16 eagles killed, dumped in B.C.
Postmedia Network
First posted: Thursday, April 30, 2015 08:10 PM EDT | Updated: Thursday, April 30, 2015 08:25 PM EDT
Someone is killing eagles and dumping their carcasses in B.C.'s South Cariboo region, conservation officers say.
So far, 16 eagles have been found since April 3, nearly all of them bald eagles, Sgt. Len Butler said. At least four of them were shot; it's suspected others were poisoned.
Many of the birds were found inside garbage bags, "indiscriminately" discarded by the side of a rural road, Butler said. As the snow melts, more are being discovered.
Some of the kills were recent, judging by the lack of decomposition, while other were clearly older. The carcasses have all been sent to a lab for analysis. Butler is counting on the forensics to help explain the deaths.
"We don't have very many leads at this time," he said.
Butler said there have been suggestions the birds were to be used in First Nations ceremonial events or for trafficking in eagle parts, but conservation officers have ruled that out because the birds are "fully intact."
A row of eagles that had been found shot or poisoned in B.C.'s South Cariboo region are pictured in this handout photo. Handout/Postmedia Network
16 eagles killed, dumped in B.C. | Canada | News | Toronto Sun
Postmedia Network
First posted: Thursday, April 30, 2015 08:10 PM EDT | Updated: Thursday, April 30, 2015 08:25 PM EDT
Someone is killing eagles and dumping their carcasses in B.C.'s South Cariboo region, conservation officers say.
So far, 16 eagles have been found since April 3, nearly all of them bald eagles, Sgt. Len Butler said. At least four of them were shot; it's suspected others were poisoned.
Many of the birds were found inside garbage bags, "indiscriminately" discarded by the side of a rural road, Butler said. As the snow melts, more are being discovered.
Some of the kills were recent, judging by the lack of decomposition, while other were clearly older. The carcasses have all been sent to a lab for analysis. Butler is counting on the forensics to help explain the deaths.
"We don't have very many leads at this time," he said.
Butler said there have been suggestions the birds were to be used in First Nations ceremonial events or for trafficking in eagle parts, but conservation officers have ruled that out because the birds are "fully intact."
A row of eagles that had been found shot or poisoned in B.C.'s South Cariboo region are pictured in this handout photo. Handout/Postmedia Network
16 eagles killed, dumped in B.C. | Canada | News | Toronto Sun
