Lynx carcasses dumped outside Hay River, ENR wants answers

When Jodie McBryan and her friends made a pit stop outside of Hay River in late April, they made a grisly discovery: a pile of lynx carcasses, fully intact, in a field used to dump chicken waste. 

"All the fur was on them, everything was still there," she said.

"It was a sight I really did not want to see."

• Porcupine caribou meat wastage cases stump Yukon officials

The N.W.T. Department of Environment and Natural Resources is asking for help in finding the party responsible. In total, four whole carcasses and one pelt were found in the field. The penalty for wastage is $575 per pelt. 

The elusive — though not endangered — cats grow to an adult weight of about 10 kg, or, about the size of a beagle. They are identified by their ear tufts and stubby tails.

The land where the carcasses were found is leased by Polar Egg, a Hay River poultry farm. The company's co-owner, Mike Wallington, said lynxes aren't the only dead wildlife that has been found there. Earlier this week, a bear carcass was also found in the field.

However, according to the department of environment, the person responsible for the dead bear was tracked down. It turned out to be a self-defence kill, and the department issued a warning for the failure to report the incident.

The department of environment is still investigating the dumped lynxes.

"I hope they find out who did this," says McBryan. "I honestly would not understand why someone would want to do that to these glorious animals first of all, and then leave them like that."