Death Valley National Park: Tragic Discovery of Five Wild Burros Fatally Shot

By Rebekah Riess and Zoe Sottile | CNN

Federal officials are investigating after five wild burros were found shot and killed in Death Valley National Park earlier this week.

In a Thursday news release, park officials made clear it is illegal to fire a gun in a national park, and said the animals’ abandoned carcasses “also endanger native wildlife who inadvertently ingest toxic lead shot when feeding on the dead animals.”

Burros are a close relative of donkeys derived from the African wild ass, according to the National Park Service. The equines are not native to North America and are considered an invasive species. Their populations grow approximately 20% per year, compete for scarce resources with native wildlife like bighorn sheep and can damage the native vegetation, the service says.

While public land managers have been working to remove the animals from the “sensitive desert environment,” the news release says the five burros killed were not part of any internal removal efforts. “Park officials say these irresponsible actions are not warranted,” the release goes on.