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No ongoing danger to wildlife at Thetis Lake: CRD

There’s no ongoing danger to wildlife at Thetis Lake, despite the discovery of four dead animals in the lake in a two-week period, CRD Parks said Thursday.
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The Capital Regional District says recent water samples do not indicate the presence of toxic blue-green algae in the water at Thetis Lake. DARREN STONE, TIMES COLONIST

There’s no ongoing danger to wildlife at Thetis Lake, despite the discovery of four dead animals in the lake in a two-week period, CRD Parks said Thursday.

The animals were discovered by Noel Frayne, a retired massage therapist, who came across three dead deer in the lower lake and a dead beaver in the upper lake between Dec. 28 and Jan. 10. Frayne sent photos of the animals and screen shots of their locations to the parks department. He was concerned the animals might have been poisoned by toxic blue-green algae in the lake.

In an email, the CRD said recent water samples do not indicate the presence of toxic blue-green algae in the water.

“There are many natural ways animals can end up in water, for example, being chased by predators.”

B.C. Conservation intended to perform necropsies on the animals to determine their cause of death. However, due to the animals’ state of decomposition, that did not take place.

The CRD said it will monitor Thetis Lake Regional Park and its wildlife closely.