125 moose, 500-600 deer killed on roads, tracks

Within 22 days in January, Joyce Burr hit three moose on the roadways in Boundary and Bonner counties. Two died.

The story gets worse.

Burr, 57, of Naples also hit two deer this winter. Both perished after running into the path of her 2003 full-size Ford pickup.

“I've reached a point that I'm afraid to drive,” she said.

The moose Burr hit were among 125 that have died this winter between Sandpoint and the Canadian border on highways, train tracks and from starvation, said Greg Johnson, senior conservation officer with Idaho Department of Fish and Game in Bonners Ferry.

It's also believed that 500 to 600 deer have perished this winter in Boundary County.

The number of elk that have died is a little more difficult to determine, but they too have been killed on on the train tracks and highways, Johnson said.

“I know where at least a dozen (were killed) near McArthur Lake,” he said.

“Train (deaths) are the most common,” Johnson continued. “The highways and trains are probably equally deadly. We have two railroads and highways 95 and 2; both have been really bad.”

Johnson recently investigated the death of a cow moose and a younger moose outside Bonners Ferry near Kootenai National Wildlife Refuge. His best guess is both ate something that didn't agree with them because they were so hungry.

“Their conditions were pretty rough,” he said. “It's been a real tough winter. We've got a lot of animals in tough condition.”

Boundary County Sheriff's Deputy Dave McClelland said he has investigated two accidents involving elk and a record number 12 accidents involving moose this winter. The most recent was Tuesday morning when the driver of a Subaru station wagon hit a 900-pound cow moose on Highway 95 between McArthur Lake and Elmira.

“The moose hit the window and came right in through the windshield,” McClelland said. “It beat him (the driver) up pretty good.”

McClelland blames the high kill on the salt applied by crews to icy roadways, which attracts the animals to the highways.

“I've never seen this many killed before,” McClelland said. “It seems like such a waste. Most are young and not grown to maturity. The only saving grace has been the food banks and meat lockers are overflowing.”

Dead wildlife has consequences.

During last week's open house in Bonners Ferry with Idaho Fish and Game, those attending were told to expect changes in big game seasons.

With the number of moose killed this winter, hunters can expect the availability of fewer moose tags, but not until 2009, according to Jim Hayden, wildlife manager with Idaho Fish and Game Panhandle Region.

“Reductions are coming,” Hayden said during last week's open house in Bonners Ferry to discuss proposed changes to the 2008 big game seasons.

It's too late for this fall, but Hayden expects that fewer moose tags will be available in 2009. For this fall, 284 antlered moose tags will be issued for a total of six, two-week seasons in the Panhandle Region. Another 40 will be issued for antlerless moose.

Johnson said he doesn't expect the wildlife loss to be as bad as the winter of 1996-97, when North Idaho experienced a record 163-inch snowfall.

“We didn't get the deep snow (this winter) until January,” Johnson said. “That year (1996), it started in November. We lost deer all over the region that year. We did lose a lot of elk and cut the seasons back the following year.”

The fall of 1997 saw an elk harvest of 180 animals; 300 were taken the previous year.