A hunter stumbled on a gruesome scene south of Powell this month: about 30 dead game birds dumped on private land. The Wyoming Game and Fish Department is now looking for help identifying those responsible for the crime.

The birds were illegally dumped at a state-leased hunting walk-in area on farmland near Penrose. Walk-in area #2 — known as the Alamo to local hunters due to a southwest-style home nearby — has been enrolled in the walk-in area for a long time, allowing game bird and deer hunters access to the private land.

The birds were dumped sometime between April 8-10, said Chris Queen, Powell area game warden for the Game and Fish. The dead birds included 15 geese, 13 mallard ducks and one rooster pheasant. A predator had been feeding on the carcasses so there’s no telling how many were actually dumped, Queen said.

The dumping of the birds is a violation of Game and Fish waste and abandonment regulations. Queen suspects the birds might have been harvested legally, but then allowed to go to waste prior to dumping them.

“They may have been frozen in a garage and started to smell as the weather started to warm up,” he said.

It’s unclear if the birds were initially harvested out of season. The daily limit for dark geese (Canada goose) is five with a possession limit of 15, and the season in the central flyway ended Feb. 16. The daily limit for ducks is six with a possession limit of 18. Only five can be mallards and only two of those five can be mallard hens. Duck season ended Jan. 12. Pheasant season ended Dec. 31.  The limit is three per day and a total of nine in possession.

Game and Fish officials are looking for witnesses to the crime or information leading to suspects. There might be a reward for tips leading to a successful prosecution of those responsible — and those leaving tips can remain anonymous. Call Queen at 307-899-3124 or the state tip hotline at 1-877-WGFDTIP.