Sherlock needed for elk mystery

[MTGomer]

Where did the North Hills elk go?

FWP has graced every Montanan and thousands of NR the opportunity to hunt these elk for 10 weeks on a general tag and will sell an antlerless tag to anyone for private land for a hunt open Aug-Feb.

Knowing this season structure, I’m at a loss for where the elk may have went.

Where'd they go? Half of elk herd missing from spring survey

Most elk hunters know the feeling of seeking but not finding their quarry.

missoulian.com

 

[Bugle 'Em In]

Yeah...I'm struggling to find any connections to the dramatic decrease in the herd size (insert sarcasm here). It's laughable when these biologist discount the low numbers to the elk being displaced in the neighboring hunting district. I wish they'd just be honest and forthright about what's going on.

 

[Nameless Range]

It's interesting, and there are some fun scenarios I run through my mind, like they all got buried in an avalanche, or fell through the ice and are at the bottom of some lake in the Rattlesnake.

I can't read the article due to the paywall, but I have heard folks talking about it.

 

[Rzrbck918]

I know wildlife management is a science with a lot of moving variables but sometimes I wonder about the lack of awareness for what appears to be clear correlations.

 

[LopeHunter]

You know who your master is by simply realizing who you can't speak honestly and critically about to others. I presume there is a lot of pressure with MT government and influencers on various subjects. The upper tier of F&G probably has future funding held in the balance so once they fall in line with external expectations then the culture cascades quickly downstream all the way down to the summer intern. Findings in the herd health and size are easy to determine. Elk are collared and tracked. Mortality is able to be estimated from hunting, predation and weather conditions. Age distribution and calf survival, too. Fly a plane over a few canyons and wintering grounds and can eyeball herd size. Not rocket science.

 

[BigHornRam]

Maybe some of them decided to take advantage of the the good forestry work taking place to the east and move there?

 

[PsRpOiGrRiAtM]

Success was few and far between last year and the year before within my circle of friends and acquaintances. 2 years of long, hard winters (or just "shifted later" winters) was really tough on the local herbivores (antelope, elk, and deer.) The ones that survived had a lot of grass to eat, and water in every coulee and drainage, so they weren't as clustered as they have been, historically. Just some anecdotal observations from my standpoint. I don't know if the populations are drastically down, or whether it's a function of them not being bunched up like they used to be. There always seems to be the regular herds on private lands, so that doesn't ease the frustration about the access issue, either. After putting in for my antelope and deer B tags today, I'm hoping this season will be a little different.