Conservation officers are on the search for a buck with an arrow in its torso in a busy urban area of Saanich.
The BC Conservation Officers Service has received several calls reporting a deer with an arrow spotted in Greater Victoria, the service told Black Press Media in a written statement.
“The buck is mobile at this time; however, conservation officers are actively looking for the animal. COs will assess the deer and attempt to intervene and remove the arrow if they are able to safely do so,” the statement reads.
The blacktail deer was photographed on Sunday (Oct. 29) near McKenzie Avenue and Blenkinsop Road, and the photo shared on social media shows the buck standing roadside with an arrow hanging from its torso. The animal also appears to have a significant wound.
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“(It’s) really sad that people are obviously injuring deer for fun,” said Leo Spalteholz, among those who called conservation after seeing the deer Sunday morning. Alternatively, he suggested it would be a “really unskilled hunter.”
Saanich bylaws allow for firing arrows from a draw bow only for recreational archery purposes and prohibit crossbow use within the urban containment boundary with some exceptions that do not include hunting.
“While there are legal areas of bow hunting in rural areas of Greater Victoria and the Saanich Peninsula, COs are investigating whether the deer was legally hunted,” the conservation service said.
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No hunting is permitted within 100 metres of a house, school, farm building or a regional park.
Too difficult to start describing locations as there are also local bylaws at play.
The province asks residents to use the RAPP (Report All Poachers and Polluters) Hotline at 1-877-952-7277 or rapp.bc.ca to report suspected violations of human-wildlife conflicts where public safety may be at risk and injured or diseased wildlife.