"The deer were found dead in an area 50-80 meters in diameter" Knut Nylend of the Norwegian Nature Inspectorate operations center in Skinnarbu told Norwegian national broadcaster NRK.
Although mass deaths of such proportions are fairly uncommon, a lightning strike is believed to have been the culprit. Both adult animals and calves were reported dead.
"There was an especially heavy thunderstorm in the afternoon. The herd was probably struck dead by the lightning," Nylend said, noting the uniqueness of this case. "This is very special. I've heard of cattle being killed by lightning, but not in such huge volumes," Nylend explained.
Dyretragedie på #Hardangervidda https://t.co/2OZZntnhEI
— Thorsten Fege (@thfege) August 28, 2016
SNO personnel are reported to be working at the site, taking samples of the dead animals. According to Nylend, the corpses lie very close together, which is why a lightning strike is suspected.
Samples of the dead animals' blood and tissue will be examined for chronic wasting disease (CWD), which was detected in both Norwegian reindeer and elk earlier this year.
"We will seize this opportunity to check if there are infected animals," Nylend said.
The mountain plateau Hardangervidda in central southern Norway is the largest of its kind in Europe. Much of the plateau is protected as part of Hardangervidda National Park, which has a population of around 10,000 wild reindeer, one of the largest of its kind, according to the Norwegian Wild Reindeer Centre.
Pristine landscape in #Hardangervidda with 30 public huts and endless trails to hike in the heart of #Norway. pic.twitter.com/2WhltjsFW3
— TravelEchoes (@TravelEchoes) August 25, 2016