POCATELLO — Idaho Fish and Game officers killed two moose Friday morning after the animals were found lingering in an open patch of land inside the Interstate 15 and Interstate 86 system interchange in Pocatello, according to the agency.
The cow and bull moose were standing in a triangle of open space wedged between the two busy interstates, Fish and Game said. Even if left alone, the moose would have had to cross lanes of traffic to get out. The meat from both animals was donated to local families.
Moose turning up in towns and cities is nothing new in East Idaho, according to Fish and Game. The agency regularly responds to reports of moose in neighborhoods, shopping centers, cemeteries, golf courses, near schools and on busy roadways. Most of the time, the animals either leave on their own or are captured and relocated. The cow killed Friday wore an ear tag showing she had been moved from the Chubbuck area just last year.
This time, location and the risk to drivers made relocation too dangerous, Fish and Game said. Sedatives used to immobilize moose and other large animals don’t take effect immediately. A darted animal will often bolt and run a substantial distance before the tranquilizer takes hold. With traffic on every side of the triangle, a darted moose could have run in front of oncoming motorists.
“Decisions like this one are not made lightly,” Fish and Game Regional Conservation Officer Tim Klucken said in a news release. “None of us enjoy having to take these kinds of actions, but public safety comes first. As sad as it is to have to kill two moose, sadder still would be injuries or loss of human life if a motorist had collided with one of these animals.”
The danger is real. In September, Dr. Mark Baker, a well-known 66-year-old oral surgeon from Pocatello, was killed after his car struck an elk standing in the northbound lanes of Interstate 15 south of Malad. That same month, three vehicles were involved in a crash with a moose on Interstate 86 in Power County, injuring some of the people involved. And earlier this month, a motorcyclist suffered serious injuries when he collided with a bear on state Highway 31 near Swan Valley.
Klucken urged drivers to stay alert this time of year.
“Right now we have changing weather and breeding behaviors that are causing big game to move,” he said. “Keep an eye out for wildlife near roadways, especially in the early morning and at night when animals are often more active and harder to see. Don’t hesitate to contact Fish and Game or other law enforcement if you see a dangerous situation like the one we had with these moose on the system interchange in Pocatello.”