Three More Transplanted Woodland Caribou Die

Three more of the 19 endangered woodland caribou transplanted this spring from Canada to northeastern Washington have died, wildlife officials said.

Two others died last month, bringing the total loss to five, the state Department of Fish and Wildlife said.

The dead caribou were located by “mortality signals” emitted by radio collars once they stopped moving for several hours, department spokeswoman Madonna Luers said Wednesday.

The causes of death are not certain, but evidence suggests that one may have died in a fall and another may have been killed by a bear, the department said. State wildlife biologists tracking the adult caribou also spotted two more calves. With one calf seen in June, the known total is three, the department said.

The woodland caribou is the most endangered large mammal in the United States, according to the department. The animal is found only in the Selkirk Mountains of northeastern Washington and North Idaho.

Habitat loss and over-hunting early this century reduced the Selkirk population to about 25 animals by the early 1980s. Wildlife officials began transplanting some caribou from Canada in 1988 and the Selkirk population is now estimated at 67.