Sundre and Olds Fish and Wildlife officers are asking for public help in catching poachers who have killed numerous animals in recent days.
Officer Adam Mirus says about five deer and several moose and elk have been shot and left in the Sundre-Olds district since hunting season got underway on Nov. 1.
“We don't know why they are shooting and leaving these animals,” said Mirus. “I guess there would be various reasons. We see this every year during hunting season.”
There have, in fact, been numerous cases of shot and left animals in the district since August and “the numbers are increasing,” he said.
If the public can provide more information on suspicious vehicles and persons, it will be a big help to officers, he said.
“If they can get a licence plate number or take a photo of the vehicle, that could be very helpful,” he said. “Pretty much everybody's got a cellphone these days and most cellphones have cameras, so if they do see those people, they can take a photo of the licence plate or the people.
“If the public is finding that they are having a lot of traffic in their area, or they are having problems, they need to inform us about it because then we can focus our efforts in those areas.
“We need more public help than we've been getting.”
Anyone seeing suspected poachers is being advised not to approach them, but rather to immediately call the Report-A-Poacher hotline at 1-800-642-3800.
“We are asking people not to take things into their own hands, but to call the hotline. We are asking that people don't confront them,” he said.
Report-A-Poacher program offers rewards of up to $2,000 for information leading to the conviction of poachers, he said.
