Moose antlers on the loose: Hikers put call out for missing animal shed
A group of hikers from Calgary came across a unique find while exploring in the Alberta Rockies last summer.
At the start of August 2021, James Crawford, along with two friends, hiked Mount Smutwood, in Kananaskis Country, west of Calgary.
“Near the top of the mountain we saw a lot of beautiful sights,” said Crawford, an avid hiker. “(There was) also the remains of a glacier up there, so we went to check that out.”
As they got closer, the group came across something unexpected.
“There was a moose antler. It appeared to have just thawed from the glacier,” said Crawford. “And we looked it over and it wasn't just a shed, there was some skull attached, and some jaw and vertebrae.”
The group left the bones where they were, making sure not to disturb what they'd found.
“(In the parks) just take pictures and leave only footprints,” said Crawford.
According to the province, antlers or any other naturally shed wildlife parts can only be kept without a special permit if they were found outside a national or provincial park.
In national parks, collecting wildlife like berries, fossils or even antlers is illegal. The government says any discoveries should be reported to the nearest park office.
A piece of jawbone and teeth discovered near the antlers. (Courtesy James Crawford)
When it comes to fossils, the Royal Tyrrell Museum says a discovery should be photographed and the location properly documented then reported to officials and left alone.
“It was surprising,” said Lisa Kolias, who was there when the bones were found. “We were excited and shocked to see an antler and the remnants so high up. (You) don't generally see wildlife up that high.”
Kolias described the bones as old and spongy, yet still pristinely intact.
Crawford contacted officials to report the moose remains but he says by the time researchers went to collect them a couple weeks later, the antlers were gone – taken either by animal or human. The other fragments of the moose were still there.
“It’s still important to (the researchers) and so they would like to have it,” said Crawford.
Crawford has put a call out on social media to see if anyone knows the whereabouts of the antlers, and says he would be happy to connect them with the appropriate researchers.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.