One of Europe’s biggest populations of wild reindeer has suffered a blow.
Last week, 318 reindeer in Norway’s Hardangervidda National Park died all together in a storm, reports the AFP. Five more were put down due to the severity of their injuries. Their bodies were found on Aug. 26.
Kjartan Knutsen, an official from the Norwegian Environment Agency, told the AFP there were strong storms in the area that day. Lightning appeared to struck them all at once, he said, as reindeer huddle together in bad weather.
The park has around 8,000 wild reindeer, a quarter of the country’s total population.
