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Elk restoration to begin in Southern Missouri..

Started by chain, November 14, 2010, 08:05:57 PM

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chain

Despite heavy opposition from Missouri Farm Bureau the MDC forges a plan to release 150 head of Elk in a three county area encompassing nearly 346 square miles.

Opposition lists danger to the driving public, disease risk to cattle herds, and economic risks to landowners.

The question is, can a healthy, fast-growing herd of Elk be contained?

If it is like other wildlife restoration projects the MDC has been hughly successful with such as white-tailed deer, otter, turkey, and beaver...Missouri will soon have it's really, really, 'big- animal' hands full! :o

 

log cutter

After they restore the elk then they will get the bright idea let's bring some wolves. If they don't bring wolves maybe they can round up the extras and reintroduce them back into areas were the wolves have destroy the population.

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fishpharmer

Welcome to the ForestryForum log cutter!!  How's the log cutting business up your way?

You make a good point.

Now I think Kentucky has done an Elk reintroduction which is touted as a success by its Wildlife Officials, for what that is worth.   Anyone from KY want to weigh in on this? 
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WH_Conley

I guess they are doing really good. Several tags are issued per year now. Several counties to the south of me.
Bill

chain

Will rutting bull Elk travel far? Seems I remember years ago bull Elk were killed in the Missouri river bottoms near Nebraska, far from its known habitat.

CX3

Well I have to say that this missouri boy is pretty happy about the new elk herd coming to town.  I think it is awesome to bring a native animal back to its range and hopefully get to hunt it if they are successful.  I also understand farmer/landowner views and how those type folks could look down on the elk.  But, in the long run I think this will be a great thing. 

Now for the timberwolves they would get treated like the lowly coyote around my place.  22-250, 223, 222, 220, 270, 280, 204, or the hornet, whichever was in the chevy at the time.
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log cutter

 We're logging in part of a burn. It has finally frozen up enough to haul. Plus have a few  jobs lined up for next year.
We have several small herds of elk here but the guys with their game cams are also getting pictures of wolves. So it won't be long and we will be like spots in Id. and Mont. no elk just wolves. No wonder the Canadians were so happy to give them to us.
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chain

We went through this with restoration of the river otter,  new breeding stock of otter came from Louisana. Those critters happened to be overly sexed in nature and reproduced at a much higher rate than northern river otter.

At first, there was quite a publicity show of how lucky we Missourian's were to have one of our old natural species to enjoy and photo; playing, sliding, and all sorts of fun-filled antics were displayed in films and educational seminars for the benefit of this novelty species.

Fast forward twenty years or so, river otter begin to remove trout and small-mouth at alarming rates in important Ozark streams. The 'ol River Otter not satisfied, went on to the ponds and lakes, nice fat catfish and crappie were had and otter populations began to explode! Presently, in near panic, the MDC has a state-wide no-limit trapping season and a landowner all-year "kill-on site" permit.

Consequently, what all this has brought on is an impending challenge from fur-hugger groups with support from CITES [Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species act.] They're claiming uncontrolled harvesting of river otter may have implications in accidental harvest of protected species as, in this case, Sea Otter!

Good luck to the Elk!


pineywoods

Chain, I can tell you about them louisiana river otters. Pair of them moved into my catfish pond, cleaned it out. they will chase down and kill fish just for the sport of it. These had migrated from the river up the small creeks and streams. Tried traps, tried guns, neighbor caught them crossing the road and dispatched them with his truck. They are hard to get rid of.
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Bro. Noble

My eyesight isn't so good and I'm liable to mistake an elk for an otter if I see one on oue place >:(
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fishpharmer

The natural home of an otter should be a zoo. :D  As pineywoods said they will wipe a pond out.
The really cool thing about an otter is that they go for the largest fish first. >:(  I couldn't agree with chain and piney more.

Bro. Noble don't worry about them otters til the fish get big.   :o  Now them stoopid cows might not take kindly about sharing their grass with the elk.
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Sprucegum

Elk Ranching was a big fad here a few years back, an easy way for guys with too much money to get richer quicker  ::)  Then we got CWD and the market for anything Elk dried up  :o The govt made it illegal to kill them or to turn them loose but some of those rich guys found out they couldn't afford to feed them forever.

We now have some small herds of illegal Elk foraging on timber land and community pastures. Their natural predators (wolves) are starting to make an appearance as well.

Once they get on the loose there is no way to tell where they came from - could have been a wild herd drifting down from the mountains  ;)

SwampDonkey

Well, they'll keep the beavers in check so they don't flood the woods as often. The trout around here were fished out by greedy anglers and some streams mucked up by field run off and not honoring stream buffers in woods operations, so they couldn't spawn. Trout can't spawn too well in muck. Brook trout are quite sensitive to water changes, ask anyone that tries to raise them.
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CX3

I think this thread is getting way off course.  Ya the otter is a mischief and was not a great idea for our clearwater trout and smally streams here in missouri.  But on the other hand, I think a nuisance herd of elk would be easier to eliminate than the elusive river otter.  They are not apples and apples. 
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You Better Believe It!

Larry

Missouri can't stand it when Arkansas does something first.  We have our own little elk herd right south of the state line.  Biggest problem is the Yankee tourists parked along side and in the road googling our elk. :D
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