elk

A trio of conservation groups on Thursday asked the Ninth Circuit to revive their bid to block a timber project in the Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest in Montana.

Elk management is challenging, as one new Fish and Wildlife commissioner is learning. But some sportsmen think it could be improved by changing the season-setting process.

A domestic elk that escaped from an eastern Idaho domestic elk facility and was killed by a hunter outside of the facility’s fence has tested negative for chronic wasting disease, state officials said.

Resident hunters are hoping to reverse a 2023 law that gives free deer and elk licenses to nonresident landowners just because they own large properties.

JW Westerman writes, "Sen. Wylie Galt has brought his latest elk slaughter bill, SB 270. It should be titled the “Galt Family Protection Act,” because the Galts sell trophy bulls, period!"

Nick Gevock writes, "We will either maintain our decades-long tradition in which everyone has equal opportunity to enjoy our public wildlife, or we hand control to a handful of wealthy landowners and outfitters to pick who gets to hunt."

Greg Munther writes, "Instead of encouraging a small few to slaughter an ungodly number of elk, we should be focusing on how to get more hunters more opportunities to harvest a public resource and fill their freezers."

According to FWP biologists, the bull elk in southeast Montana was showing symptoms of the disease in mid-October and appeared very thin and lethargic.

Researchers are considering the many ecological factors that impact the species, including predator roles, habitat changes, population distribution and human modifications to the landscape.

A Montana court has reaffirmed that landowners can’t automatically kill wildlife just because their property is damaged