Game & Fish issues roadkill reminder

Wyoming Game & Fish is reminding the public that authorization is needed before you are permitted to recover road-killed wildlife – and you may not do so from the interstate.

Obtaining approval to salvage a deer, elk, antelope, moose, wild bison or wild turkey that has been killed due to an unintentional road collision can be done through the Wyoming 511 app or via the Game & Fish website. You can receive authorization through the app even without cellular service.

Recovering roadkill has been legal in Wyoming since 2021, when a bill co-sponsored by Senator Ogden Driskill was passed into law.

The resulting regulations allow for any person who firsts obtain authorization to collect road killed wildlife in accordance with safety guidelines.

These guidelines require that road-killed wildlife may only be recovered during daylight hours and the collection vehicle must be parked at least two feet to the right of the roadway’s solid white line (or at least two feet off the paved or gravel road surface if no white line present).

Emergency flashers must be activated while the vehicle is parked. The entire animal must be removed from the road, including both edible and inedible portions, during the authorized time, and the inedible portions disposed of in an appropriate landfill.

The animal may not be field dressed within the right-of-way.

Upon request, the animal must be presented for inspection to a Game & Fish representative to verify it meets the requirements of the regulations.

The regulations also prohibit roadkill collection from very busy roadways, such as I-90, and from active construction areas and within national parks.