Elk and Crops

Elk and Crops

David Sparks Ph.D.
David Sparks Ph.D.
Idaho hunters are really mad about fish and game killing elk. Some time ago, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife biologist Mark Kirsch had this to say about some elk. “This addiction got the best of at least 250 young elk this winter, including many that had migrated from Union County, in the McKay Creek area southwest of Pendleton.” The elk, 200 of which were calves, died because they had gorged themselves on winter wheat for months

It turns out that the elk, 200 of which were calves, died because they had gorged themselves on winter wheat for months. And now the Idaho Statesman, quoting from the Twin Falls Times News, says that over the course of several months last summer, the Idaho Fish and Game, Magic Valley Regional Office shot 206 elk at night in order to study depredation methods and stop elk from damaging crops. And when that information went public this winter, many sportsmen were livid. Recently, several dozen hunters convened to brainstorm solutions and ask Fish and Game about its depredation program. Conflicts between wildlife and agriculture have become more common in the past 30 years, and shifts in the ag industry are a very significant contributing factor.

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