A Possible Problem With Elk In The Future.

[Quillback]

If you want to protect songbirds, focus on domestic cats.

[West Fork Jason]

Wisco tried to introduce a season on feral cats, didn't make it though... I probably would have gotten a new tack driver if it had!

Back on topic, I saw my first elk from the Clam Lake herd (that was reintroduced) in the yard during new years eve this year. I still have song birds...unless the wolves have gotten 'em all?

[Feathers and Fins]

There is a Cat Season it is in the regs under the SSS season..

[bfishn]

Sometimes, in order to get a clear picture of how things are, it helps to have a clear picture of how things were. With this topic in mind, one needs to go back to before the railroads needed timber, and the Ozarks became settled and 'improved'.

In 1818 and 1819, Henry R. Schoolcraft made a circuitous journey from Potosi, Mo. to the White River, and south into Arkansas. His Journal of a Tour into the Interior of Missouri and Arkansaw tells that tale as many here might enjoy. Don't be surprised if the only things you recognize are river and place names...

You can find the entire text online at;

http://clio.missouristate.edu/FTMiller/LocalHistory/Schoolcraft/schcrftcomplete.htm

[jdmidwest]

I keep telling JD he needs to wall off his property. About 8 feet high ought to do it. Maybe some strategically placed arrow slits ad a drawbridge.

I think you have to go higher than 8 ft for an Elk. They are hi fence critters.

Everyone seems to think the Elk are great things to bring back to a place where they have not been for 200 years. But there are those that did not think it was a great idea. Just pointing out some of the new problems that they have discovered in other areas of the country where they have moved into. Of course, they would not be in that area if it was not for the ole GW of the planet.

[jdmidwest]

Wisco tried to introduce a season on feral cats, didn't make it though... I probably would have gotten a new tack driver if it had!

Back on topic, I saw my first elk from the Clam Lake herd (that was reintroduced) in the yard during new years eve this year. I still have song birds...unless the wolves have gotten 'em all?

Traps work better, feral cats tend to be nocturnal. I keep that species under control.

BTW, I enjoy the little titmouses. Cool name. I watched them carry off a half of bowl of dry dog food out on the farm a few months ago. Don't know where they were carrying it or what they were doing with it, but they sure were packing it one lump at a time.

[stlskyline]

Thanks Bfishn for the link.. That was a good read..Good thing they did not have to take on some Osage...they would have been done.

[Al Agnew]

The elk herd around the upper Buffalo has been there for a while, with no apparent ill effects on songbirds that I'm aware of. I don't think they've spread very far, either.

If the elk population explodes, all we gotta do is reintroduce wolves. The Montana ranchers and some of the hunters are sure convinced the wolves have wiped out the elk around here.

[ozark trout fisher]

I think you have to go higher than 8 ft for an Elk. They are hi fence critters.

Everyone seems to think the Elk are great things to bring back to a place where they have not been for 200 years. But there are those that did not think it was a great idea. Just pointing out some of the new problems that they have discovered in other areas of the country where they have moved into. Of course, they would not be in that area if it was not for the ole GW of the planet.

I think your points would be really valid....if the MDC was planning to eventually grow the elk population to 5 or 10,000. But they will never reach 1/10 of that number before hunting seasons are opened to reduce the heard back to the desired size. And a population of a few hundred elk would have to be considered one of the smallest threats in existence to native Ozark species.

Elk, by their very nature, are always going to be a species that we can manage very easily. They're big and obvious, and their population is going to grow a lot slower than say, river otters. If the population grows large enough to cause any kind of significant problems we can reduce it back to the intended size very easily. Just send in a few of those people from the area that I know are itching to bring home some elk meat even now.

And one final thought.....I agree that most of the Ozark region is radically different from what it was when elk originally lived here. But if there is one area that is probably not all that different, it's Peck Ranch. I love the way it's managed. They clear-cut and burn frequently and intelligently to simulate what i was like when wildfires were allowed to burn unchecked. It makes it hell to hike through in many areas (SO MANY THORNS) but you know at the end of the day that it allows there to be additional food and cover for wildlife. Because of that (in addition to the much less natural and visually attractive food-plots) there is so much more habitat available for all species. A small elk population isn't going to drastically throw that off.

[Jerry Rapp]

LOL! at this post. Must be a record of "I think" comments. As I said before on the Elk issue, "I think", the Elk money could be spent a lot more wisely on other issues. Carry on.