Made up of two distinct herds, Wisconsin’s elk management and reintroduction is quickly becoming yet another conservation success story. With hopes of establishing elk across their historic range, many states like Wisconsin have spent nearly three decades working to make that hope a reality.
Elk reintroduction in Wisconsin began back in 1995 when the state’s Department of Natural Resources imported 25 elk to the Clam Lake region in northern Wisconsin. Following that, 150 elk from Kentucky were planted in Jackson County to provide assistance to the original herd and establish a new one in central Wisconsin.
Just like compound interest, those original investments into the elk population have shown the early stages of paying off. In 2018, state officials greenlit the first modern day elk hunt in Wisconsin after the Clam Lake herd exceeded 200 animals in size.
Despite a reported 20 elk deaths in Clam Lake and another 13 in Jackson County since last summer, officials are forecasting that the overall population of elk will still exceed 500 by as early as July. With calving research and surveys being performed during the spring months, official numbers indicate that the Clam Lake herd will consist of roughly 335 elk while neighboring Jackson County’s population is estimated to be between 155 and 160 strong.
Wisconsin’s DNR has allocated just eight tags for the Clam Lake herd this fall with half allocated to state-licensed hunters and the remaining half for Chippewa Tribal hunters. So far, there are no open seasons in Jackson County.
