CLARISSA, Minn. — An investigation is underway after a conservation officer found a dead sandhill crane lying next to a nest with eggs in central Minnesota.
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) confirmed the investigation on Monday, saying that the crane is believed to have been shot from the roadway in Germania Township, just northeast of Clarissa in Todd County. Officials with the DNR say two eggs located in a nearby nest were also casualties from the shooting.
DNR spokesman Joe Albert tells KARE 11 a tipster who reported the incident described hearing two shots before discovering the bird deceased.
Sandhill cranes are a protected species in Minnesota, according to the DNR, but it is legal to hunt them in some parts of the state during sandhill crane hunting season, which begins in September and extends into October.
Anyone with information is asked to call the tips hotline at 800-652-9093 or send an anonymous tip by texting MNTIP to 847411.
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