm a DNA match with the mountain lion at the CDFW Forensic Lab in Sacramento.
“CDFW and State Parks officials are thankful that the family is safe, and the child is recovering and no one else was injured,” a CDFW spokesperson said.
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According to data on the CDFW’s website, there have been two confirmed victims of a mountain lion attack this year, not counting the most recent. The attack on two men occurred in El Dorado County, resulting in the death of one of the men — the first fatal attack in 30 years.
In July 2019, the Center for Biological Diversity and the Mountain Lion Foundation petitioned the California Fish and Game Commission to list mountain lions as a candidate species under the California Endangered Species Act. The petition is currently under review.