A decapitated Formosan sika deer — classed as extinct in the wild by the International Union for Conservation of Nature — found in the park’s Longzaipu Meadow (籠仔埔) on Sunday was probably killed by trophy hunters, Kenting National Park officials said on Tuesday.
The hindquarters — which yield the best cuts of meat — were untouched, while the deer’s head was severed at the neck, park officials said.
A group of scientists commissioned by the park to conduct research on wild birds stumbled upon the carcass in a boundary zone between the park and a public cemetery, officials said.
Photo: Tsai Tsung-hsien, Taipei Times
A Kenting local might have been paid to kill a deer and take the head as a trophy, which could explain why the carcass was found in a remote part of the park that has many deer, but few park patrol officers, officials said.
The park’s population of Formosan sika deer is the result of a two-decade conservation effort, officials said.
There are more than 2,000 deer in the park, but the success of the program has also led to some problems, such as deer killed by cars, stray-dog attacks or from being immobilized by fences, and farmers have also complained of deer eating their crops.
The park plans to control the deer population by working with the Pingtung University of Science and Technology to develop a contraceptive shot, which should be completed by late next year, officials said.
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