One of the ways Game Commission biologists currently are accomplishing elk population management goals is through a multi-year elk calf study, which is providing more details and insight into elk calf movements, dispersal, habitat usage and survival.

The study's findings are expected to improve the management and understanding of Pennsylvania's elk herd, which is America's oldest reintroduced, free-ranging elk population east of the Mississippi River.

"We have completed putting collars on elk calves and are beginning the third year of data collection," said Jon DeBerti, Game Commission elk biologist. "This year, 29 calves were captured and 28 were fitted with radio collars. These collars contain a mortality function to help determine where and when elk calves die. Of the 29 calves, 14 were males and 15 were females. The average weight was just over 43 pounds, and the average age was 3 days."

Of the 29 calves captured this year, three have died. The Penn State University Animal Diagnostics Laboratory examined the animals, but no clear cause of death could be determined.

"The annual survival rate from the 37 previously captured calves - 22 in 2005 and 15 in 2006 - was 89 percent. The four deaths documented during the first two years of the study were determined to be illegal harvest, legal harvest, pneumonia and one unknown. With this high survival rate, we believe our 2007 fall elk population estimate will be more than 700 animals."

The Game Commission last performed elk calf survival field studies in the mid-1990s. During the four-year study, which started in 1993, 30 calves were monitored; 71 percent of the collared calves survived their first year. Pennsylvania's elk population has doubled in size over the past decade and now numbers 600 to 650, excluding whatever calf recruitment occurred this year.

"We had planned to follow these collared elk throughout their lives to get better information on the survival of calves and yearlings and, ultimately, to improve our elk population modeling, which is used to determine herd growth," said Tony Ross, Game Commission Northcentral Region Wildlife Management supervisor. "However, the collars fell off earlier than expected, mostly during the following August. Consequently, we are planning to conduct a future study focusing on yearling survival. For instance, brain-worm appears to be most prevalent in yearlings, and it is possible there's more brain-worm mortality than we've been able to ascertain. Time and telemetry will tell."

The wild elk inhabiting Pennsylvania today are descendents of 24 released in Cameron County in 1915, and 10 released in Elk County between 1924 and 1926. A total of 177 elk - mostly from Yellowstone National Park - were released in 10 counties from 1913 to 1926, and served as a breeding base for what was hoped would develop into a population that could sustain hunting. But things didn't work out.

Although hunting seasons were provided from 1923 to 1931, and some bull elk were taken by hunters, the animals quickly disappeared from almost everywhere but Elk and Cameron counties, which was, coincidentally, where the state's last elk holed up before the species became extirpated in Pennsylvania around the time of the Civil War.

Elk were found throughout Pennsylvania prior to its colonization. Their numbers declined as civilization advanced, mostly as a result of deforestation and unregulated and commercial hunting. Elk were scarce in most areas by the beginning of the 1800s. They were protected in the Commonwealth from 1932 until the state held its first modern elk hunt in 2001.

For more information about the ongoing elk study, look for a copy of the upcoming November 2007 issue of Pennsylvania Game News at your local newsstand, or order a subscription by calling 1-888-888-1019 (toll-free).

To see more information on elk in Pennsylvania, including a copy of the Game Commission's elk management plan and video clips of elk, visit the Pennsylvania Elk webpage.

8/3/2007