Elk Information
North
American Elk
This elk
- is a sociable animal and seldom found
without other elk nearby
- is highly vocal for an ungulate, or
hoofed animal
- hides its calf for 10 days or more
after it is born
- has upper canine, or "eye," teeth with
a smooth rounded surface that has made them attractive as jewellery
Description
The North American elk, or wapiti, is the
largest form of the red deer species Cervus elaphus. In general
appearance elk are obviously kin to the well-known white-tailed deer.
However, elk are much larger. Among Canadian deer, they are second in
size only to the moose. An adult bull elk stands about 150 cm tall at
the shoulder and weighs about 300 to 350 kg, although some large bulls
approach 500 kg in late summer before the rut, or breeding season. Cows
are substantially smaller but still have a shoulder height of 135 cm and
an adult weight of around 250 kg.
The colour of the elk’s coat ranges from reddish brown in summer to dark
brown in winter. Although it looks white from a distance, on closer
inspection the rump colour is ivory to orange. In contrast to the rump,
the head and neck are dark. Elk have long, blackish hair on the neck
that is referred to as a mane.
Male elk are notable for their impressively large antlers. It is amazing
that these large structures are grown new each year by the animals in a
period of a few months in spring and summer. Antlers look particularly
large in summer when they are encased in velvet—a covering that protects
them during growth. In later summer, the velvet is rubbed from the fully
grown antlers, revealing the bony structure. Newly cleaned antlers are
light grey in colour but become stained by rubbing and thrashing through
vegetation during the rutting season.
"Elk" is the name by which most Canadians know this majestic deer.
"Wapiti," meaning "white rump," is the Shawnee Indian name and the
common name preferred by scientists, because the animal known as an
"elk" in Europe is not a red deer at all but a close relative of the
North American moose. Other red deer, smaller and belonging to several
subspecies, are found throughout the northern hemisphere: in Scotland
and continental Europe, in North Africa, and in Asia.
Signs and sounds
|
.GIF)
Elk Tracks |
The elk is highly vocal for an
ungulate, or hoofed animal. A person close to a group of elk can
hear frequent grunts and squeals as they keep in touch with each
other. When alarmed the cows give sharp barks to warn the rest of
the group. The whistling roar of rutting bulls is a spine-tingling
sound on a frosty autumn morning.
Elk hooves are rounded and their tracks may be confused with those
of yearling cattle in range country.
Elk scat, or droppings, like those of other deer, are in the form of
pellets in winter, but in summer, when the animals are on new green
forage, resemble those of cattle. Closer inspection, however,
reveals traces of a pellet structure. |
Droppings |
Habitat and habits
Elk are sociable animals. They are seldom
found without other elk nearby. The herd lifestyle is characteristic of
animals that live in open country. However, elk populations today occupy
forest or parkland regions, where small groups averaging six or seven
animals are common.
Elk are long-lived animals: males survive to an average of 14 years,
whereas females live as long as 24 years. Although they may travel
widely, each elk is strongly attached to certain localities within its
home range. Some in fact have home ranges of only a few square
kilometres. Others have home ranges of several hundred square kilometres,
of which they use different parts during different seasons. In the
mountains such individuals often summer in the high country and winter
in the valleys. However, elk are versatile animals and some may reverse
this pattern or make visits back to their summer range during winter,
snow conditions permitting, and down to their winter range during
summer. Others may even switch between staying in a small area one year
and using a large area the next.
Bulls may occupy a "rutting range" that is separate from localities
where they are found during the rest of the year. Whatever their
seasonal pattern, most elk use the same ranges year after year.
Unique characteristics
Unlike other deer, elk have upper canine, or "eye," teeth. These teeth
are a hangover from earlier evolutionary stages and now serve no
apparent purpose. Their smooth rounded surface has made them attractive
as jewellery. In the 1800s many elk were killed just to obtain the
canine teeth.
Range
When Europeans arrived in Canada, elk
were widely distributed. Their range extended across southern Quebec,
along the upper St. Lawrence (where they were probably one of the
species recorded but ambiguously described by Jacques Cartier), and into
southern Ontario. Their range continued around the northern margins of
lakes Huron and Superior and along the present American border from the
Lakehead to the prairies of Manitoba, but in these areas their
populations were sparse. Farther west, on the prairies of Manitoba,
Saskatchewan, and Alberta, and north into the southern fringes of the
boreal forest—the northernmost forest of the Northern Hemisphere—elk
were numerous. In British Columbia, elk were found throughout the
central and southern parts of the province east of the Coast Range, in
the Lower Mainland around the mouth of the Fraser River and on Vancouver
Island.
Relative to western populations, numbers of elk must have been low in
eastern North America, except in regions like western Kentucky, where
the forests were interrupted by extensive grasslands. In any case,
hunting extirpated elk from the east, including southern Ontario and
Quebec, by the mid-1800s. Some elk may have survived in Ontario north of
Lake Huron.
Settlement of the Canadian prairies deprived the elk herds of their
habitat as it did the bison. However, scattered populations continued to
exist throughout the forest regions skirting the prairies and in the
mountains of the west.
Elk numbers were at their lowest around 1900 in North America.
Thereafter the pace of settlement in marginal areas slowed, market
hunting was greatly reduced, the number of people living subsistence
lifestyles declined, predators were reduced, and elk received increasing
legal protection. Also, large forest fires caused by settlers converted
substantial areas from forest to grass, shrubs, and saplings, providing
abundant forage for the remaining elk.
Elk were also reintroduced to areas of former range. In Canada’s Rocky
Mountains the small remaining elk population in Banff and Jasper
national parks was dramatically increased by several hundred animals
brought from Yellowstone National Park in the United States between 1917
and 1920. Elk were also transplanted to northern Ontario in the 1930s.
In British Columbia elk were introduced to the Queen Charlotte Islands
and, in Yukon, elk were introduced northwest of Whitehorse in the early
1950s. The Yukon herd has maintained its numbers but has not grown.
The present population of elk in Canada is about 72 000. Over half of
the animals (40 000) are in British Columbia, mostly in the Kootenays
and in the Peace-Omineca Region, but with a small population on
Vancouver Island. Alberta’s 20 000 elk roam mainly in the Rocky Mountain
foothills and the mountain national parks of Banff, Jasper, and Waterton.
A scattered population exists in the parkland across central Alberta,
where the boreal, or northernmost, forest meets the grassland and the
creation of Elk National Park has made a notable contribution to the
survival of elk in Canada. The park grew from a reserve established in
1906 to protect a small band of remaining elk. The elk thrived, and
currently the fenced park of less than 200 km2 supports over
1 000 elk as well as moose, bison, and white-tailed deer. Elk Island has
provided many elk for reintroductions and has also served as a research
area for study of the species.
Manitoba currently has a herd of around 7 000 animals, whose
distribution centres on Riding Mountain National Park. The 15 000 elk in
Saskatchewan are mostly in the southern fringe of the boreal forest
north of Prince Albert and in the Moose Mountain, Cypress Hills, and
Duck Mountain areas in the south of the province.
Feeding
Elk are plant eaters. There are few
plants that occur on their range that they do not eat in certain areas
under certain conditions. In winter they eat grasses when they can
obtain them. However, when the snow becomes deep, they readily eat twigs
of woody species, even the conifers like Douglas fir. In spring, grasses
and sedges are favourite foods. As the new growth of broad-leaved
herbaceous plants spring up in early summer, elk include a high
proportion of them in their diet. They also consume shrub and tree twigs
and leaves. A wide variety of nutritious foods become available for elk
early in summer. This is also the time when cow elk are providing milk
for their newborn calves.
As summer passes, the herbaceous plants dry out and elk turn again to
dry grasses and browse, or twigs and shoots. When the frosty nights of
autumn arrive, leaves begin to fall in trembling aspen forests on the
western ranges of the elk. Elk include dry leaves in their diet until
these are buried by snow. When winter comes, elk diets are controlled
largely by snow. Elk dig craters in loose snow to expose dry grass and
leaves, but when the snow becomes too deep or too hard they must shift
their feeding largely to woody twigs. In the mountains of Alberta and
British Columbia elk must leave areas of deep snow cover and seek
locations such as valley bottoms where snow cover is shallow or absent.
In areas where deep snow seldom occurs, they may frequent high- or
low-elevation ranges at any time of the year.
Breeding
The annual cycle of the elk begins in
spring with release from the snows and food shortage of winter. This is
when calves are born, increasing the herd size. Calving usually occurs
in areas with which the cow is very familiar. Some cows may seek the
same area to calve in year after year. Others give birth to their calves
wherever in their home range they happen to be when the time comes. The
cows split off from other elk and seek seclusion and cover a few days
before giving birth.
Elk hide their calves for 10 days or more after they are born. The
calves are genetically programmed to remain quiet and concealed as a
defense against predators. Later, mother and offspring join others in
cow/calf bands on the summer range. Beginning in August, the quiet
summer life of the elk comes to an end with the start of the rut, or
breeding season.
The bulls, which have passed a lazy summer in small groups while their
antlers grew large and heavy, now move into the cow/calf group and
establish harems, or groups of cows they plan to mate with. In the
process there is considerable fighting among the bulls. Large bulls
eventually get control of as many as 20 or 30 cows and drive other males
to the fringes of the herds. This does not mean, however, that the young
males are totally left out of the breeding. While the large harem
masters are running off intruders or rounding up straying females on one
side of their group, a young bull may sneak in and mate with a female on
the other side.
Following the turmoil of the rut, the bull elk leave the females and
move to good foraging areas to recoup their losses in weight and
condition before winter. Some go back up the mountains to spend a few
more weeks on the nutritious pastures of the alpine zone before snow
forces them down. Elk usually, but not always, wait for coming of snow
to move down to the valleys. There is considerable overlap between the
winter ranges of bulls and cows. As bulls are larger and more powerful
they can travel and dig through deep snow more readily than the cows,
and by doing so they are able to have foraging areas to themselves.
Conservation
The principal limiting factor on the
number of elk in Canada has been loss of habitat to agriculture.
Fortunately, extensive areas do remain to the elk. Hunting serves to
keep elk numbers within the carrying capacity of the ranges. In parks,
capture and transplant of surplus animals sometimes reduces elk numbers.
Aside from humankind, the most important predator of elk is the wolf. In
spite of their size and power, elk are readily killed by wolves. The
distribution of elk in Canada overlaps with wolf distribution, so most
elk herds are culled to some extent by wolves. Black bears also kill
considerable numbers of elk. Recent studies have demonstrated that in
some areas black bears may kill as many as 50 percent of the elk calves.
This predation occurs during the first two or three weeks of the calf’s
life. Once calves become strong enough to keep up with their mothers,
and mother and calf rejoin the rest of the herd, most bear predation
ceases. However, grizzly bears may kill an occasional adult elk. Coyotes
take some calves, and cougars, which share the elk’s range from the
Rocky Mountains west, take elk of all ages.
Where predation and hunting do not keep them low, elk numbers usually
increase until they are limited by lack of food. At high population
levels, elk can have a significant impact on their range and on their
food plants by grazing, browsing, and trampling on vegetation. During
severe winters or droughts, significant numbers of elk may starve or
become predisposed to disease. The managers of many of the Canadian elk
populations that are not in parks aim to keep numbers well below the
maximum dictated by food resources so that elk will be less likely to
experience die-offs.
Elk are highly esteemed by hunters and are one of North America’s major
big game species. In Canada licensed hunters take approximately 4 000
elk each year. The hunt generates local economic activity estimated at
about $14 million per year. In addition, aboriginal hunters take an
unknown number. In parks where elk are not hunted, they gradually become
habituated to the presence of humans. They may eventually become so tame
that they go about their business undisturbed even when people approach
closely. Large numbers of habituated elk may be seen in Banff and Jasper
national parks in and around the townsites, especially in early spring.
Habituated elk are important attractions in those parks and are an asset
of substantial aesthetic and commercial value. It must always be kept in
mind that animals habituated to humans may be dangerous if approached
too closely. Bulls, especially, should be given a wide berth during the
early autumn rutting season.
In mountain areas during winter, elk share valley bottoms with major
transportation corridors. This leads to many elk-vehicle collisions,
with disastrous results to the elk and to humans and their automobiles.
This costly hazard has been controlled in Banff National Park by
construction of a system of fences, cattleguard gates, and underpasses
along the Trans-Canada Highway.
The readiness with which elk can be habituated to people and the value
of products derived from them have recently aroused considerable
interest in domestication and ranching of the animals. One of the most
valuable elk products is their antlers. Since ancient times, Oriental
people have believed that medicinal preparations from elk antlers that
have been removed while still in velvet are a general tonic and possibly
an aphrodisiac, or means of enhancing sexual desire. Thus Oriental
medicine consumes large quantities of elk antler at a high price.
Antlers are surgically removed when they have reached maximum size but
before they harden; then they are dried, sorted by grade, and shipped to
Asian markets.
In many areas elk and domestic cattle share the same ranges. Because
both eat the same foods and the presence of cattle brings human
activity, there is some conflict between the two species. In mountain
areas where elk concentrate in valleys that are also important winter
range for cattle there is competition for scarce forage and disturbance
of elk at a time when they are under stress due to severe weather. Such
situations call for close cooperation between ranchers and wildlife
managers to keep problems under control.
The future welfare of elk in general depends on cooperation between
wildlife authorities and all land managers, including forest industries,
oil and mining companies, park managers, and Indian bands, as well as
ranchers.
In spite of these ongoing conflicts, Canadian elk populations are stable
and healthy. It might be possible to reintroduce the animals to areas
they formerly occupied, but, given the competing demands for land by
ranchers and others, and the space needed by the wild predators of the
elk, which are vital to a healthy ecosystem, the current elk population
is probably large enough. With adequate attention to its management this
splendid wild species will remain a permanent asset to Canada.
Resources
Print resources
Murie, O.J. 1951. The elk of North
America. Stackpole Company. Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
Boyce, M.S., and L.D. Hayden-Wing, eds.
1979. North American elk: ecology, behaviour and management. University
of Wyoming, Laramie.
Thomas, J.W., and D.E. Toweill, editors.
1982. Elk of North America. Wildlife Management Institute and United
States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, and Stackpole Company,
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
© Her Majesty the Queen in Right of
Canada, represented by the Minister of the Environment, 1990. All rights
reserved.
Catalogue number CW69-4/89E
ISBN 0-660-13639-2
Text: E.S. Telfer
Photo: Robert McCaw
Sudbury Elk
Restoration Project