Two Men Perish In Plane Crash While Researching Wild Moose

University of Idaho graduate student Eric Cox was studying moose when he and a conservation officer died in a plane crash in Minnesota.

Cox, 29, of Harbor Springs, Mich., and state Conservation Officer Grant Coyour, 43, of Bemidji died in the crash of the Department of Natural Resources plane, a 1977 Piper Cub. Coyour was the pilot.

Cox had said shortly before his death that moose reproduction is headed in the right direction after several years of decline.

Cox was working on his doctoral dissertation and headed the Northwest Minnesota Moose Research Project. He planned to wrap up his research this fall.

The plane carrying Cox and Coyour went down in a marsh in the Red Lake Wildlife Management area.

Two paramedics from a Canadian government plane on training exercises parachuted into the area after picking up the emergency transponder beacon. But authorities had to use airboats to reach the partially submerged craft.

Coyour was experienced at flying moose tracking surveys. To track moose, planes typically fly at 200 to 300 feet above the ground.

The cause of the crash has not been determined. The National Transportation Safety Board will investigate.