Three elk were ultimately discovered over the weekend, but one of those animals was legally killed, Gibson said. "They found some bones and stuff but it was somebody that had legally harvested the elk and had boned it out, and left the carcass," Gibson said, adding that he believed that animal was a cow elk taken during the shoulder season.

The two confirmed poached animals are believed to have been killed either late Saturday night or early Sunday morning between 10 p.m. and midnight, Gibson said.

Musselshell County residents should contact the sheriff's office if they see anyone spotlighting or see or hear a vehicle traveling back roads at an unusually late time, according to the Facebook post written by Sheriff Shawn Lesnik.

"We have approximately 650 miles of county roads spread over 1871 square miles in Musselshell County, so we need your help watching all that country. We must protect our natural resources. If you have any information about either of these incidents, please call it in," Lesnik said in the Facebook post.

Anyone with information can also call the TIP-MONT poaching reporting hotline at 1-800-847-6668, or call the Musselshell County Sheriff's Office at 406-323-1402.

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