Thousands of elk, deer and antelope have been migrating out of northwestern Colorado due to hard winter conditions and many have died of starvation, forcing state wildlife managers to consider cutting the number of hunting licenses they issue by more than 40%.
Deep, hard-packed snow covering rangeland already devastated by drought has made it difficult for these animals to find enough food, forcing many to graze along roads as they move, Colorado Parks and Wildlife managers announced Tuesday morning. Vehicle collisions with wildlife this past winter also took an exceptional toll.
Semi-trucks whizzing east from Utah into Colorado along U.S. 40 plowed through antelope herds and killed more than ten on at least four occasions, CPW officials said.
