Yahoo! News Fri, Mar 12, 2004
Elk Leave Area Plagued by Mystery Deaths
RAWLINS, Wyo. - Elk are starting to move out of an area where nearly 300 have died from mysterious causes in the past month.
The herds recently began migrating south from the Red Rim Wildlife Habitat Management Area near Rawlins toward Atlantic Rim and their spring and summer ranges, said pilot Dwight France, who has been monitoring the elk for the Wyoming Game and Fish Department.
During a recent flight, dozens of elk carcasses could be seen from the air. At least 289 elk have died or been euthanized since early last month as the result of an ailment that left many unable to get up, Game and Fish spokesman Tom Reed said.
It remains unclear how many other elk could be affected. The area they were found in is rugged and steep, meaning some animals could be hidden from view in deep washes and gullies, Reed said.
Researchers and veterinarians at the Wyoming Veterinary Lab in Laramie, meanwhile, are continuing to probe the deaths.
A number of possibilities have been ruled out, but researchers found lichen from the area in the stomachs of several elk and are now feeding the lichen to other elk to determine its potential effects, Game and Fish veterinarian Walter Cook said.
"We think that it is at least a possibility," he said. "I wouldn't say it is a high probability."
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