Spring 2007
Arrow Verses Gunshot Tips for Field Investigators
The practice of illegally killing big game animals with a firearm during an archery season is widespread. An arrow is often inserted into the bullet wound to make the wound appear as an arrow wound and the game is then tagged with an archery tag. Keeping in mind that arrows “cut” and bullets “crush”, it is usually not too difficult to differentiate a true arrow kill from a staged arrow kill. The violator may think he has gotten away with his deception once he has his trophy
hanging in camp or even at the meat processor. However, the astute investigator may still tag the violator with a citation.
The objective of this article is to provide the field investigator
with a set of observations which may assist in the documentation
and eventual prosecution of this common wildlife violation.