ShareElk bring opportunities
W
hether you’re fur ‘em or agin ‘em, the long awaited elk are now at home on the Peck Ranch in Carter County. The Missouri Conservation Commission’s controversial decison to restore elk to the state will brings with it significant problems and exciting opportunities.
The negatives are clear — potential for disease,  property damage [...]

ShareTraveler Web Extra:$3,000 radio collars, funded by Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, will let MDC monitor elk movements
By Jo Schaper
The first elk you see at Peck Ranch in southeast Missouri will most likely be wearing a radio collar with an antenna.
Although Missouri’s first free-roaming elk in 150 years will be exactly that — free roaming — [...]

ShareMDC news release below:
WINONA—Sometimes words simply fail. Missouri Conservation Commission Chairman Becky Plattner was struck speechless this morning as she stood in the blue dawn light atop a remote ridge in Carter County. She was listening to sharp snorts and muted barks coming from a stock trailer holding 34 elk. Overwhelmed by emotion after opening [...]

SharePeople in Shannon, Carter and Reynolds counties eagerly awaiting the arrival of the first Kentucky elk, originally scheduled for tonight into tomorrow April 30 will have to wait a little longer.
by Jo Schaper
The elk event scheduled for tomorrow in Eminence has been postponed at least until May 3, and possibly longer. The status on events [...]

ShareJust exactly what I was doing on the 6th platform of the eight platform Stegall Mountain fire tower, with one hand death-gripping the railing and the other one trying to hold my camera steady had nothing whatsoever and everything to do with elk
Text and photos (except indicated) by Jo Schaper
I don’t like heights. There [...]

ShareThe first group of elk in the MDC elk restoration project are scheduled to arrive in the state on April 30. The 34 elk will complete their 90-day quarantine and final health testing in Kentucky then be transported by a semi-driven livestock trailer to Missouri.
The elk will be released from Kentucky pending approval by [...]

ShareThe following news release from Joe Jerek of MDC follows up on reports of 30% mortality of Kentucky elk currently in captivity before transport to Missouri later this spring.
Elk Update: Current Numbers and Causes of Mortality
Of our original 49 elk captured, 34 remain with others having died from illness or injury. The majority of [...]

ShareSo far, we’ve heard a lot of glowing information about elk trapping in Kentucky.
Here’s another view. In fairness, it is true that live trapping wild animals is always a dicey proposition, and that 100% survival rates are not usually the case. This article, posted February 19, has just come to our attention, courtesy [...]

ShareElk earmarked to form the nucleus of a restored herd in southeastern Missouri have passed one of several health tests necessary before coming to their new home.
A veterinary health workup of elk Jan. 25 marked the start of a 90-day quarantine period to ensure the animals’ health. The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) worked with [...]

ShareJoe Jerek of the Missouri Dept. of Conservation sent along this video of their elk trapping efforts in Kentucky.
Only antlerless bucks and does are being transported for the reintroduction effort in Shannon, Carter and Reynolds County.
Enjoy.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SP-6TA2E9qs