FWP Warden Captain Jack Austin shared some photos of a dead bull elk he recently inspected in Garfield County. After a closer look, he determined that the bull was probably a victim of natural causes, specifically lightning.
The first clue that pointed to a lightning strike for Captain Austin was the protruding eyeball and, more subtly, the singed hair on its head, the back of his neck and extending in a very narrow band across his shoulder and down the front leg.
The eyeball that was facing up toward the sky was missing (likely from birds), so he did not realize the eye had been popped out until the animal was rolled over.
