Roosie or Rocky Mountain?

[FANATIC]

So what is your opinion of the range of each? Would an elk west of the Cascades but east of I-5 be a Roosie or a Rocky Mountain? Just wondering what my bull from this year really is. I know what P&Y says, but I wonder biologically speaking what the range boundries are. Your input is appreciated.

[WDFW-SUX]

Here is the deal Elk were introduced in that area in the 1920's. During the depression people killed all of them because they were hungry.  In 1950's they got some more from Yellowstone and released them near Eatonville and those are the elk we have now.  They are true Rocky's that have been interbreeding with Rosies for 60 years.  So now the best way to describe them is as Mutts.

My personal opinion is that the elk down south on the western edge of st helens are the least polluted mutts and the most classic true blooded Rosie's are out by Quinault. Im sure it varies from pack to pack but in general the further west you go the more Rosieish they get.

[PolarBear]

My 350 bull that I arrowed out of Randle is considered a Cascade Roosevelt.  It is a "mutt" cross breed.  The same with the elk aound St. Helens, South Rainier, etc.  I would call a lot of the elk just to the East of I-5 true Roosies but once you start climbing and getting closer to the crest they are mostly cross breeds.  The elk from Ryderwood North and the whole Olympic Peninsula are true Roosies.

[bucklucky]

 

[shag]

Boone and Crockett says anything west of I-5 is a Rosie.   The olympic elk are most likley straight up Rosie.   Other than that I feel like the rest are mutts as stated above.  At the st. Helens monument they like to claim that they are Rosevelt.  I think alot of elk west of I-5 have some Rocky mtn in 'em.   I ain't no biologist just my 

[WonkyWapiti]

I agree with the above as well.  You especially look at the herd up in North Bend and you see some of their racks which have characteristics of both the roosevelt and the rocky mountains.

[bigbeamhunter]

thats what i have always thought that they were mixed,but i called a bull in for a friend of mine that scored 348 and it looked like a rocky . but a dna game dept.showed that the elk there were rosies. and that was 30 miles east of I-5 ,its just a different gene pool and food they eat i have hunted south east of st. helens for 20 something years and never shot a 3oo bull several 260 to 280 almost all them get to the 5th point and crown to the sixth some have seven .but look totally rosie .just my 2 cents soon as i figure out how to put pics on here i will ..

[bow4elk]

I think everyone has got this about right.  As you know, P&Y/B&C state I-5 as the east/west boundary.

Love to see some pics of your bulls!