The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation congratulates the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) on its decision to institute Wisconsin’s first-ever managed elk hunt later this year.
“This is the culmination of more than two decades of elk-related conservation work,” said Blake Henning, RMEF chief conservation officer. “RMEF has been involved with reintroduction efforts in Wisconsin dating back to 1995 and continues to put funds on the ground to benefit the state’s elk herds and elk habitat.”
The DNR will provide ten bull-only tags for the fall of 2018 within the Clam Lake elk range in north-central Wisconsin. The state’s southern elk range in Jackson County will not be a part of the hunt.
One of the tags will go to a resident via a RMEF raffle designed to generate revenue for elk habitat management, research and monitoring. It is expected to be available for purchase in May.
“This hunt is not only a tribute to the DNR and many other partners but also to our statewide membership including our RMEF volunteers who have worked so hard for so long to raise funds to enhance Wisconsin elk country,” added Henning.
RMEF has two dozen chapters and more than 9,700 members in Wisconsin.
Since 1990, RMEF and its partners completed 455 conservation and hunting heritage outreach projects in Wisconsin with a combined value of more than $8.6 million. Of that total, more than $1.6 million went specifically toward elk reintroduction and other conservation work.
RMEF is standing by to assist with further Wisconsin elk restoration efforts expected in 2019.