Wildlife

Troopers investigate 4 moose shot, left unsalvaged along Richardson Highway corridor

Alaska Wildlife Troopers are investigating the deaths of four bull moose found shot and left with their meat unsalvaged along the Richardson Highway corridor in Alaska's Interior on Thursday.

On Thursday, wildlife troopers based in Fairbanks received a report of two sub-legal bull moose shot and left near the intersection of Fielding Lake Road and the Richardson Highway, north of Paxson, troopers wrote in an online dispatch. Another sub-legal moose was found more than 60 miles to the north, near a Richardson Highway intersection in the Delta Junction area.

A fourth bull moose, this one of legal size, was found floating in Horseshoe Lake, off Transmitter Road on Eielson Air Force Base.

Failing to salvage edible meat of game animals is a crime in Alaska. The charge of "wanton waste" of game meat carries the possibility of a year in jail and a $10,000 fine. Alaska Wildlife Troopers are asking anyone with information on any of the moose to call Alaska Wildlife Safeguard at 1-800-478-3377. Callers can be anonymous.

Michelle Theriault Boots

Michelle Theriault Boots is a longtime reporter for the Anchorage Daily News. She focuses on in-depth stories about the intersection of public policy and Alaskans' lives. Before joining the ADN in 2012, she worked at daily newspapers up and down the West Coast and earned a master's degree from the University of Oregon.

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