A nearly full moon and emergency flares lit Highway 20 near the Oasis the night before Halloween. Upon closer observation, I saw squares of safety glass shimmering on the black asphalt and in the center of the double-yellow line a majestic animal lay bleeding.
I pulled over and exited my car to ask the California Highway Patrol (CHP) officer what happened. He looked sad and tired. The driver of the car that hit the elk was OK, miraculously. The car was being towed off by a flatbed truck and all the windows were shattered, it too bathed in blood.
The image imprinted itself in my mind. Slow down, I thought. We all just need to slow down, particularly in that area. It is advised by the Clear Lake area CHP that the best way to avoid hitting wildlife is by observing a safe speed.
A car and a night were ruined. A driver was lucky to be alive and quite likely was struggling with the emotional anguish that accompanies killing or injuring a living thing.
I asked our outdoor writer Terry Knight about the elk. I saw an amazing huge bull in that area a few weeks back; that was the first time I had the honor of seeing one up close. I always noticed the “Elk Crossing” signs on that stretch of highway. I travel that way often.
He told me that there is an immense concentration of tule elk right there by Cache Creek Wildlife Management area. He said four or five are hit by vehicles each year. I did not know that more than 200 of these giant and beautiful creatures lived right there.
Surely, if I didn”t know that, there were many others who were in the same boat, as news often goes. Man, I did not want to see someone else crash like that, or maybe worse. I also considered that there are many motorcycle enthusiasts who frequently roam the pristine and scenic hills of northern California. There are signs. Just as there are deer crossing signs in many locations, warning drivers. Deer are hit and killed everyday anyway; it”s often unavoidable.
Colliding with wildlife is traumatic and often deadly. Nationally, according to ESPN, auto accidents involving deer total 1.5 million a year. If we are aware of an area that is home to a concentration of animals in our county, that are much larger than deer, and we are aware that those animals are struck by vehicles four to five times per year killing or injuring not only the animals, but often the drivers and passengers of the vehicles, there is a responsibility to the community and to the animals to share that information. That is my opinion.
We are fortunate to have an abundance of wildlife in Lake County including fox, coyotes, raccoons, possums, mountain lions and bear, not to mention beautiful, enormous birds.
The art and responsibility of journalism requires the writer to inform readers and to hold public safety in high regard. It was in the spirit of prevention that I chose to publish a photo and caption about the tule elk, in order that awareness was heightened, to benefit the herd and the people who travel that piece of road.
Though many readers responded saying that they too, had no idea the size of the herd, and said they would travel that road with extra care, some were agitated and thought me insensitive. Quite the contrary is true. I have immense respect for nature and much compassion for all living things. I love animals.
However, I take issue with a society so detached from humanity that there seems to be no compassion whatsoever for a man who was barbarically tortured, tied up, shot and left for dead as described in the article that appeared directly above the photo of the elk.
The elk hit by a car was clearly an accident. Perhaps it could have been avoided if the driver were aware of the concentration of the animals and the incredible size and maybe not.
Following a discussion at our weekly staff meeting, we decided that it is now the position of Lake County Publishing that there will be no more images of injured or dead animals published. I respect that position. But maybe it”s time to re-evaluate what infuriates us as members of the human race and care more about all living things, including our human neighbors.
Mandy Feder is the Record-Bee news editor. She can be reached at mandyfeder@yahoo.com or 263-5636 Ext. 32.
