2nd kill site for protected caribou prompts N.W.T. wildlife officials to ask for public help

For the second time in a week, N.W.T. wildlife officers are investigating the slaughter of protected caribou.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources said in a news release that its officers had found the carcasses of eight Bathurst caribou on Friday.

The department reported "significant suspected wastage" of meat, with one of the caribou left almost fully intact.

Bathurst caribou are protected by a mobile zone that moves with the herd and prohibits people from hunting it. The herd's size has fallen dramatically over the past 30 years, from about half a million animals to just 6,200.

The kill site is by Aylmer Lake, about 360 kilometres northeast of Yellowknife. It was discovered after wildlife officers received reports alleging caribou had been illegally harvested.

The department is asking anyone with information about this to call its North Slave office at 867-873-7181.

The discovery came in the same week that wildlife officers descended on autsel K'e Dene First Nation culture camp as part of an investigation into the harvest of 10 other Bathurst caribou.

The department reported significant meat wastage at thekill site that prompted that investigationas well.