Reservation road kill off limits for non-tribal members
Megan Strickland
Aiden and Nateus Hewankhorn sit in the back of a truck with a juvenile black bear claimed by a tribal member after it was struck by a vehicle on
Linda Sappington
Under a new state law that does not apply on the Flathead Reservation, Montana residents will be able to salvage deer, elk, antelope, and moose killed in collisions with vehicles.
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FLATHEAD RESERVATION — Twenty-two big game animals were scraped from Montana highways and salvaged for the dinner table last week, but it’s unlikely any scenes from the Roadkill Cafe played out in Lake County.
“The law does not apply to tribal lands,” Fish Wildlife, and Parks spokesman Tom Palmer said of new regulations that went into effect Nov. 26 which allow deer, elk, antelope or moose killed in vehicular collisions to be salvaged. “We have talked with a couple of tribal governments about having a similar process, but none of them have done that.”
Off the reservation, people who take an animal from the roadway must file a permit with Fish Wildlife and Parks within 24 hours of salvaging the animal.
“It’s important to note that if one comes upon an animal that is struck by a vehicle and is injured, only a law enforcement official can legally (kill) it,” Palmer said.
Salvagers must remove the entire animal from the roadway, not just trophy antlers. Meat from the animal must be used for human consumption, but cannot be sold or used for bait. Members of the Montana Food Bank Network do not accept animals killed on the road.
The three elk, 15 whitetail deer, and three mule deer salvaged last week are a few of thousands that die on Montana highways each year. In 2011, more than 1,900 car-animal crashes were reported to the Montana Department of Transportation. More than 7,000 carcasses were removed from the roadway the same year. The carcasses can compound road hazard problems when large predators like bears move onto highways to scavenge and risk being hit.
“We get a pretty steady stream of calls about animal strikes,” Lake County Undersheriff Dan Yonkin said.
Highway patrol officers will respond to the scene of a crash to take a report if more than $1,000 in damage is inflicted upon a vehicle. People can also file a white form report after the fact by themselves.
“As far as individuals getting hurt, we don’t see a lot of that,” Yonkin said. “The deer are the ones that take the brunt of most crashes ... Pretty much, they just stay where they are unless someone comes along that is tribal, then they can take it.”
On the Flathead Reservation, only tribal members are allowed to take road-killed animals. On Oct. 19, young Winter Gopher, Aiden Hewankhorn, and Nateus Hewankhorn spent the day mesmerized by a juvenile black bear that was struck by a car on Highway 35 and salvaged by a tribal member.
The boys said they nicknamed the animal Blue Bay, after the campground it was brought to.
