Tag: elk range

Quotas for Michigan Elk and Bear Seasons

Michigan hunters will have more elk licenses available but fewer bear licenses, as the Natural Resources Commission set regulations for the upcoming seasons at its April 5 meeting in Lansing.  The Department of Natural Resources (DNR) will make 200 elk licenses available, an increase of 45 from 2011.  “We have more elk than we did last year, so we can offer more hunting opportunity while working toward our population goal,” said DNR deer and elk program leader Brent Rudolph. Read more

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Michigan’s New Elk Management Plan Approved

Michigan’s current elk herd is the result of a release of seven animals from “various city parks and public institutions” (Stephenson 1942) in 1918 about three miles southeast of Wolverine. The herd grew steadily with estimates of 300-400 in 1939 (Shapton 1940) and 900 to 1,000 in 1958 (Moran 1973).

…while no formal objective has been defined for bull-to-cow ratio in the Michigan herd, it is believed that about 60 bulls to 100 cows is most desirable. This is about twice as many bulls to 100 cows as are in many western herds.

A new Elk Management Plan was approved by Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Director Rodney Stokes at the April 5 meeting of the Natural Resources Commission (NRC) in Lansing. The plan was developed to provide guidance for managing elk by focusing on three goals:

1)      Manage for an elk population that can be sustained by available habitat;

2)      Use hunting as the primary method to control the number of elk; their distribution so that difficulties involving elk interactions with people are abated; and the proportion of males to females in the population; and

3)      Enhance the public’s understanding of elk management in Michigan.

The planning process began Read more

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