Another poached elk found
- Thread starter Csik boatguy
- Start date
GeoShooter
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- Cape Breton
I've never hunted, not against it I just lack patience. How can you tell if an animal was legitimately harvested, or was murdered?
the spank
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Planet Earth Wearing My Tinfoil Hat
I think the term is poached not murdered! Murdered is a term anti 's use because to them harvesting any animal is the equivalent of murder. Murder is what humans do to humans.
Canadian_Zuk
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Pickering, Ontario
The article
A Port Alberni resident's trip into the wilderness last weekend was marked by a grisly discovery when a slaughtered elk was found south of Bamfield.
Bruce MacDonald ventured into the Klanawa Valley 80 kilometres south of Port Alberni with his son for a Sunday fishing trip when they found the abandoned female shortly after noon.
"It looks like it was shot and left on the road," he said. "They cut just the two front legs off and a little bit of the back and left it laying there."
The carcass appeared freshly killed over the previous 24 hours, said MacDonald, who documented the discovery with photographs. Except for some crows lingering nearby scavengers had yet to consume the dead elk.
"I just took the pictures and then carried on and went fishing but I was pretty upset," Mac-Donald said. "I was sick to my stomach when I saw it, both me and my son."
The slaughtered elk was found in the traditional territory of the Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal
Council, and MacDonald's discovery came just over a year after the First Nations' government offered a $25,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of eight other elk poached in late 2013. Those illegal killings also occurred south of Port Alberni, including one carcass found near the Klanawa River.
After the Nuu-chah-nulth announced the reward other organizations put up funds to assist in the search for the poachers, including a $5,000 pledge from B.C. Coastal Outfitters, $2,000 offered by the B.C. Wildlife Federation and a $1,000 reward from Pearson Kal Tire. No arrests related to the poaching have been announced.
Elk poaching is especially concerning considering the decline of herds south of the Alberni Inlet, according to the B.C. Conservation Officer Service.
David Karn, who spoke on behalf of the conservation service, said the recent slaughtered elk is currently being investigated. It's yet to be determined if an illegal kill occurred, he said, as limited elk hunting is permitted in some parts of the Island.
"The protection of the Roosevelt elk is of primary concern, but part of the investigation would be to determine if it was an authorized hunter or not - whether that was limited entry or treaty or aboriginal right to hunt," said Karn. To help control the decline of elk populations on Vancouver Island, witnesses to suspicious incidents concerning wildlife are encouraged to immediately notify authorities at the Report All Poachers and Polluters hotline of 1-877-952-7277.
"It's happened way too much on this Island in the last few years," MacDonald remarked. "I don't know how many of them are left, it's pretty sad."
LINK: htt p://www.avtimes.net/news/local/elk-slaughter-under-investigation-1.1700698
A Port Alberni resident's trip into the wilderness last weekend was marked by a grisly discovery when a slaughtered elk was found south of Bamfield.
Bruce MacDonald ventured into the Klanawa Valley 80 kilometres south of Port Alberni with his son for a Sunday fishing trip when they found the abandoned female shortly after noon.
"It looks like it was shot and left on the road," he said. "They cut just the two front legs off and a little bit of the back and left it laying there."
The carcass appeared freshly killed over the previous 24 hours, said MacDonald, who documented the discovery with photographs. Except for some crows lingering nearby scavengers had yet to consume the dead elk.
"I just took the pictures and then carried on and went fishing but I was pretty upset," Mac-Donald said. "I was sick to my stomach when I saw it, both me and my son."
The slaughtered elk was found in the traditional territory of the Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal
Council, and MacDonald's discovery came just over a year after the First Nations' government offered a $25,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of eight other elk poached in late 2013. Those illegal killings also occurred south of Port Alberni, including one carcass found near the Klanawa River.
After the Nuu-chah-nulth announced the reward other organizations put up funds to assist in the search for the poachers, including a $5,000 pledge from B.C. Coastal Outfitters, $2,000 offered by the B.C. Wildlife Federation and a $1,000 reward from Pearson Kal Tire. No arrests related to the poaching have been announced.
Elk poaching is especially concerning considering the decline of herds south of the Alberni Inlet, according to the B.C. Conservation Officer Service.
David Karn, who spoke on behalf of the conservation service, said the recent slaughtered elk is currently being investigated. It's yet to be determined if an illegal kill occurred, he said, as limited elk hunting is permitted in some parts of the Island.
"The protection of the Roosevelt elk is of primary concern, but part of the investigation would be to determine if it was an authorized hunter or not - whether that was limited entry or treaty or aboriginal right to hunt," said Karn. To help control the decline of elk populations on Vancouver Island, witnesses to suspicious incidents concerning wildlife are encouraged to immediately notify authorities at the Report All Poachers and Polluters hotline of 1-877-952-7277.
"It's happened way too much on this Island in the last few years," MacDonald remarked. "I don't know how many of them are left, it's pretty sad."
LINK: htt p://www.avtimes.net/news/local/elk-slaughter-under-investigation-1.1700698
Last edited:
Brutus
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
Last edited:
Usually by three major questions answered:
1. Is there a season? If there is no season for that animal, then it was likely poached. I have heard of escaped farm elk, boars, etc being hunted out of any season but that was with the Conservation Officer and LEO knowledge.
2. Was only a part taken? If it is a male with only the head or antlers/horns missing, if it is a bear with only the gall missing... then it was likely poached because ethical trophy hunters hunting legally will still remove any useable part of the animal to give free to friends who might need the meat or the like. Not to be confused with a "pack-out loading" where on a back pack hunt we quartered my step-dad's elk and left a bare ribcage & some bones behind with the guts: we did take everything else though.
3. Was it taken with permission? If the animal was shot on a posted No Hunting area, in a wildlife area and/or a park (in other words places hunting is normally banned) then it was likely poached.
I have heard of an "all of the above" situation... poaching is almost certain.
GeoShooter
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- Cape Breton
My apologies if my phrasing wasn't correct, I just feel a poached animal was murdered when not properly used. Taking an animal only for a trophy is not hunting and isn't ethical or sporting.
Great points, Aniest. Thanks for the lesson
Great points, Aniest. Thanks for the lesson
bearkilr
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Nowhere, ......just past the middle
Again your phrasing is incorrect. Trophy hunting isn't poaching as long as someone is making use of the edible meat.
I've seen more than a few "hunters" who were on their way to go elk hunting and just wanted a few steaks. That's, what, less than ten pounds of meat from an elk. I dunno if they meant they were going to be giving the other couple hundred pounds of meat to someone else, or if they were going to do what these poachers did and just abandon it.
longbranch*
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- Victoria,BC.
Thats what I'm thinking. I didn't see any mention of a bullet wound.
Could be. I keep on hearing about deer and moose with the head cut off. When questioned a bit it often turns out that the "poached" animal was lieing in the ditch by a busy highway. Some people just cant drive past a run over deer with the biggest rack they've ever seen and leave it, but others will automatically assume that its poaching related. Others are looking for dog food, or bait and I'm sure that more than a few will whittle off a few steaks from a fresh road kill. Taking the front legs and back-straps sounds funny. Why not the hind-quarters?
Even a bullet-hole doesn't prove much all by itself. Plenty of people won't drive past an injured animal in the ditch without shooting it. I suppose that doesn't meet the letter of the law in some places.
BigUglyMan
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- New Scotland
I make knives so a roadkilled buck in the ditch always looks to me like nice handle material. Same with a winterkill or predator killed animal.
And I wouldn't drive past a wounded animal without dispatching it. Wouldn't be ethical.
blasted_saber
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- A blue part of Ontario
An easy indication would be missing antlers. Also only prime cuts of meat missing.
Makes perfect sense to me.
tylerjwitty
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- Northern Ontario
Ya it seems a little vague on details . Plus its a female so why poach unless you wanted meat in which case you take it all . I am thinking it was hit by a truck in the rear and thus rendering the meat bruised and why the people took the front.
Its what i would have done anyways
Its what i would have done anyways
