flickering pictures

What? Why was a moose in a helicopter? Why did he fall out? And what the heck does “DNR” mean?

The CBC reports:

An endangered moose died as a result of a fall from a helicopter sling, the Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources says.

Department spokesman Dan Davis said veterinarians have confirmed the moose died of blunt force trauma.

“It fell to the ground from the helicopter netting,” Davis told CBC News Monday.

“We don’t know exactly how that happened. But we know there was an equipment malfunction, and that’s being investigated. We just want to make sure that such a thing doesn’t ever happen again.”

It turns out that wildlife officials had tranquilized the moose — one of just 1,000 in Nova Scotia — and were trying to relocate it when it fell out. As for the “DNR,” it apparently stands for Nova Scotia’s “Department of Natural Resources.” My first guess was “Do Not Resuscitate,” making the headline even more grisly. Or funny, if you’re a bad person.

Adding to the ridiculousness, image-conscious officials initially claimed the moose had died of “stress or drugs,” neglecting to mention that it had also fallen out of a helicopter and smashed into the ground. I can understand why they wouldn’t want the public to think they routinely go around dropping endangered species out of their aircraft, but this really makes you wonder how many dropped moose we don’t hear about every year…

Image via The Daily Mail.

• plug this post
  
  • Digg
  • del.icio.us
  • Facebook
  • NewsVine
  • Reddit
  • StumbleUpon
  • Technorati