Elk#Subspecies

{{About|the species called "elk" in North America|the species called "elk" in Eurasia (Alces alces)|Moose}}

{{Redirect|Wapiti|other uses of the names|Elk (disambiguation)|and|Wapiti (disambiguation)}}

{{Speciesbox

| name = Elk

| fossil_range = {{Fossil range|2.5|0}}Early Pleistocene – Recent

| image = Jasper.Wapiti-Hirsch.P1033401.jpg

| image_caption = A bull (male) in Alberta, Canada

| image_alt = Photograph of a bull (male) elk

| image2 = Cow and calf elk (7437504452).jpg

| image2_caption = A cow (female) with calf in Wyoming, United States

| image2_alt = Photograph of a female elk (cow) and her calf

| status = LC

| status_system = IUCN3.1

| status_ref = {{Cite iucn | author1= Brook, S.M. | author2 = Pluháček, J. | author3 = Lorenzini, R. | author4 = Lovari, S. | author5 = Masseti, M. | author6 = Pereladova, O. | author7 = Mattioli, S. | title = Cervus canadensis |errata=2019 | year = 2018 | page = e.T55997823A142396828 | doi = 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T55997823A142396828.en |access-date = 9 September 2020}}

| genus = Cervus

| species = canadensis

| authority = (Erxleben, 1777)Erxleben, J.C.P. (1777). Anfangsgründe der Naturlehre and Systema regni animalis. Göttingen.

| synonyms =

Various Cervus elaphus subspecies

| subdivision_ranks = Subspecies

| subdivision =

| range_map = Wapiti.png

| range_map_caption =

}}

The elk ({{plural form}}: elk or elks; Cervus canadensis) or wapiti, is the second largest species within the deer family, Cervidae, and one of the largest terrestrial mammals in its native range of North America and Central and East Asia. The word "elk" originally referred to the European variety of the moose, Alces alces, but was transferred to Cervus canadensis by North American colonists.

The name "wapiti" is derived from a Shawnee and Cree word meaning "white rump", after the distinctive light fur around the tail region which the animals may fluff-up or raise to signal their agitation or distress to one another, when fleeing perceived threats, or among males courting females and sparring for dominance. A similar trait is seen in other artiodactyl species, like the bighorn sheep, pronghorn and the white-tailed deer, to varying degrees.

Elk dwell in open forest and forest-edge habitats, grazing on grasses and sedges and browsing higher-growing plants, leaves, twigs and bark. Male elk have large, blood- and nerve-filled antlers, which they routinely shed each year as the weather warms. Males also engage in ritualized mating behaviors during the mating season, including posturing to attract females, antler-wrestling (sparring), and bugling, a loud series of throaty whistles, bellows, screams, and other vocalizations that establish dominance over other males and aim to attract females.

Elk were long believed to belong to a subspecies of the European red deer (Cervus elaphus), but evidence from many mitochondrial DNA genetic studies, beginning in 1998, shows that the two are distinct species. The elk's wider rump-patch and paler-hued antlers are key morphological differences that distinguish C. canadensis from C. elaphus. Although it is currently only native to North America, Central, East and North Asia, elk once had a much wider distribution in the past; prehistoric populations were present across Eurasia and into Western Europe during the Late Pleistocene, surviving into the early Holocene in Southern Sweden and the Alps. The now-extinct North American Merriam's elk subspecies (Cervus canadensis merriami) once ranged south into Mexico. The wapiti has also successfully adapted to countries outside of its natural range where it has been introduced, including Argentina and New Zealand; the animal's adaptability in these areas may, in fact, be so successful as to threaten the sensitive endemic ecosystems and species it encounters.

As a member of the Artiodactyla order (and distant relative of the Bovidae), elk are susceptible to several infectious diseases which can be transmitted to or from domesticated livestock. Efforts to eliminate infectious diseases from elk populations, primarily by vaccination, have had mixed success. Some cultures revere the elk as having spiritual significance. Antlers and velvet are used in traditional medicines in parts of Asia; the production of ground antler and velvet supplements is also a thriving naturopathic industry in several countries, including the United States, China and Canada. The elk is hunted as a game species, and their meat is lean and higher in protein than beef or chicken.

Naming and etymology

By the 17th century, Alces alces (moose, called "elk" in Europe) had long been extirpated from the British Isles, and the meaning of the word "elk" to English-speakers became rather vague, acquiring a meaning similar to "large deer". The name wapiti is from the Shawnee and Cree word {{lang|sjw|waapiti}} (in Cree syllabics: {{lang|cr|ᐙᐱᑎ}} or {{lang|cr|ᐚᐱᑎ}}), meaning "white rump".{{cite encyclopedia|title=Wapiti |encyclopedia=The Canadian Encyclopedia |publisher=Historica Canada |url=http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/wapiti/ |access-date=23 December 2016 }} There is a subspecies of wapiti in Mongolia called the Altai wapiti (Cervus canadensis sibiricus), also known as the Altai maral.{{MSW3 Artiodactyla | id = 14200352 | pages = 662–663}}

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the etymology of the word "elk" is "of obscure history". In Classical Antiquity, the European Alces alces was known as {{Langx|grc|ἄλκη|translit=álkē}} and {{Langx|la|alces}}, words probably borrowed from a Germanic language or another language of northern Europe. By the 8th century, during the Early Middle Ages, the moose was known as {{Langx|ang|elch, elh, eolh,}} derived from the Proto-Germanic: *elho-, *elhon- and possibly connected with the {{Langx|non|elgr}}.{{cite web|last=|first=|year=1989|orig-year=1891|title=elk, n. 1|url=http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/60507|url-access=subscription|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210309225208/https://www.oed.com/view/Entry/60507|archive-date=9 March 2021|access-date=January 15, 2021|work=Oxford English Dictionary|edition=2nd}} Later, the species became known in Middle English as elk, elcke, or elke, appearing in the Latinized form alke, with the spelling alce borrowed directly from {{Langx|la|alces|links=no}}.{{cite web|last=|first=|year=2012|title=alce, n.|url=http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/4677|url-access=subscription|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210309225920/https://www.oed.com/view/Entry/4677|archive-date=9 March 2021|access-date=January 15, 2021|work=Oxford English Dictionary|edition=3rd}} Noting that elk "is not the normal phonetic representative" of the Old English elch, the Oxford English Dictionary derives elk from {{Langx|gmh|elch}}, itself from {{Langx|goh|elaho}}.{{Cite book|last1=Mallory|first1=J. P.|title=The Oxford introduction to Proto-Indo-European and the Proto-Indo-European World|last2=Adams|first2=D. Q.|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2006|isbn=|location=|pages=133–134}}

The American Cervus canadensis was recognized as a relative of the red deer (Cervus elaphus) of Europe, and so Cervus canadensis were referred to as "red deer". Richard Hakluyt refers to North America as a "lande ... full of many beastes, as redd dere"{{cite book |last=Hakluyt |first=Richard |author-link= |date=1584 |title=History of the State of Maine. Volume II: Discourse on Western Planting |url=https://archive.org/details/discourseonweste02hakl_0 |location= |publisher=Cambridge Press of John Wilson and Son |page= 23|isbn=}} in his 1584 Discourse Concerning Western Planting. Similarly, John Smith's 1616 A Description of New England referred to red deer. Sir William Talbot's 1672 English translation of John Lederer's Latin Discoveries likewise called the species "red deer", but noted in parentheses that they were "for their unusual largeness improperly termed Elks by ignorant people". Both Thomas Jefferson's 1785 Notes on the State of Virginia and David Bailie Warden's 1816 Statistical, Political, and Historical Account of the United States used "red deer" to refer to Cervus canadensis.{{cite web|last=|first=|year=2009|title=red deer, n. 2|url=http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/160195|url-access=subscription|work=Oxford English Dictionary|edition=3rd}}

Taxonomy

File:Elk Bull in Yellowstone.jpg, Wyoming, USA|thumb]]

File:OPAL TERRACE with elks.jpg, Yellowstone|thumb]]

File:Elk-Wapiti - Banff.jpg, Alberta, Canada]]

File:Sparring Elks.jpg

Members of the genus Cervus (and hence early relatives or possible ancestors of the elk) first appear in the fossil record 25 million years ago, during the Oligocene in Eurasia, but do not appear in the North American fossil record until the early Miocene.{{Cite book | last = Verts | first = B. J. | author2 = Carraway, Leslie N. | title = Land Mammals of Oregon | publisher = University of California Press | date = August 1998 | page = 464 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=8KI1AmzIDnwC&pg=PA464 | isbn = 978-0-520-21199-5 | access-date = 11 May 2020 | archive-date = 16 January 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210116133047/https://books.google.com/books?id=8KI1AmzIDnwC&pg=PA464 | url-status = live }} The extinct Irish elk (Megaloceros) was not a member of the genus Cervus but rather the largest member of the wider deer family (Cervidae) known from the fossil record.{{cite web|title=The Case of the Irish Elk |publisher=University of California Press, Berkeley |url=http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/mammal/artio/irishelk.html |access-date=3 December 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051111051611/http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/mammal/artio/irishelk.html |archive-date=11 November 2005}}

Until recently, red deer and elk were considered to be one species, Cervus elaphus,{{cite iucn |author=Lovari, S. |author2=Lorenzini, R. |author3=Masseti, M. |author4=Pereladova, O. |author5=Carden, R.F. |author6=Brook, S.M. |author7=Mattioli, S. |date=2018 |title=Cervus elaphus |volume=2018 |page=e.T55997072A142404453 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T55997072A142404453.en |access-date=12 November 2021}} with over a dozen subspecies. But mitochondrial DNA studies conducted in 2004 on hundreds of samples from red deer and elk subspecies and other species of the Cervus deer family, strongly indicate that elk, or wapiti, should be a distinct species, namely Cervus canadensis.{{Cite journal | last1 = Ludt | first1 = Christian J. | last2 =Schroeder | first2 = Wolf | last3=Rottmann | first3 = Oswald | last4= Kuehn | first4 = Ralph | year = 2004 | title = Mitochondrial DNA phylogeography of red deer (Cervus elaphus) | journal = Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution | volume = 31 | issue = 3 | pages = 1064–1083 | doi = 10.1016/j.ympev.2003.10.003 | pmid = 15120401 | bibcode = 2004MolPE..31.1064L }} DNA evidence validates that elk are more closely related to Thorold's deer (C. albirostris) and even sika deer (C. nippon) than they are to the red deer.

Elk and red deer produce fertile offspring in captivity, and the two species have freely inter-bred in New Zealand's Fiordland National Park. The cross-bred animals have resulted in the disappearance of virtually all pure elk blood from the area. Key morphological differences that distinguish C. canadensis from C. elaphus are the former's wider rump patch and paler-hued antlers.

= Subspecies =

There are numerous subspecies of elk described, with six from North America and four from Asia, although some taxonomists consider them different ecotypes or races of the same species (adapted to local environments through minor changes in appearance and behavior). Populations vary in antler shape and size, body size, coloration and mating behavior. DNA investigations of the Eurasian subspecies revealed that phenotypic variation in antlers, mane and rump patch development are based on "climatic-related lifestyle factors".{{cite journal |last1=Groves |first1=Colin |title=The genus Cervus in eastern Eurasia |journal=European Journal of Wildlife Research |volume=52 |pages=14–22 |year=2005 |issue=1 |doi=10.1007/s10344-005-0011-5 |bibcode=2006EJWR...52...14G |s2cid=33193408 |url=http://archanth.anu.edu.au/sites/default/files/documents/groves_cervus2005.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20140629063422/http://archanth.anu.edu.au/sites/default/files/documents/groves_cervus2005.pdf |archive-date=29 June 2014}}

Of the six subspecies of elk known to have inhabited North America in historical times, four remain, including the Roosevelt (C. canadensis roosevelti), Tule (C. c. nannodes), Manitoban (C. c. manitobensis) and Rocky Mountain elk (C. c. nelsoni).{{cite web |title=American Elk (Cervus elaphus) |publisher=Natural Resources Conservation Service|access-date=2020-12-02 |url=https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/nrcs143_010000.pdf|url-status=live|archive-date=16 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210116133045/https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/nrcs143_010000.pdf}} The eastern elk (C. c. canadensis) and Merriam's elk (C. c. merriami) subspecies have been extinct for at least a century.{{cite web |last=Gerhart |first=Dorothy C. |title=Skull and Antlers of Extinct Eastern Elk Unearthed at Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge in Northwestern N.Y. |publisher=U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service |url=http://www.fws.gov/historicPreservation/archives/elkBones_012405.html |access-date=2010-12-04 |url-status=live |archive-date=16 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170716132759/https://www.fws.gov/historicPreservation/archives/elkBones_012405.html}}{{cite web|last=Allen |first=Craig |title=Elk Reintroductions |publisher=U.S. Geological Survey |url=http://biology.usgs.gov/s+t/SNT/noframe/sw159.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060927142112/http://biology.usgs.gov/s%2Bt/SNT/noframe/sw159.htm |archive-date=2006-09-27 |access-date=2010-12-04 |url-status=dead }}

Four subspecies described from the Asian continent include the Altai wapiti (C. c. sibiricus) and the Tianshan wapiti (C. c. songaricus). Two distinct subspecies found in China, Mongolia, the Korean Peninsula{{cite thesis |publisher=Incheon National University |date=June 2019 |language=ko |url=https://www.academia.edu/39941384 |type=PhD |title=한반도 포유류(척삭동물문: 포유강)의 분류학적 정립과 한국 지형에 맞는 포유류 조사기법 연구 |trans-title=Studies on the Taxonomic Review and Survey Techniques for Mammals in the Korean Peninsula |page=108}} and Siberia are the Manchurian wapiti (C. c. xanthopygus) and the Alashan wapiti (C. c. alashanicus). The Manchurian subspecies is darker, and more reddish, in coloration than other populations. The Alashan wapiti of northern Central China is the smallest of all the subspecies, has the lightest coloration, and is one of the least-studied.{{cite book| last=Geist| first=Valerius| title=Deer of the World: Their Evolution, Behavior, and Ecology| publisher=Stackpole Books| year=1998| pages=211–219| location=Mechanicsburg, PA| isbn=978-0-8117-0496-0| oclc=37713037| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bcWZX-IMEVkC| access-date=7 January 2019| archive-date=20 July 2020| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200720041353/https://books.google.com/books?id=bcWZX-IMEVkC| url-status=live}}

Recent DNA analyses suggest that there are no more than three or four total subspecies of elk. All American forms, aside from possibly the Tule and the Roosevelt's elk, seem to belong to one subspecies—Cervus c. canadensis; even the Siberian elk (C. c. sibiricus) is, more or less, physically identical to the American forms, and thus may belong to this subspecies, too. However, the Manchurian wapiti (C. c. xanthopygus) is clearly distinct from the Siberian forms, but not distinguishable from the Alashan wapiti. Still, due to the insufficient genetic material that rejects monophyly of C. canadensis, some researchers consider it premature to include the Manchurian wapiti as a true subspecies of wapiti, and that it likely needs to be elevated to its own species, C. xanthopygus.{{cite journal|author=Groves, C.|year=2006|title=The genus Cervus in eastern Eurasia|journal=European Journal of Wildlife Research|volume=52|issue=1 |pages=14–22|doi=10.1007/s10344-005-0011-5|bibcode=2006EJWR...52...14G }} The Chinese forms (the Sichuan deer, Kansu red deer, and Tibetan red deer) also belong to the wapiti, and were not distinguishable from each other by mitochondrial DNA studies. These Chinese subspecies are sometimes treated as a distinct species, namely the Central Asian red deer (Cervus hanglu), which also includes the Kashmir stag.{{cite book |last=Mattioli |first=Stefano |year=2011 |chapter=Family Cervidae (Deer) |pages=350–443 |editor1=Wilson, D. E. |editor2=Mittermeier, R. A. |title=Handbook of the Mammals of the World. Volume 2: Hooved Mammals |publisher=Lynx Edicions |isbn=978-84-96553-77-4}}

North American group
Roosevelt's elk (C. c. roosevelti)
Tule elk (C. c. nannodes)
Manitoban elk (C. c. manitobensis)
Rocky Mountain elk (C. c. nelsoni)
Eastern elk (C. c. canadensis; extinct)
Merriam's elk (C. c. merriami; extinct)
Asian/Eastern group
Altai wapiti (C. c. sibiricus)
Tian Shan wapiti (C. c. songaricus)
Manchurian wapiti (C. c. xanthopygus)
Alashan wapiti (C. c. alashanicus)
Tibetan red deer (C. c. wallichii)

File:Audubon-eastern-elk.jpg|Artist's depiction of eastern elk

File:The deer of all lands (1898) Altai wapiti.png|Illustration of Altai wapiti

File:The deer of all lands (1898) Bedford's deer.png|Illustration of Manchurian wapiti

File:The deer of all lands (1898) Hangul.png|Illustration of Kashmir stag

Characteristics

File:RooseveltElk 5061t.JPG in California]]

Elk have thick bodies with slender legs and short tails. They have a shoulder height of {{convert|0.75|–|1.5|m|abbr=on}} with a nose-to-tail length of {{convert|1.6|–|2.7|m|abbr=on}}. Males are larger and weigh {{convert|178|–|497|kg |abbr=on}} while females weigh {{convert|171|–|292|kg|abbr=on}}. The largest of the subspecies is the Roosevelt elk (C. c. roosevelti), found west of the Cascade Range in the U.S. states of California, Oregon and Washington, and in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Roosevelt elk have been introduced into Alaska, where the largest males are estimated to weigh up to {{convert|600|kg|lb|abbr=on}}.{{cite web |last = Eide |first = Sterling |title = Roosevelt Elk |publisher = Alaska Department of Fish and Game |url = http://www.adfg.state.ak.us/pubs/notebook/biggame/elk.php |access-date = 4 December 2010 |archive-date = 5 June 2007 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070605111526/http://www.adfg.state.ak.us/pubs/notebook/biggame/elk.php |url-status = live }} More typically, male Roosevelt elk weigh around {{convert|318|to|499|kg|lb|abbr=on}}, while females weigh {{convert|261|to|283|kg|lb|abbr=on}}.{{cite book|author=Robb, B.|year=2001|title=The Ultimate Guide to Elk Hunting|publisher=The Lyons Press|page=7|isbn=1-58574-180-9}}. Male tule elk weigh {{convert|204|–|318|kg|lb|abbr=on}} while females weigh {{convert|170|–|191|kg|lb|abbr=on}}.{{cite web|title=Tule Elk|publisher=California Department of Fish and Wildlife|url=https://wildlife.ca.gov/conservation/mammals/elk/tule-elk#:~:text=The%20Tule%20Elk%20are%20the,scales%20at%20over%20800%20lbs.|access-date=2 December 2020|archive-date=16 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210116133048/https://wildlife.ca.gov/conservation/mammals/elk/tule-elk#:~:text=The%20Tule%20Elk%20are%20the,scales%20at%20over%20800%20lbs.|url-status=live}} The whole weights of adult male Manitoban elk range from {{convert|288|to|478|kg}}. Females have a mean weight of {{convert|275|kg}}.{{cite journal |last1=Blood |first1=D.A |last2=Lovaas |first2=A.L. |title=Measurements and Weight Relationships in Manitoba Elk |journal=The Journal of Wildlife Management|volume=30 |number=1 |pages=135–140 |publisher=Wiley |date=January 1966 |doi=10.2307/3797893 |jstor=3797893 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/3797893.pdf|access-date=22 August 2021}} The elk is the second largest extant species of deer, after the moose.Silva, M., & Downing, J. A. (1995). CRC handbook of mammalian body masses. CRC Press.

Antlers are made of bone, which can grow at a rate of {{convert|2.5|cm|in|abbr=|sp=us}} per day. While actively growing, a soft layer of highly vascularized skin known as velvet covers and protects them. This is shed in the summer when the antlers have fully developed.{{cite web|title=Antlers Make a Point|date=6 December 2013|publisher=National Geographic|access-date=2 December 2020|url=https://www.nationalgeographic.org/media/elk-antlers/#:~:text=An%20adult%20male%20elk%2C%20or,to%20grow%20antlers%20in%20spring.&text=As%20antlers%20grow%2C%20they%20are,(1%20inch)%20every%20day|archive-date=11 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200411054855/https://www.nationalgeographic.org/media/elk-antlers/#:~:text=An%20adult%20male%20elk%2C%20or,to%20grow%20antlers%20in%20spring.&text=As%20antlers%20grow%2C%20they%20are,(1%20inch)%20every%20day|url-status=live}} Bull elk typically have around six tines on each antler. The Siberian and North American elk carry the largest antlers while the Altai wapiti has the smallest. Roosevelt bull antlers can weigh {{convert|18|kg|lb|abbr=on}}. The formation and retention of antlers are testosterone-driven.{{cite web|title = Friends of the Prairie Learning Center | publisher = U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | url = http://www.tallgrass.org/elks.html| access-date = 4 December 2010| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20101018000502/http://www.tallgrass.org/elks.html | archive-date =18 October 2010}} In late winter and early spring, the testosterone level drops, which causes the antlers to shed.{{cite book|author=Zumbo, J.|year=2000|title=Elk Hunting|publisher=Quarto Publishing Group USA|page=15|isbn=9781610603102}}

File:Elks in yellowstone national park.jpg

During the fall, elk grow a thicker coat of hair, which helps to insulate them during the winter. Both male and female North American elk grow thin neck manes; females of other subspecies may not.{{cite book| last = Geist| first = Valerius| title = Elk Country| publisher = NorthWord Press|date=June 1993| location = Minneapolis| isbn =978-1-55971-208-8 }}{{rp|37}} By early summer, the heavy winter coat has been shed. Elk are known to rub against trees and other objects to help remove hair from their bodies. All elk have small and clearly defined rump patches with short tails. They have different coloration based on the seasons and types of habitats, with gray or lighter coloration prevalent in the winter and a more reddish, darker coat in the summer. Subspecies living in arid climates tend to have lighter colored coats than do those living in forests.{{cite web|last=Pisarowicz |first=Jim |title=American Elk – Cervus elephus |publisher=National Park Service |url=http://www.nps.gov/wica/naturescience/elk-cervus-elephus.htm |access-date=5 January 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130115065744/http://www.nps.gov/wica/naturescience/elk-cervus-elephus.htm |archive-date=15 January 2013 }} Most have lighter yellow-brown to orange-brown coats in contrast to dark brown hair on the head, neck, and legs during the summer. Forest-adapted Manchurian and Alaskan wapitis have red or reddish-brown coats with less contrast between the body coat and the rest of the body during the summer months. Calves are born spotted, as is common with many deer species, and lose them by the end of summer. Adult Manchurian wapiti may retain a few orange spots on the back of their summer coats until they are older. This characteristic has also been observed in the forest-adapted European red deer.

Behavior and ecology

File:Boys Will Be Boys (8595525930).jpg

Elk are among the most gregarious deer species.{{rp|52}} During the summer group size can reach 400 individuals. For most of the year, adult males and females are segregated into different herds. Female herds are larger while bulls form small groups and may even travel alone. Young bulls may associate with older bulls or female groups. Male and female herds come together during the mating season, which may begin in late August.{{rp|75, 82}} Males try to intimidate rivals by vocalizing and displaying with their antlers.{{rp|109}} If neither bull backs down, they engage in antler wrestling, sometimes sustaining serious injuries.

{{Listen|filename=American Elk Bugling.ogg|mini|title=An American elk bugling}}

Bulls have a loud, high-pitched, whistle-like vocalization known as bugling, which advertise the male's fitness over great distances. Unusual for a vocalization produced by a large animal, buglings can reach a frequency of 4000 Hz. This is achieved by blowing air from the glottis through the nasal cavities. Elk can produce deeper pitched (150 Hz) sounds using the larynx.{{cite journal|vauthors=Reby D, Wyman MT, Frey R, Passilongo D, Gilbert J, Locatelli Y, Charlton BD|year=2016|title=Evidence of biphonation and source-filter interactions in the bugles of male North American wapiti (Cervus canadensis)|journal=Journal of Experimental Biology|volume=219|issue=8|pages=1224–36|doi=10.1242/jeb.131219|pmid=27103677|doi-access=free|bibcode=2016JExpB.219.1224R }} Cows produce an alarm bark to alert other members of the herd to danger, while calves will produce a high-pitched scream when attacked.{{cite book |author=Naughton, Donna |year=2014 |title=The Natural History of Canadian Mammals |publisher=University of Toronto Press|page=550|isbn=978-1-4426-4483-0}}

=Reproduction and life cycle=

Female elk have a short estrus cycle of only a day or two, and matings usually involve a dozen or more attempts. By the autumn of their second year, females can produce one and, very rarely, two offspring. Reproduction is most common when cows weigh at least {{convert|200|kg|lb}}.{{cite web|last =Sell| first =Randy|title = Elk | work = Alternative Agriculture Series| publisher = North Dakota State University | url = http://www.ag.ndsu.edu/pubs/alt-ag/elk.htm| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070510023106/http://www.ag.ndsu.edu/pubs/alt-ag/elk.htm| archive-date = 10 May 2007| access-date = 4 December 2010}} Dominant bulls follow groups of cows during the rut from August into early winter. A bull will defend his harem of 20 cows or more from competing bulls and predators.{{cite web| title = Elk (Cervus elaphus)| publisher = South Dakota Department of Game, Fish, and Parks | url = http://www.northern.edu/natsource/MAMMALS/Elk1.htm | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060905234151/http://www.northern.edu/natsource/MAMMALS/Elk1.htm | archive-date = 5 September 2006 | access-date = 4 December 2010}}{{rp|92}} Bulls also dig holes in the ground called wallows, in which they urinate and roll their bodies.{{Cite journal |last1=Bowyer |first1=R. Terry |last2=Kitchen |first2=David W. |date=May 1987 |title=Significance of Scent-marking in Roosevelt Elk |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/272744459 |url-status=live |journal=Journal of Mammalogy |volume=68 |issue=2 |pages=418–423 |doi=10.2307/1381489 |jstor=1381489 |access-date=17 January 2019 |archive-date=16 January 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210116133047/https://www.researchgate.net/profile/R_Bowyer/publication/272744459_Significance_of_Scent-Marking_by_Roosevelt_Elk/links/54eccaf60cf27fbfd771950e/Significance-of-Scent-Marking-by-Roosevelt-Elk.pdf }} A male elk's urethra points upward so that urine is sprayed almost at a right angle to the penis.{{Cite book | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=7qogKGcOENAC&pg=PT4898 | title = Current Therapy in Large Animal Theriogenology | isbn = 978-1-4377-1340-4 | publisher = Elsevier | last1 = Youngquist | first1 = Robert S | last2 = Threlfall | first2 = Walter R | date = 23 November 2006 | access-date = 11 May 2020 | archive-date = 16 January 2021 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210116133047/https://books.google.com/books?id=7qogKGcOENAC&pg=PT4898 | url-status = live }} The urine soaks into their hair and gives them a distinct smell which attracts cows.{{cite web | title = Elk | work = Living with Wildlife | publisher = Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife | url = http://wdfw.wa.gov/living/elk.html | access-date = 4 December 2010 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110110045623/http://wdfw.wa.gov/living/elk.html | archive-date = 10 January 2011 | url-status = dead }}

File:Cervus canadensis 49zz.jpg

A bull interacts with cows in his harem in two ways: herding and courtship. When a female wanders too far away from the harem's range, the male will rush ahead of her, block her path and aggressively rush her back to the harem. Herding behavior is accompanied by a stretched out and lowered neck and the antlers laid back. A bull may get violent and hit the cow with his antlers. During courtship, the bull is more peaceful and approaches her with his head and antlers raised. The male signals his intention to test the female for sexual receptivity by flicking his tongue. If not ready, a cow will lower her head and weave from side to side while opening and closing her mouth. The bull will stop in response in order not to scare her.{{rp|100–101}} Otherwise, the bull will copiously lick the female and then mount her.{{rp|115}}

Younger, less dominant bulls, known as "spike bulls", because their antlers have not yet forked, will harass unguarded cows. These bulls are impatient and will not perform any courtship rituals and will continue to pursue a female even when she signals him to stop. As such, they are less reproductively successful, and a cow may stay close to the big bull to avoid harassment. Dominant bulls are intolerant of spike bulls and will chase them away from their harems.{{rp|100–105}}

File:Wapiti (01) 2006-09-19.JPG her calf]]

The gestation period is eight to nine months and the offspring weigh around {{convert|16|kg|lb}}. When the females are near to giving birth, they tend to isolate themselves from the main herd, and will remain isolated until the calf is large enough to escape predators. Calves are born spotted, as is common with many deer species, and they lose their spots by the end of summer. After two weeks, calves are able to join the herd, and are fully weaned at two months of age.{{cite web| title = Cervus elaphus| work = Animal Diversity Web| publisher = University of Michigan, Museum of Zoology| url = http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Cervus_elaphus.html| access-date = 4 December 2010| archive-date = 10 November 2014| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20141110030425/http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Cervus_elaphus.html| url-status = live}} Elk calves are as large as an adult white-tailed deer by the time they are six months old.{{cite web|title=Elk Biology and interesting facts |work=History of Elk in Wisconsin |publisher=The Wisconsin Elk Reintroduction Project |url=http://www.uwsp.edu/wildlife/elk/biology.htm |access-date=4 December 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110608213710/http://www.uwsp.edu/wildlife/elk/biology.htm |archive-date=8 June 2011}} Elk will leave their natal (birth) ranges before they are three years old. Males disperse more often than females, as adult cows are more tolerant of female offspring from previous years.{{cite journal |vauthors=Smith BL, Anderson SH |year=2001|title=Does Dispersal Help Regulate the Jackson Elk Herd?|journal=Wildlife Society Bulletin|volume=29|issue=1|pages=331–341|jstor=3784017}} Elk live 20 years or more in captivity but average 10 to 13 years in the wild. In some subspecies that suffer less predation, they may live an average of 15 years in the wild.{{cite web| title=Elk biology| work=Great Smoky Mountains| publisher=National Park Service| url=https://www.nps.gov/grsm/learn/nature/elk-facts.htm| access-date=4 December 2010| url-status=live| archive-date=13 January 2011| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110113234110/http://www.nps.gov/grsm/naturescience/elk-facts.htm}}

=Migration=

File:Wapiti on the National Elk Refuge.jpg in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, after migrating there during the fall]]

As is true for many species of deer, especially those in mountainous regions, elk migrate into areas of higher altitude in the spring, following the retreating snows, and the opposite direction in the fall. Hunting pressure impacts migration and movement.{{cite web|last=Jenkins |first=Kurt |title=Ecology Of Elk Inhabiting Crater Lake National Park And Vicinity |publisher=National Park Service |url=http://www.nps.gov/archive/crla/elk/elk3.htm |date=31 May 2001 |access-date=4 December 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090827062817/http://www.nps.gov/archive/crla/elk/elk3.htm |archive-date=27 August 2009 }} During the winter, they favor wooded areas for the greater availability of food to eat. Elk do not appear to benefit from thermal cover.{{cite journal|vauthors=Cook JG, Irwin LL, Bryant LD, Riggs RA, Thomas JW|year=1998|title=Relations of forest cover and condition of elk: a test of the thermal cover hypothesis in summer and winter|journal=Wildlife Monographs|volume=141|issue=141|pages=3–61|jstor=3830857}} The Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem elk herds comprise as many as 40,000 individuals.{{cite web |title=Elk |url=https://www.nps.gov/yell/learn/nature/elk.htm#:~:text=The%20Greater%20Yellowstone%20Ecosystem%20is%20home%20to%20approximately%2030%2C000%E2%80%9340%2C000%20elk. |publisher=National Park Service |access-date=March 16, 2021}} During the spring and fall, they take part in the longest elk migration in the continental U.S., traveling as much as {{convert|168|mi|abbr=on}} between summer and winter ranges. The Teton herd consists of between 9,000 and 13,000 elk and they spend winters on the National Elk Refuge, having migrated south from the southern portions of Yellowstone National Park and west from the Shoshone and Bridger–Teton National Forests.{{cite web |title=Ungulate Migrations of the Western United States |url=https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2020/5101/sir20205101.pdf |publisher=United States Geological Survey |access-date=March 16, 2021 |pages=94–95 }}

=Diet=

File:Elk pellets.jpg

Elk are ruminants and therefore have four-chambered stomachs. Unlike white-tailed deer and moose, which are chiefly browsers, elk are similar to cattle in that they are primarily grazers. But like other deer, they also browse.{{cite web|title=Feeding Elk Cows |publisher=Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives |url=https://www.gov.mb.ca/agriculture/livestock/elk/bbb02s03.html |access-date=4 December 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110611142026/http://www.gov.mb.ca/agriculture/livestock/elk/bbb02s03.html |archive-date=11 June 2011 }}{{cite book| last = Pond| first = Wilson| author2 = Bell, Alan| title = Encyclopedia of Animal Science| publisher = Marcel Dekker| date = 2005| page = 280| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=1SQl7Ao3mHoC&pg=PA280| isbn = 978-0-8247-5496-9| access-date = 4 December 2010| archive-date = 16 January 2021| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210116133129/https://books.google.com/books?id=1SQl7Ao3mHoC&pg=PA280| url-status = live}} Elk have a tendency to do most of their feeding in the mornings and evenings, seeking sheltered areas in between feedings to digest. Their diets vary somewhat depending on the season, with native grasses being a year-round supplement, tree bark (e.g. cedar, wintergreen, eastern hemlock, sumac, jack pine, red maple, staghorn, and basswood) being consumed in winter, and sedges, forbs, and tree sprouts during the summer.{{cite web | url=https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Cervus_elaphus/ | title=ADW: Cervus elaphus: INFORMATION | website=Animal Diversity Web }} Favorites of the elk include dandelions, aster, hawkweed, violets, clover, and the occasional mushroom.{{cite web | url=https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Cervus_elaphus/ | title=ADW: Cervus elaphus: INFORMATION | website=Animal Diversity Web }} Elk consume an average of {{convert|9.1|kg|lb}} of vegetation daily.{{cite web|title=Elk biology |publisher=U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service |date=July 2006 |url=http://www.fws.gov/nationalelkrefuge/Documents/Brochure_ElkBiology.pdf |access-date=4 December 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604154504/http://www.fws.gov/nationalelkrefuge/Documents/Brochure_ElkBiology.pdf |archive-date=4 June 2011 }} Particularly fond of aspen sprouts which rise in the spring, elk have had some impact on aspen groves which have been declining in some regions where elk exist.{{cite web| title = The wolf has a story to tell in Banff National Park| work = Nature| publisher = Envirozine| date = May 31, 2007| url = http://www.ec.gc.ca/EnviroZine/english/issues/73/nature_e.cfm| access-date = 4 December 2010| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070630211453/http://www.ec.gc.ca/EnviroZine/english/issues/73/nature_e.cfm| archive-date = 30 June 2007}} Range and wildlife managers conduct surveys of elk pellet groups to monitor populations and resource use.{{cite journal |last1=McConnell |first1=B. R. |last2=Smith |first2=J. G. |title=Frequency Distributions of Deer and Elk Pellet Groups |jstor=3799488 |journal=The Journal of Wildlife Management |volume=34 |issue=1 |pages=29–36 |year=1970 |doi=10.2307/3799488}}{{cite journal |last1=Ripple |first1=W. |title=Trophic cascades among wolves, elk and aspen on Yellowstone National Park's northern range |journal=Biological Conservation |volume=102 |pages=227–234 |year=2001 |doi=10.1016/S0006-3207(01)00107-0 |last2=Larsen |first2=Eric J. |last3=Renkin |first3=Roy A. |last4=Smith |first4=Douglas W. |issue=3 |bibcode=2001BCons.102..227R |citeseerx=10.1.1.578.4763}}

Research in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem has found that supplemental feeding of concentrated alfalfa pellets leads to significant alterations in the elks' microbiome.{{Cite journal |last1=Couch |first1=Claire E. |last2=Wise |first2=Benjamin L. |last3=Scurlock |first3=Brandon M. |last4=Rogerson |first4=Jared D. |last5=Fuda |first5=Rebecca K. |last6=Cole |first6=Eric K. |last7=Szcodronski |first7=Kimberly E. |last8=Sepulveda |first8=Adam J. |last9=Hutchins |first9=Patrick R. |last10=Cross |first10=Paul C. |date=2021-04-08 |title=Effects of supplemental feeding on the fecal bacterial communities of Rocky Mountain elk in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem |journal=PLOS ONE |language=en |volume=16 |issue=4 |pages=e0249521 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0249521 |issn=1932-6203 |pmc=8031386 |pmid=33831062 |doi-access=free |bibcode=2021PLoSO..1649521C }} The elk gut microbiome is typically characterized by a diverse community of bacteria specialized in breaking down complex plant fibers and cellulose, whereas the supplementally fed gut microbiome may have less fiber-digesting bacteria.{{Cite journal |last1=Kim |first1=Jong-Hui |last2=Hong |first2=Sung Wook |last3=Park |first3=Beom-Young |last4=Yoo |first4=Jae Gyu |last5=Oh |first5=Mi-Hwa |date=2019-02-01 |title=Characterisation of the bacterial community in the gastrointestinal tracts of elk (Cervus canadensis) |url=https://doi.org/10.1007/s10482-018-1150-5 |journal=Antonie van Leeuwenhoek |language=en |volume=112 |issue=2 |pages=225–235 |doi=10.1007/s10482-018-1150-5 |pmid=30155662 |s2cid=254237193 |issn=1572-9699|url-access=subscription }} Therefore, transitioning from natural foraging to concentrated alfalfa pellets can cause changes in the gut microbiome that might affect the elk's ability to efficiently digest their natural diet or could potentially lead to imbalances that affect overall health.

=Predators and defensive tactics=

File:Wolves and elk (cropped).jpg

Predators of elk include wolves, coyotes, brown and black bears, cougars, and Siberian tigers.{{cite journal|vauthors=Griffin KA, Hebblewhite M|display-authors=et al|year=2011|title=Neonatal mortality of elk driven by climate, predator phenology and predator community composition|journal=Journal of Animal Ecology|volume=80|issue=6|pages=1246–1257 |doi=10.1111/j.1365-2656.2011.01856.x|pmid=21615401|doi-access=free|bibcode=2011JAnEc..80.1246G }}{{cite journal |last1=Hayward |first1=M. W.|last2=Jędrzejewski|first2=W.|last3=Jędrzejewska|first3=B.|year=2012|title=Prey preferences of the tiger Panthera tigris|journal=Journal of Zoology|volume=286|issue=3|pages=221–231|doi=10.1111/j.1469-7998.2011.00871.x}} Coyote packs mostly prey on elk calves, though they can sometimes take a winter- or disease-weakened adult.{{cite web|title= Coyotes|url= http://www.nps.gov/yell/naturescience/coyotes.htm|publisher= National Park Service|access-date= 4 December 2010|archive-date= 12 May 2008|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080512130031/http://www.nps.gov/yell/naturescience/coyotes.htm|url-status= dead}} In the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, which includes Yellowstone National Park, bears are the most significant predators of calves{{cite journal |last=Barber |first=Shannon |author2=Mech, L. David |author3=White, P. J. |title=Elk Calf Mortality Post–Wolf Restoration Bears Remain Top Summer Predators |journal=Yellowstone Science |volume=13 |issue=3 |pages=37–44 |publisher=National Park Service |date=Summer 2005 |url=http://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/upload/YS13(3).pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070704181933/http://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/upload/YS13(3).pdf |archive-date=4 July 2007 |access-date=4 December 2010 |url-status=dead }} while healthy bulls have never been recorded to be killed by bears and such encounters can be fatal for bears.International Bear News. Quarterly Newsletter of the International Association for Bear Research and Management (IBA) and the IUCN/SSC Bear Specialist Group. (2002), p.7, vol. 11, no. 2 The killing of cows in their prime is more likely to affect population growth than the killing of bulls or calves.{{cite journal|author=Wilmers, C. C.|display-authors=et al|year=2020|title=How climate impacts the composition of wolf-killed elk in northern Yellowstone National Park|journal=Journal of Animal Ecology|volume=89|issue=6|pages=1511–1519|doi=10.1111/1365-2656.13200|pmid=32145069|pmc=7317765|bibcode=2020JAnEc..89.1511W }}

Elk may avoid predation by switching from grazing to browsing. Grazing puts an elk in the compromising situation of being in an open area with its head down, leaving it unable to see what is going on in the surrounding area.{{cite journal|last=Christianson |first=David|author-link=Scott Christianson|author2=Creel, Scott|title=Nutritionally mediated risk effect of wolves on elk|journal=Ecology|year=2010|volume=91|issue=4|pages=1184–1191|doi=10.1890/09-0221.1|pmid=20462132|bibcode=2010Ecol...91.1184C }} Living in groups also lessens the risk of an individual falling to predation. Large bull elk are less vulnerable and can afford to wander alone, while cows stay in larger groups for protection for their calves.{{rp|75}} Bulls are more vulnerable to predation by wolves in late winter, after they have been weakened by months of chasing females and fighting. Males that have recently lost their antlers are more likely to be preyed upon.{{cite journal|author=Metz, M. C.|display-authors=et al|year=2018 |title=Predation shapes the evolutionary traits of cervid weapons|journal=Nature Ecology & Evolution |volume=2|issue=10|pages=1619–1625|doi=10.1038/s41559-018-0657-5|pmid=30177803|bibcode=2018NatEE...2.1619M |s2cid=52147419}}

=Parasites and disease=

At least 53 species of protist and animal parasites have been identified in elk.{{Cite book| last = Thorne| first = E. T.| author2 = Williams, E. S.|author3=Samuel, W. M.|author4=Kistner, T. P.| title = North American Elk: Ecology and Management| publisher = Smithsonian Institution Press| year = 2002| location = Washington, D.C.| pages = 351–387| isbn =978-1-58834-018-4}} Most of these parasites seldom lead to significant mortality among wild or captive elk. Parelaphostrongylus tenuis (brainworm or meningeal worm) is a parasitic nematode known to affect the spinal cord and brain tissue of elk and other species, leading to death.{{cite journal |first1=Terese |last1=McIntosh |first2=Rick |last2=Rosatte |first3=Doug |last3=Campbell |first4=Kate |last4=Welch |first5=Dominique |last5=Fournier |first6=Maria |last6=Spinato |first7=Oladele |title=Evidence of Parelaphostrongylus tenuis infections in free-ranging elk (Cervus elaphus) in southern Ontario |journal=The Canadian Veterinary Journal |volume=48 |issue=11 |pages=1146–51, 1154 |last7=Ogunremi |year=2007 |pmid=18050795 |pmc=2034421}} The definitive host is the white-tailed deer, in which it normally has no ill effects. Snails and slugs, the intermediate hosts, can be inadvertently consumed by elk during grazing.{{cite web|last=Fergus|first=Chuck|title=Elk|url=http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/document/706628/elk_pdf|access-date=3 December 2010|publisher=Pennsylvania Game Commission|format=PDF|archive-date=3 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303232051/http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/document/706628/elk_pdf|url-status=live}} The liver fluke Fascioloides magna and the nematode Dictyocaulus viviparus are also commonly found parasites that can be fatal to elk.{{cite journal |first1=Robert J. |last1=Bildfell |first2=Christopher M. |last2=Whipps |first3=Colin M. |last3=Gillin |first4=Michael L. |last4=Kent |title=DNA-based identification of a hepatic trematode in an elk calf |pmid=17984277 |year=2007 |pages=762–9 |issue=4 |volume=43 |journal=Journal of Wildlife Diseases |doi=10.7589/0090-3558-43.4.762|s2cid=28845256 |doi-access=free }}

File:ElkShedding.jpg]]

Chronic wasting disease, transmitted by a misfolded protein known as a prion, affects the brain tissue in elk, and has been detected throughout their range in North America. First documented in the late 1960s in mule deer, the disease has affected elk on game farms and in the wild in a number of regions. Elk that have contracted the disease begin to show weight loss, changes in behavior, increased watering needs, excessive salivation and urinating and difficulty swallowing, and at an advanced stage, the disease leads to death. No risks to humans have been documented, nor has the disease been demonstrated to pose a threat to domesticated cattle.{{cite journal |vauthors=Belay ED, Maddox RA, Williams ES, Miller MW, Gambetti P, Schonberger LB |year=2004 |title=Chronic Wasting Disease and Potential Transmission to Humans|journal=Emerging Infectious Diseases|volume=10|issue=6|pages=977–984 |doi=10.3201/eid1006.031082 |pmc=3323184 |pmid=15207045}} In 2002, South Korea banned the importation of elk antler velvet due to concerns about chronic wasting disease.{{cite web|last=Hansen| first=Ray| title=Elk Profile|date=November 2006| publisher=Agricultural Marketing Resource Center |url=http://www.agmrc.org/agmrc/commodity/livestock/elk/elkprofile.htm|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20070928000404/http://www.agmrc.org/agmrc/commodity/livestock/elk/elkprofile.htm |archive-date=2007-09-28| access-date=2010-12-04}}

The Gram-negative bacterial disease brucellosis occasionally affects elk in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, the only place in the U.S. where the disease is still known to exist, though this can extend out to the Bighorn Mountains.{{cite news |date=9 November 2022|title=Brucellosis Detected in Wyoming Elk Hunt Area |url=https://www.thecheyennepost.com/news/brucellosis-detected-in-wyoming-elk-hunt-area/article_725decba-6052-11ed-a46c-038138c0d5d8.html |work=The Cheyenne Post |location=Cheyenne, Wyoming |access-date=10 November 2022}} In domesticated cattle, brucellosis causes infertility, abortions, and reduced milk production. It is transmitted to humans as undulant fever, producing influenza-like symptoms that may last for years. Though bison are more likely to transmit the disease to other animals, elk inadvertently transmitted brucellosis to horses in Wyoming and cattle in Idaho. Researchers are attempting to eradicate the disease through vaccinations and herd-management measures, which are expected to be successful.{{cite web|title=Brucellosis and Yellowstone Bison |publisher=Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services, USDA |url=http://www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/animal_dis_spec/cattle/downloads/cattle-bison.pdf |access-date=2010-12-04 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101205163018/http://www.aphis.usda.gov/animal_health/animal_dis_spec/cattle/downloads/cattle-bison.pdf |archive-date=2010-12-05 }} Nevertheless, research has been ongoing since 2002, and a successful vaccine has yet to be developed {{as of|2016|lc=y}}.{{cite journal |last1=Nol |first1=Pauline |last2= Olsen|first2= Steven C.|last3=Rhyan |first3= Jack C. |last4=Sriranganathan |first4= Nammalwar |last5=McCollum |first5=Matthew P. |last6=Hennager |first6=Steven G. |last7=Pavuk |first7=Alana A. |last8=Sprino |first8=Phillip J. |last9=Boyle |first9=Stephen M. |last10=Berrier |first10=Randall J. |last11=Salman |first11=Mo D.|date=10 February 2016 |title=Vaccination of Elk (Cervus canadensis) with Brucella abortus Strain RB51 Overexpressing Superoxide Dismutase and Glycosyltransferase Genes Does Not Induce Adequate Protection against Experimental Brucella abortus Challenge |pmc=4748031 |journal=Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology |volume=6 |pages=10 |doi=10.3389/fcimb.2016.00010 |pmid=26904509|doi-access=free }}

A recent necropsy study of captive elk in Pennsylvania attributed the cause of death in 33 of 65 cases to either gastrointestinal parasites (21 cases, primarily Eimeria sp. and Ostertagia sp.) or bacterial infections (12 cases, mostly pneumonia).{{cite journal |first1=Arthur L. |last1=Hattel |first2=Daniel P. |last2=Shaw |first3=Jenny S. |last3=Fisher |first4=Jason W. |last4=Brooks |first5=Brenda C. |last5=Love |first6=Thomas R. |last6=Drake |first7=Donald C. |last7=Wagner |title=Mortality in Pennsylvania captive elk (Cervus elaphus): 1998–2006 |pmid=17459871 |year=2007 |pages=334–7 |issue=3 |volume=19 |journal=Journal of Veterinary Diagnostic Investigation |url=http://www.jvdi.org/cgi/pmidlookup?view=long&pmid=17459871 |doi=10.1177/104063870701900322 |doi-access=free |access-date=21 January 2011 |archive-date=16 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210116133139/http://jvdi.org/ |url-status=live |url-access=subscription }}

Elk hoof disease was first noticed in the state of Washington in the late 1990s in the Cowlitz River basin, with sporadic reports of deformed hooves. Since then, the disease has spread rapidly with increased sightings throughout southwest Washington and into Oregon. The disease is characterised by deformed, broken, or missing hooves and leads to severe lameness in elk. The primary cause is not known, but it is associated with treponeme bacteria, which are known to cause digital dermatitis in commercial livestock. The mode of transmission is also not known, but it appears to be highly contagious among elk. Studies are being undertaken by government departments to determine how to halt or eliminate the disease.{{cite web |url=http://wdfw.wa.gov/conservation/health/hoof_disease/ |title=Treponeme associated hoof disease in Washington elk |author= |date=2017 |publisher=Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife |access-date=10 August 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170820050237/http://wdfw.wa.gov/conservation/health/hoof_disease/ |archive-date=20 August 2017 |url-status=dead }}{{cite news |last=Hogan |first=Jackson |date=1 June 2017 |title=WSU: Elk hoof disease will not be easy fix |url=http://www.columbian.com/news/2017/jun/01/wsu-elk-hoof-disease-will-not-be-easy-fix/ |work=The Columbian |location=Longview, Washington |access-date=10 August 2017 |archive-date=16 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210116133056/https://www.columbian.com/news/2017/jun/01/wsu-elk-hoof-disease-will-not-be-easy-fix/ |url-status=live }}{{cite web |url=http://www.dfw.state.or.us/wildlife/health_program/docs/ElkHoofDiseaseFactSheetFinal.pdf |title=Elk Hoof Disease Fact Sheet |author= |publisher=Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife |access-date=10 August 2017 |archive-date=9 June 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170609230318/http://www.dfw.state.or.us/wildlife/health_program/docs/ElkHoofDiseaseFactSheetFinal.pdf |url-status=live }}

Distribution and status

File:Bull elk bugling during the fall mating season.jpg

The elk ranges from central Asia through to Siberia and east Asia and in North America. They can be found in open deciduous woodlands, boreal forests, upland moors, mountainous areas and grasslands. The International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) list the species as least-concern species. The habitat of Siberian elk in Asia is similar to that of the Rocky Mountain subspecies in North America. During the Late Pleistocene their range was much more extensive, being distributed across Eurasia, with remains being found as far west as France. These populations are most closely related to modern Asian populations of the elk. Their range collapsed at the start of the Holocene, possibly because they were specialized to cold periglacial tundra-steppe habitat. When this environment was replaced largely by closed forest the red deer might have outcompeted the elk. Relictual populations survived into the early Holocene (until around 3000 years ago) in southern Sweden and the Alps, where the environment remained favorable.{{Cite journal |last=Croitor |first=Roman |date=December 2019 |title=A new form of wapiti Cervus canadensis Erxleben, 1777 (Cervidae, Mammalia) from the Late Pleistocene of France |journal=Palaeoworld |volume=29 |issue=4 |language=en |pages=789–806 |doi=10.1016/j.palwor.2019.12.001 |s2cid=213500978|url=https://hal.science/hal-03126334/file/S1871174X19301295.pdf }} Elk were also present in the early Holocene of central Alaska, where it was the main hunted animal along with bison, and survived in Yukon until around 1400 BP (550 AD).Potter, B. A. (2008). Exploratory models of intersite variability in mid to late Holocene central Alaska. Arctic, 407–425.

=Introductions and reintroductions=

File:Wapiti.Nebraska.JPG. These elk, originally from Rocky Mountain herds, exhibit modified behavior due to having been held in captivity, under less selective pressure]]

As of 2014, population figures for all North American elk subspecies were around one million. Prior to the European colonization of North America, there were an estimated 10 million on the continent.{{cite web|title=Rocky Mountain Elk|publisher=U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service |url=https://www.fws.gov/refuge/Cold_Springs/Wildlife_Habitat/Elk.html|access-date=3 December 2020 |archive-date=28 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201128202958/https://www.fws.gov/refuge/Cold_Springs/Wildlife_Habitat/Elk.html|url-status=live}}

There are many past and ongoing examples of reintroduction into areas of the US. Elk were reintroduced in Michigan in 1918 after going extinct there in 1875.{{cite web|title=Michigan Elk: Past and Present|publisher=Michigan Department of Natural Resources|date=14 July 2021 |url=https://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,4570,7-350-79119_79147_81578-429560--,00.html}} The Rocky Mountain elk subspecies was reintroduced by hunter-conservation organizations into the Appalachian region of the U.S. where the now extinct eastern elk once lived.{{cite news |last=Cochran |first=Bill |title=Virginia officials take no joy in elk celebration |work=The Roanoke Times |date=June 27, 2004 |url=http://www.roanoke.com/outdoors/billcochran/wb/6627 |access-date=4 December 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130201170412/http://www.roanoke.com/outdoors/billcochran/wb/6627 |archive-date=1 February 2013 }} They were reintroduced to Pennsylvania beginning in 1913 and throughout the mid-20th Century, and now remain at a stable population of approximately 1,400 individuals.{{Cite web |title=History of Elk in PA |url=https://www.pgc.pa.gov:443/Wildlife/WildlifeSpecies/Elk/Pages/HistoryofElkinPA.aspx |access-date=2023-03-21 |website=Pennsylvania Game Commission |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |title=Plan for Elk Watching and Nature Tourism in North Central Pennsylvania |url=http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/info/pawilds/recplan-app05b.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120810071219/http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/info/pawilds/recplan-app05b.pdf |archive-date=10 August 2012 |access-date=15 January 2021 |website=Pennsylvania Department of Conservation}}{{cite web |last=Armas |first=Genaro C. |date=6 December 2010 |title=Pennsylvania banks on elk to draw visitors |url=http://travel.usatoday.com/destinations/2010-12-06-pennsylvania-elk-country-visitors-center_N.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120309164755/http://travel.usatoday.com/destinations/2010-12-06-pennsylvania-elk-country-visitors-center_N.htm |archive-date=9 March 2012 |newspaper=USA Today}} Since the late 1990s, they were reintroduced and recolonized in the states of Wisconsin,{{cite web|title=Elk in Wisconsin|publisher=Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources|url=https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/topic/wildlifehabitat/elk#:~:text=Elk%20are%20found%20in%20two%20distinct%20ranges%20in%20Wisconsin.&text=The%20Clam%20Lake%20herd%20ranges,herd%20can%20be%20found%20below.|access-date=14 July 2021}} Kentucky, North Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia, Virginia and West Virginia.{{cite web |title=Returning Elk to the Southeast: A 20-year Retrospective |publisher=Wildlife Management Institute |url= https://wildlifemanagement.institute/outdoor-news-bulletin/march-2019/returning-elk-southeast-20-year-retrospective |access-date=2 December 2020 |archive-date=4 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210104143310/https://wildlifemanagement.institute/outdoor-news-bulletin/march-2019/returning-elk-southeast-20-year-retrospective |url-status=live}} In the state of Kentucky, the elk population in 2022 had increased to over 15,000 animals.{{cite web |last1=Roberts |first1=Brandon |title=Elk could be saving grace in coal country |url=https://spectrumnews1.com/ky/louisville/news/2021/11/03/kentuky-has-largest-elk-herd-east-of-mississippi-river |website=Spectrumnews1.com |access-date=29 June 2022}} In 2016, a male elk, likely from the Smoky Mountains population, was sighted in South Carolina for the first time in nearly 300 years.{{Cite web|url=http://www.cnn.com/2016/10/26/us/elk-spotted-in-south-carolina-irpt/index.html |title=First elk seen in South Carolina since the 1700s|author=Keith Allen |website=CNN |date=27 October 2016 |access-date=15 June 2017 |archive-date=16 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210116133056/https://www.cnn.com/2016/10/26/us/elk-spotted-in-south-carolina-irpt/index.html|url-status=live}} Once locally extinct, dispersing elk are now regularly spotted in Iowa, although a wild population has not yet established.{{Cite web |title=Elk sightings on the rise in Iowa |url=https://brownfieldagnews.com/news/elk-sightings-on-the-rise-in-iowa/ |access-date=2023-04-23 |website=Brownfield Ag News |language=en-US}} Since 2015, elk have also been reintroduced in a number of other states, including Missouri,{{Cite web |url=https://mdc.mo.gov/newsroom/elk-return-missouri-after-150-year-absence|title=Elk return to Missouri after 150-year absence Missouri Department of Conservation|website=mdc.mo.gov |access-date=21 November 2016|archive-date=16 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210116133056/https://mdc.mo.gov/newsroom/elk-return-missouri-after-150-year-absence|url-status=live}} and introduced to the islands of Etolin and Afognak in Alaska.{{Cite web |title=Elk Hunting In Alaska |url=http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=elkhunting.main |access-date=15 January 2021 |website=Alaska Department of Fish and Game}} Reintroduction of the elk into Ontario began in the early 20th century and is ongoing with limited success.{{cite journal |last1=Hamr |first1=Josef |last2=Mallory |first2=Frank F. |last3=Filion |first3=Ivan |date=2016 |title=The History of Elk (Cervus canadensis) Restoration in Ontario |url=http://www.canadianfieldnaturalist.ca/cfn/index.php/cfn/article/download/1842/1804 |journal=The Canadian Field-Naturalist |volume=130 |issue=2 |pages=167–173 |doi=10.22621/cfn.v130i2.1842 |access-date=18 January 2017 |doi-access=free |archive-date=18 January 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170118231547/http://www.canadianfieldnaturalist.ca/cfn/index.php/cfn/article/download/1842/1804 |url-status=live }}

Elk and red deer were introduced to Argentina in the early 20th century.{{cite web|title=Elk and Elk Hunting| publisher=Petersen's Hunting| url=http://www.huntingmag.com/big_game/elk_hunting/index1.html| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060806021213/http://www.huntingmag.com/big_game/elk_hunting/index1.html| archive-date=6 August 2006| access-date=4 December 2010}} There they are now considered an invasive species, encroaching on Argentinian ecosystems where they compete for food with the indigenous Chilean huemul and other herbivores.{{cite journal| title=Diet of Huemul deer (Hippocamelus bisulcus) in Nahuel Huapi National Park, Argentina| year=2005| publisher=Taylor and Francis| doi=10.1080/01650520400000822| url=http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/tandf/snfe/2005/00000040/00000001/art00001| access-date=4 December 2010| archive-date=30 September 2007| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930181744/http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/tandf/snfe/2005/00000040/00000001/art00001| url-status=live| last1=Galende| first1=Gladys| last2=Ramilo| first2=Eduardo| last3=Beati| first3=Alejandro| journal=Studies on Neotropical Fauna and Environment| volume=40| issue=1| pages=1–5| bibcode=2005SNFE...40....1G| s2cid=86575665| url-access=subscription}} This negative impact on native animal species has led the IUCN to identify the elk as one of the world's 100 worst invaders.{{cite web| last=Flueck| first=Werner| title=Cervus elaphus (mammal)| work=Global Invasive Species Database| publisher=International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources| url=http://www.issg.org/database/species/ecology.asp?si=119&fr=1&sts=sss| access-date=4 December 2010| archive-date=13 March 2016| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160313025333/http://issg.org/database/species/ecology.asp?fr=1&si=119&sts=sss| url-status=live}}

The introduction of deer to New Zealand began in the middle of the 19th century, and current populations are primarily European red deer, with only 15 percent being elk.{{cite web|title=Deer farming in New Zealand |publisher=Deer Farmer |date=November 29, 2003 |url=http://www.deer-library.com/artman/publish/article_99.shtml |access-date=4 December 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100524133011/http://www.deer-library.com/artman/publish/article_99.shtml |archive-date=24 May 2010 }} In 1905 18 American wapiti were released in George Sound in the Fiordland National Park.{{Cite Q|Q125475906}} In 1949 the New Zealand American Fiordland Expedition was undertaken to study the descendants of this release. There is significant hybridization of elk with red deer.{{cite journal |vauthors=Nichol AM, Judson HG, Taylor AW |year=2003|title=The effect of hybridisation on venison production |journal=Proceedings of the New Zealand Society of Animal Production|volume=63|pages=222–228 |issn=1176-5283}} These deer have had an adverse impact on forest regeneration of some plant species, as they consume more palatable species, which are replaced with those that are less favored by the elk. The long-term impact will be an alteration of the types of plants and trees found, and in other animal and plant species dependent upon them.{{cite journal| last =Husheer| first =Sean W.| title =Introduced red deer reduce tree regeneration in Pureora Forest, central North Island, New Zealand|url=http://nzes-nzje.grdev.co.nz/free_issues/NZJEcol31_1_79.pdf |url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140727235313/http://nzes-nzje.grdev.co.nz/free_issues/NZJEcol31_1_79.pdf |archive-date=27 July 2014|access-date=15 January 2021|journal =New Zealand Journal of Ecology| volume =31| issue =1|pages=79–87| publisher =New Zealand Ecological Society| date =April 30, 2007}} As in Chile and Argentina, the IUCN has declared that red deer and elk populations in New Zealand are an invasive species.

=U.S. states by estimated elk population=

class="wikitable sortable"
class="sortable"\| State !class="sortable"\| Estimated Number of Elk
{{flag\|Colorado}} \| 280,000 {{cite news \|title=Rocky Mountain Elk \|url=https://cpw.state.co.us/conservation/Pages/CON-Elk.aspx \|access-date=October 31, 2021 \|work=Colorado Parks & Wildlife}}
{{flag\|Montana}} \| 141,785 {{cite news \|title=Montana 2021 Elk Counts\|url=https://fwp.mt.gov/binaries/content/assets/fwp/conservation/elk/2021-montana-elk-count-completed.pdf \|access-date=October 31, 2021 \|work=Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks}}
{{flag\|Oregon}} \| 133,000 {{cite news\|title=Rocky Mountain elk population size and herd composition in Oregon, 2015 - 2019\|url=https://www.dfw.state.or.us/resources/hunting/big_game/controlled_hunts/docs/hunt_statistics/19/Rocky%20Mountain%20Elk%20Population%20Estimates%20and%20Herd%20Composition%202015%20-%202019.pdf\|access-date=October 31, 2021\|work=Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife\|archive-date=1 November 2021\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211101040721/https://www.dfw.state.or.us/resources/hunting/big_game/controlled_hunts/docs/hunt_statistics/19/Rocky%20Mountain%20Elk%20Population%20Estimates%20and%20Herd%20Composition%202015%20-%202019.pdf\|url-status=dead}}"Roosevelt elk population size and herd composition 2015 - 2019" (PDF). Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 August 2023. Retrieved 11 August 2023.
{{flag\|Idaho}} \| 120,000 {{cite news\|title=Idaho Big Game 2021 Season & Rules\|url=https://idfg.idaho.gov/sites/default/files/seasons-rules-big-game-2021-elk.pdf\|access-date=October 31, 2021\|work=Idaho Fish & Game\|archive-date=29 September 2021\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210929140214/https://idfg.idaho.gov/sites/default/files/seasons-rules-big-game-2021-elk.pdf\|url-status=dead}}
{{flag\|Wyoming}} \| 110,200 {{Cite web\|url=https://www.wyomingnews.com/wyomingbusinessreport/industry_news/environment/wyoming-game-and-fish-issues-2-000-new-elk-tags/article_e48b99e2-a869-11eb-a815-c37234602571.html\|title= Wyoming Game and Fish issues 2,000 new elk tags\|author=Angus M. Thuermer Jr.\|website=WyomingNews.com\|date= 28 April 2021\|access-date=October 31, 2021}}
{{flag\|Utah}} \| 81,000 {{cite news \|title=Utah Statewide Elk Management Plan\|url=https://wildlife.utah.gov/pdf/bg/elk_plan.pdf \|access-date=October 31, 2021 \|work=Utah Division of Wildlife Resources}}
{{flag\|New Mexico}} \| 70,000 – 90,000 {{Cite web\|url=https://www.newmexicomagazine.org/blog/post/elk-hunting-in-valles-caldera/\|title= The Elk Hunting Mecca\|author=Joel Gay\|website=New Mexico Magazine\|date= 14 August 2019\|access-date=October 31, 2021}}
{{flag\|Washington}} \| 60,000 {{cite news\|title=Elk\|url=https://www.fws.gov/refuge/Hanford_Reach/Wildlife_Habitat/Elk.html\|access-date=October 31, 2021\|work=U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service\|archive-date=16 September 2021\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210916185951/https://www.fws.gov/refuge/Hanford_Reach/Wildlife_Habitat/Elk.html\|url-status=dead}}
{{flag\|Arizona}} \|35,000{{Cite web \|last=AZGFD \|title=AZGFD \|url=https://www.azgfd.com/hunting/species/biggame/elk/ \|access-date=2022-09-25 \|language=en}}
{{flag\|Kentucky}} \| 15,876 {{cite news \|title=2020-2021 Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources Elk Report\|url=https://fw.ky.gov/Hunt/Documents/Elk/2020-2021ElkReport.pdf \|access-date=November 4, 2021 \|work=Kentucky Department of Fish & Wildlife Resources}}
{{flag\|California}} \| 12,500 {{cite news \|title=Elk \|url=https://wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Mammals/Elk \|access-date=October 31, 2021 \|work=California Department of Fish and Wildlife}}
{{flag\|Nevada}} \| 12,500 {{Cite web\|title=2023-2024 Elk Status & Harvest Trends\|website=Nevada Department of Wildlife\|date=6 May 2023 \|url=https://www.ndow.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/2023-2024-elk-quota-commission-presentation.pdf\|access-date=10 November 2023}}
{{flag\|South Dakota}} \| 6,000 {{cite news \|title=Elk\|url=https://gfp.sd.gov/elk/ \|access-date=October 31, 2021 \|work=South Dakota Game, Fish & Parks}}
{{flag\|Oklahoma}} \| 5,000 {{Cite web\|url=https://www.oklahoman.com/article/5643931/oklahomas-elk-population-continues-to-growbrelk-can-found-in-all-four-corners-of-the-state\|title= Oklahoma's elk population continues to grow\|author=Ed Gofrey\|website=The Oklahoman\|access-date=October 31, 2021}}
{{Flag\|Texas}} \|1,600{{Cite web\|last=Informer\|first=Wildlife\|date=2021-01-10\|title=Elk Population By State (Estimates and Info)\|url=https://wildlifeinformer.com/elk-population-by-state/\|access-date=2021-12-07\|website=Wildlife Informer\|language=en-US}}
{{flag\|Pennsylvania}} \| 1,400 {{Cite web\|url=https://www.inquirer.com/news/pennsylvania/elk-county-benezette-tourism-hunt-20210305.html\|title= Elk, Pa.'s largest wild animal, have become a tourism boom in the northwest part of the state\|author=Jason Nark\|website=The Philadelphia Inquirer\|date= 5 March 2021\|access-date=October 31, 2021}}
{{flag\|Michigan}} \| 1,196 {{cite news \|title=Michigan Estimates Elk Population at 1,196\|url=https://www.rmef.org/elk-network/michigan-estimates-elk-population-at-1196/ \|access-date=October 31, 2021 \|work=Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation}}
{{Flag\|North Dakota}} \|700 {{Cite journal \|last1=Amor \|first1=Jacqueline M. \|last2=Newman \|first2=Robert \|last3=Jensen \|first3=William F. \|last4=Rundquist \|first4=Bradley C. \|last5=Walter \|first5=W. David \|last6=Boulanger \|first6=Jason R. \|date=2019 \|title=Seasonal home ranges and habitat selection of three elk (Cervus elaphus) herds in North Dakota \|journal=PLOS ONE \|volume=14 \|issue=2 \|pages=e0211650 \|doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0211650 \|pmid=30716128 \|pmc=6361512 \|bibcode=2019PLoSO..1411650A \|doi-access=free }}{{Cite web \|last1=Medora \|first1=Mailing Address: PO Box 7 \|last2=Us \|first2=ND 58645 Phone: 701 623-4466 Contact \|title=Elk of Theodore Roosevelt National Park - Theodore Roosevelt National Park (U.S. National Park Service) \|url=https://www.nps.gov/thro/learn/nature/elk-management.htm \|access-date=2023-04-23 \|website=www.nps.gov \|language=en}}
{{flag\|Arkansas}} \| 450 {{cite news \|title=History of Elk in Arkansas \|url=https://www.agfc.com/en/hunting/big-game/elk/ \|access-date=October 31, 2021 \|work=Arkansas Game & Fish Commission}}
{{flag\|Tennessee}} \| 400 {{cite news \|title=Tennessee Elk Season Dates, Regulations and Information\|url=https://www.tn.gov/twra/hunting/big-game/elk.html \|access-date=October 31, 2021 \|work=Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency}}
{{Flag\|Wisconsin}} \|400 {{Cite web \|title=Elk in Wisconsin {{!}} {{!}} Wisconsin DNR \|url=https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/topic/wildlifehabitat/elk \|access-date=2023-04-23 \|website=dnr.wisconsin.gov}}
{{flag\|Virginia}} \| 250 {{cite news \|title=Elk in Virginia: Return of a Native Species\|url=https://dwr.virginia.gov/wildlife/elk/ \|access-date=November 4, 2021 \|work=Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources}}
{{Flag\|Missouri}} \|200 {{Cite web \|last=Bingham \|first=Lloyd \|date=2022-09-06 \|title=Are There Elk in Missouri? \|url=https://krebscreek.com/are-there-elk-in-missouri/ \|access-date=2023-04-22 \|website=Krebs Creek \|language=en-US}}
{{Flag\|Kansas}} \|175 – 350 {{Cite web \|title=Elk making a comeback across Kansas \|url=https://www.farmprogress.com/conservation-and-sustainability/elk-making-a-comeback-across-kansas \|access-date=2023-04-23 \|website=Farm Progress \|language=en}}
{{flag\|North Carolina}} \| 150 – 200 {{Cite web\|url=https://www.ncwildlife.org/Learning/Species/Mammals/Elk\|title=Elk\|access-date=November 23, 2021\|work=North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission\|archive-date=23 November 2021\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211123154255/https://www.ncwildlife.org/Learning/Species/Mammals/Elk\|url-status=dead}}
{{flag\|West Virginia}} \| 140 – 150 {{Cite web \|title=Elk \|url=https://wvdnr.gov/plants-animals/elk/\|access-date=2025-01-13 \|website=West Virginia Division of Natural Resources \|language=en}}
{{flag\|Minnesota}} \| 126 {{cite news \|title=Minnesota 2020 Elk Counts\|url=https://files.dnr.state.mn.us/wildlife/elk/2020_elk_survey.pdf \|access-date=December 7, 2021 \|work=Minnesota Department of Natural Resources}}

class="wikitable sortable"

class="sortable"| State

!class="sortable"| Estimated Number of Elk

| 280,000 {{cite news |title=Rocky Mountain Elk |url=https://cpw.state.co.us/conservation/Pages/CON-Elk.aspx |access-date=October 31, 2021 |work=Colorado Parks & Wildlife}}

| 141,785 {{cite news |title=Montana 2021 Elk Counts|url=https://fwp.mt.gov/binaries/content/assets/fwp/conservation/elk/2021-montana-elk-count-completed.pdf |access-date=October 31, 2021 |work=Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks}}

| 133,000 {{cite news|title=Rocky Mountain elk population size and herd composition in Oregon, 2015 - 2019|url=https://www.dfw.state.or.us/resources/hunting/big_game/controlled_hunts/docs/hunt_statistics/19/Rocky%20Mountain%20Elk%20Population%20Estimates%20and%20Herd%20Composition%202015%20-%202019.pdf|access-date=October 31, 2021|work=Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife|archive-date=1 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211101040721/https://www.dfw.state.or.us/resources/hunting/big_game/controlled_hunts/docs/hunt_statistics/19/Rocky%20Mountain%20Elk%20Population%20Estimates%20and%20Herd%20Composition%202015%20-%202019.pdf|url-status=dead}}"Roosevelt elk population size and herd composition 2015 - 2019" (PDF). Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 August 2023. Retrieved 11 August 2023.

| 120,000 {{cite news|title=Idaho Big Game 2021 Season & Rules|url=https://idfg.idaho.gov/sites/default/files/seasons-rules-big-game-2021-elk.pdf|access-date=October 31, 2021|work=Idaho Fish & Game|archive-date=29 September 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210929140214/https://idfg.idaho.gov/sites/default/files/seasons-rules-big-game-2021-elk.pdf|url-status=dead}}

| 110,200 {{Cite web|url=https://www.wyomingnews.com/wyomingbusinessreport/industry_news/environment/wyoming-game-and-fish-issues-2-000-new-elk-tags/article_e48b99e2-a869-11eb-a815-c37234602571.html|title= Wyoming Game and Fish issues 2,000 new elk tags|author=Angus M. Thuermer Jr.|website=WyomingNews.com|date= 28 April 2021|access-date=October 31, 2021}}

| 81,000 {{cite news |title=Utah Statewide Elk Management Plan|url=https://wildlife.utah.gov/pdf/bg/elk_plan.pdf |access-date=October 31, 2021 |work=Utah Division of Wildlife Resources}}

| 70,000 – 90,000 {{Cite web|url=https://www.newmexicomagazine.org/blog/post/elk-hunting-in-valles-caldera/|title= The Elk Hunting Mecca|author=Joel Gay|website=New Mexico Magazine|date= 14 August 2019|access-date=October 31, 2021}}

| 60,000 {{cite news|title=Elk|url=https://www.fws.gov/refuge/Hanford_Reach/Wildlife_Habitat/Elk.html|access-date=October 31, 2021|work=U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service|archive-date=16 September 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210916185951/https://www.fws.gov/refuge/Hanford_Reach/Wildlife_Habitat/Elk.html|url-status=dead}}

|35,000{{Cite web |last=AZGFD |title=AZGFD |url=https://www.azgfd.com/hunting/species/biggame/elk/ |access-date=2022-09-25 |language=en}}

| 15,876 {{cite news |title=2020-2021 Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources Elk Report|url=https://fw.ky.gov/Hunt/Documents/Elk/2020-2021ElkReport.pdf |access-date=November 4, 2021 |work=Kentucky Department of Fish & Wildlife Resources}}

| 12,500 {{cite news |title=Elk |url=https://wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Mammals/Elk |access-date=October 31, 2021 |work=California Department of Fish and Wildlife}}

| 12,500 {{Cite web|title=2023-2024 Elk Status & Harvest Trends|website=Nevada Department of Wildlife|date=6 May 2023 |url=https://www.ndow.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/2023-2024-elk-quota-commission-presentation.pdf|access-date=10 November 2023}}

| 6,000 {{cite news |title=Elk|url=https://gfp.sd.gov/elk/ |access-date=October 31, 2021 |work=South Dakota Game, Fish & Parks}}

| 5,000 {{Cite web|url=https://www.oklahoman.com/article/5643931/oklahomas-elk-population-continues-to-growbrelk-can-found-in-all-four-corners-of-the-state|title= Oklahoma's elk population continues to grow|author=Ed Gofrey|website=The Oklahoman|access-date=October 31, 2021}}

|1,600{{Cite web|last=Informer|first=Wildlife|date=2021-01-10|title=Elk Population By State (Estimates and Info)|url=https://wildlifeinformer.com/elk-population-by-state/|access-date=2021-12-07|website=Wildlife Informer|language=en-US}}

| 1,400 {{Cite web|url=https://www.inquirer.com/news/pennsylvania/elk-county-benezette-tourism-hunt-20210305.html|title= Elk, Pa.'s largest wild animal, have become a tourism boom in the northwest part of the state|author=Jason Nark|website=The Philadelphia Inquirer|date= 5 March 2021|access-date=October 31, 2021}}

| 1,196 {{cite news |title=Michigan Estimates Elk Population at 1,196|url=https://www.rmef.org/elk-network/michigan-estimates-elk-population-at-1196/ |access-date=October 31, 2021 |work=Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation}}

|700 {{Cite journal |last1=Amor |first1=Jacqueline M. |last2=Newman |first2=Robert |last3=Jensen |first3=William F. |last4=Rundquist |first4=Bradley C. |last5=Walter |first5=W. David |last6=Boulanger |first6=Jason R. |date=2019 |title=Seasonal home ranges and habitat selection of three elk (Cervus elaphus) herds in North Dakota |journal=PLOS ONE |volume=14 |issue=2 |pages=e0211650 |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0211650 |pmid=30716128 |pmc=6361512 |bibcode=2019PLoSO..1411650A |doi-access=free }}{{Cite web |last1=Medora |first1=Mailing Address: PO Box 7 |last2=Us |first2=ND 58645 Phone: 701 623-4466 Contact |title=Elk of Theodore Roosevelt National Park - Theodore Roosevelt National Park (U.S. National Park Service) |url=https://www.nps.gov/thro/learn/nature/elk-management.htm |access-date=2023-04-23 |website=www.nps.gov |language=en}}

| 450 {{cite news |title=History of Elk in Arkansas |url=https://www.agfc.com/en/hunting/big-game/elk/ |access-date=October 31, 2021 |work=Arkansas Game & Fish Commission}}

| 400 {{cite news |title=Tennessee Elk Season Dates, Regulations and Information|url=https://www.tn.gov/twra/hunting/big-game/elk.html |access-date=October 31, 2021 |work=Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency}}

|400 {{Cite web |title=Elk in Wisconsin {{!}} {{!}} Wisconsin DNR |url=https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/topic/wildlifehabitat/elk |access-date=2023-04-23 |website=dnr.wisconsin.gov}}

| 250 {{cite news |title=Elk in Virginia: Return of a Native Species|url=https://dwr.virginia.gov/wildlife/elk/ |access-date=November 4, 2021 |work=Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources}}

|200 {{Cite web |last=Bingham |first=Lloyd |date=2022-09-06 |title=Are There Elk in Missouri? |url=https://krebscreek.com/are-there-elk-in-missouri/ |access-date=2023-04-22 |website=Krebs Creek |language=en-US}}

|175 – 350 {{Cite web |title=Elk making a comeback across Kansas |url=https://www.farmprogress.com/conservation-and-sustainability/elk-making-a-comeback-across-kansas |access-date=2023-04-23 |website=Farm Progress |language=en}}

| 150 – 200 {{Cite web|url=https://www.ncwildlife.org/Learning/Species/Mammals/Elk|title=Elk|access-date=November 23, 2021|work=North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission|archive-date=23 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211123154255/https://www.ncwildlife.org/Learning/Species/Mammals/Elk|url-status=dead}}

| 140 – 150 {{Cite web |title=Elk |url=https://wvdnr.gov/plants-animals/elk/|access-date=2025-01-13 |website=West Virginia Division of Natural Resources |language=en}}

| 126 {{cite news |title=Minnesota 2020 Elk Counts|url=https://files.dnr.state.mn.us/wildlife/elk/2020_elk_survey.pdf |access-date=December 7, 2021 |work=Minnesota Department of Natural Resources}}

Cultural references

File:William S. Soule - Eonah-pah and Wife.jpg couple. The woman on the right is wearing an elk tooth dress.]]

Elk have played an important role in the cultural history of a number of peoples. Neolithic petroglyphs from Asia depict antler-less female elk, which have been interpreted as symbolizing life and sustenance. They were also frequently overlaid with boats and associated with rivers, suggesting they also represented paths to the underworld.{{cite book| last =Jacobson| first =Esther| title =The Deer Goddess of Ancient Siberia: A Study in the Ecology of Belief | publisher =Brill Academic Publishers| year= 2018|pages=96–97 |isbn = 9789004378780}} Petroglyphs of elk were carved into cliffs by the Ancestral Puebloans of the southwestern U.S. hundreds of years ago.{{cite book|author=Smith, Bruce L.|year=2010|title=Wildlife on the Wind: A Field Biologist's Journey and an Indian Reservation's Renewal|publisher=Utah State University Press|isbn=9780874217926|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=e2zgCwAAQBAJ&dq=Anasazi+elk+petroglyphs&pg=PT125|access-date=2 August 2020|archive-date=16 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210116133101/https://www.google.com/books/edition/Wildlife_on_the_Wind/e2zgCwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=Anasazi+elk+petroglyphs&pg=PT125&printsec=frontcover|url-status=live}} The elk was of particular importance to the Lakota and played a spiritual role in their society. The male elk was admired for its ability to attract mates, and Lakota men will play a courting flute imitating a bugling elk to attract women. Men used elks' antlers as love charms and wore clothes decorated with elk images.{{cite web|author=Duda, Kathryn M.|title=Courting on the Plains: 19th Century Lakota Style|website=Carnegie Magazine Online|access-date=2 August 2020|url=https://carnegiemuseums.org/magazine-archive/1998/janfeb/dept5.htm|archive-date=16 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210116133201/https://carnegiemuseums.org/magazine-archive/1998/janfeb/dept5.htm|url-status=live}}

The Rocky Mountain elk is the official state animal of Utah.{{cite web| title = Utah State Symbols| publisher = Utah.com LC| url = http://www.utah.com/visitor/state_facts/symbols.htm| access-date = 4 December 2010| archive-date = 16 January 2021| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210116133118/https://utah.com/state-facts-symbols| url-status = live}} An image of an elk and a moose appear on the state seal and flag of Michigan.{{cite web| title = The Michigan State Flag| publisher = NSTATE, LLC| url = http://www.netstate.com/states/symb/flags/mi_flag.htm| access-date = 4 December 2010| archive-date = 10 May 2013| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130510105704/http://www.netstate.com/states/symb/flags/mi_flag.htm| url-status = live}} The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks (B.P.O.E.) chose the elk as its namesake because a number of its attributes seemed appropriate for cultivation by members of the fraternity.{{cite web |title=California-Hawaii Elks Association |publisher=Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks |url=https://chea-elks.org/about-elks/ |access-date=23 December 2016 |archive-date=24 December 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161224031746/https://chea-elks.org/about-elks/ |url-status=live }} Jewel-encrusted, gold-mounted elk teeth are prized possessions of many members of the B.P.O.E.{{cite web| title = Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks| publisher = Phoenixmasonry, Inc.| url = http://www.phoenixmasonry.org/masonicmuseum/fraternalism/elks.htm| access-date = 4 December 2010| archive-date = 16 January 2021| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210116133202/http://www.phoenixmasonry.org/masonicmuseum/fraternalism/elks.htm| url-status = live}}

Commercial uses

File:Elk steak.jpg

Although the 2006 National Survey from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service does not provide breakdown figures for each game species, hunting of wild elk is most likely the primary economic impact.{{cite web| title =2006 National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation| publisher =United States Fish and Wildlife Service| year =2006| url =http://wsfrprograms.fws.gov/Subpages/NationalSurvey/nat_survey2006_final.pdf| access-date =4 December 2010| archive-date =6 December 2010| archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20101206201944/http://wsfrprograms.fws.gov/Subpages/NationalSurvey/nat_survey2006_final.pdf| url-status =live}}

While elk are not generally harvested for meat production on a large scale, some restaurants offer the meat as a specialty item and it is also available in some grocery stores. The meat is higher in protein and lower in fat and cholesterol than beef, pork, and chicken.{{cite web|title=Elk Meat Nutritional Information |publisher=Wapiti.net |url=http://www.wapiti.net/nutrition.cfm |access-date=4 December 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101215121936/http://www.wapiti.net/nutrition.cfm |archive-date=15 December 2010}} Elk meat is a good source of iron, phosphorus and zinc.{{cite web| title =Nutritional Summary for Game meat, elk, raw| publisher =Condé Nast Publications| year =2007| url =http://www.nutritiondata.com/facts-C00001-01c21Cl.html| access-date =4 December 2010| archive-date =18 May 2008| archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20080518021438/http://www.nutritiondata.com/facts-C00001-01c21cL.html| url-status =live}}

A male elk can produce {{convert|10|to|11|kg|lb}} of antler velvet annually and on ranches in the United States, Canada and New Zealand, it is collected and sold to markets in East Asia, where it is used in medicine. Some cultures consider antler velvet to be an aphrodisiac. However, consuming velvet from elk in North America may be risky since velvet from animals infected with chronic wasting disease may contain prions that could result in a human getting variant Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease.{{cite journal |first1=Rachel C. |last1=Angers |first2=Tanya S. |last2=Seward |first3=Dana |last3=Napier |first4=Michael |last4=Green |first5=Edward |last5=Hoover |first6=Terry |last6=Spraker |first7=Katherine |last7=O'Rourke |first8=Aru |last8=Balachandran |first9=Glenn C. |last9=Telling |title=Chronic Wasting Disease Prions in Elk Antler Velvet |pmid=19402954 |year=2009 |pages=696–703 |issue=5 |volume=15 |journal=Emerging Infectious Diseases |pmc=2687044 |doi=10.3201/eid1505.081458 }}

Antlers are also used in artwork, furniture and other novelty items. All Asian subspecies, along with other deer, have been raised for their antlers in central and eastern Asia by Han Chinese, Turkic peoples, Tungusic peoples, Mongolians, and Koreans. Elk farms are relatively common in North America and New Zealand. Native Americans have used elk hides for tepee covering, clothing and footwear.{{cite web|title=Colorado Indians: Shelters|publisher=University of North Colorado|url=https://www.unco.edu/hewit/doing-history/colorado-indians/food-clothing-shelter/shelter.aspx|access-date=3 December 2020|archive-date=16 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210116133118/https://www.unco.edu/hewit/doing-history/colorado-indians/food-clothing-shelter/shelter.aspx|url-status=live}}{{cite book|author=Paterek, J.|year=1996|title=Encyclopedia of American Indian Costume|publisher=Norton|pages=88, 137, 224|isbn=9780393313826}}

Since 1967, the Boy Scouts of America have assisted employees at the National Elk Refuge in Wyoming by collecting the antlers which are shed each winter. They are then auctioned, with 80% of the proceeds returned to the refuge. In 2010, {{convert|2520|kg|lb}} of antlers were auctioned, which brought in over $46,000.{{cite press release|title=43rd annual elk antler auction held in Jackson |publisher=U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service |date=May 22, 2006 |url=http://www.fws.gov/nationalelkrefuge/Documents/Press%20Releases/2010/05_23_10Auction.pdf |access-date=4 December 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121111101717/http://www.fws.gov/nationalelkrefuge/Documents/Press%20Releases/2010/05_23_10Auction.pdf |archive-date=11 November 2012 }}

References

External links

[http://www.azgfd.gov/h_f/game_elk.shtml Arizona Elk] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101230040942/http://www.azgfd.gov/h_f/game_elk.shtml |date=30 December 2010 }} Arizona Game and Fish Department
[http://www.rmef.org/ Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation]
[http://www.greater-yellowstone.com/animals/elk.html Yellowstone Elk – Greater Yellowstone Resource Guide] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101217130004/http://greater-yellowstone.com/animals/elk.html |date=17 December 2010 }}
[http://www.mnh.si.edu/mna/image_info.cfm?species_id=33 Smithsonian Institution - North American Mammals: Cervus (elaphus) canadensis] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160126053428/http://www.mnh.si.edu/mna/image_info.cfm?species_id=33 |date=26 January 2016 }}

Category:Red deer

Category:Extant Pleistocene first appearances

Category:Fauna of Central Asia

Category:Fauna of East Asia

Category:Fauna of Siberia

Category:Herbivorous mammals

Category:Fauna of the Holarctic realm

Category:Mammals described in 1777

Category:Mammals of Canada

Category:Mammals of the United States

Category:Mammals of East Asia

Category:Taxa named by Johann Christian Polycarp Erxleben