Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Enforcement agents cited a Louisiana man and a juvenile on April 3 in Acadia Parish for allegedly shooting two endangered whooping cranes.
After an almost two-year investigation, agents cited Kaenon A. Constantin, 25, and a juvenile from Rayne, for violating the Endangered Species Act, hunting from a public road and obstruction of justice.
The cranes were found just south of Rayne off of Hwy. 35 and Hains Hwy. on the afternoon of May 20, 2016. The cranes were recovered and sent in for a necropsy, which revealed they were both shot.
Through the course of the investigation, agents determined that Constantin and the juvenile shot the two whooping cranes with .22 caliber rifles from an ATV on a public road.
Agents seized two .22 caliber rifles and an ATV in connection with the violations.
Violating the Endangered Species Act brings up to a $50,000 fine and a year in jail. Hunting from a public road carries up to a $15,000 fine and six months in jail. Obstruction of justice brings up to 10 years in jail.
Wildlife and Fisheries has released 125 whooping cranes since 2011 and are currently tracking 66 whooping cranes. The cranes, in this case, were released in December of 2015.
