wolves killed this cow elk this morning in Idaho !

[CementFinisher]

So, just to be fair, and not to support the wolf population, I just have to ask if any members of this forum have hunted antlerless elk during a late permit hunt and killed a cow elk with a calf embryo?

lets not help make arguments for the enemy

[KopperBuck]

So, just to be fair, and not to support the wolf population, I just have to ask if any members of this forum have hunted antlerless elk during a late permit hunt and killed a cow elk with a calf embryo?

lets not help make arguments for the enemy

Then don't apply for the hunt. There's no argument to be made here either... Not even close to the same thing.

[boneaddict]

I haven't hunterofelk, and I despise that hunt.   I REALLY disagree with it because its difficult to be critical of tribal practices and so forth when there are legitimate (meaning through the game department) sanctioned hunts that time of year.    I think ALL big game hunting should be over COMPLETELY by the first of the year, if not earlier in December even.  I'm just one voice though.   

[Sitka_Blacktail]

   I think ALL big game hunting should be over COMPLETELY by the first of the year, if not earlier in December even. 

Just curious Boneaddict, since elk breed in Sept. and in Washington most elk hunting is in Oct., Nov., and Dec., What does it matter if a cow is killed in Jan or Feb instead of Oct, Nov or Dec? The result is the same. One less cow and her calf/calves are out of the picture.  That is figured into the justification for cow hunts. And cow hunts are usually only approved for areas where they are looking to reduce or limit the growth of a herd. Although, most Jan and Feb hunts are to push elk away from agricultural areas.  So are you against cow hunting in general? or just after New Year?

[JimmyHoffa]

Having masses of people chasing a herd of bred elk in November is different for survival than chasing the herd around in Jan/Feb. In November you can stress the herd to get one elk and the rest will likely survive fine through the winter.  In Jan /Feb if you stress an entire herd in attempts for one elk you may inadvertently kill off more than one adult or even stress the cow to the point of killing the calf.
If cougars/wolves are to be considered big game, then those animals are the ones I have no problem with people hunting in winter (or year round for that matter).

[buckhorn2]

I agree about to long of a season chasing elk from september all the way into march is to long. I think the permits are fine but the season on cows should be over much sooner chasing them for 6 months is just to long.

[Sitka_Blacktail]

OK, there aren't too many elk hunts that go past Dec, but the ones that do are basically to keep elk out of agricultural areas. So if you end those hunts, what do you tell the farmers? "Build a 10 foot fence around your property"?

PS...... personally, I don't like the idea of private property owners having anything to do or say about setting hunting seasons. Especially when they don't allow public hunting on their property. My thought is, if they co-operate with the public, then the public can co-operate with them to a degree.  If they want to keep the public out, they can keep the wildlife out themselves too. If that includes a chain link fence around their property, so be it. Unless of course that interferes with natural migration routes.

[hunterofelk]

What I was trying to put across was some cow elk are killed in late hunts and during the field dressing an embryo is pulled out so why should a picture like the one posted upset us hunters?

[Sitka_Blacktail]

What I was trying to put across was some cow elk are killed in late hunts and during the field dressing an embryo is pulled out so why should a picture like the one posted upset us hunters?

It shouldn't.........unless of course we are as emotional as we accuse the antis of being.

[Bob33]

OK, there aren't too many elk hunts that go past Dec, but the ones that do are basically to keep elk out of agricultural areas. So if you end those hunts, what do you tell the farmers? "Build a 10 foot fence around your property"?

PS...... personally, I don't like the idea of private property owners having anything to do or say about setting hunting seasons. Especially when they don't allow public hunting on their property. My thought is, if they co-operate with the public, then the public can co-operate with them to a degree.  If they want to keep the public out, they can keep the wildlife out themselves too. If that includes a chain link fence around their property, so be it. Unless of course that interferes with natural migration routes.

I agree.  Hunts in the very late seasons are almost always for damage control, hazing, or other forms of wildlife management.  Why a hunter would not support hunting as the first option in these instances is something I don't understand.

[Eli346]

 Those 200 cow tags in Winston in January aren't damage control; they're to appease the media and the non-hunters about all the video and bad press that's going around about the Mudflow population starving to death! They're starving to death because they know they're safe there but don't realize that if they just move a few miles there's abundant feed. Hunt them in the Mudflow for a couple of years and they will disperse to better forage; problem solved.

[Bob33]

Hunting to appease the media and non-hunting public? Well, OK.  That's a new one for me.

[BOWHUNTER45]

OK, there aren't too many elk hunts that go past Dec, but the ones that do are basically to keep elk out of agricultural areas. So if you end those hunts, what do you tell the farmers? "Build a 10 foot fence around your property"?

PS...... personally, I don't like the idea of private property owners having anything to do or say about setting hunting seasons. Especially when they don't allow public hunting on their property. My thought is, if they co-operate with the public, then the public can co-operate with them to a degree.  If they want to keep the public out, they can keep the wildlife out themselves too. If that includes a chain link fence around their property, so be it. Unless of course that interferes with natural migration routes.

This is a really good point here now ... 

[elkslayer069]

Those 200 cow tags in Winston in January aren't damage control; they're to appease the media and the non-hunters about all the video and bad press that's going around about the Mudflow population starving to death! They're starving to death because they know they're safe there but don't realize that if they just move a few miles there's abundant feed. Hunt them in the Mudflow for a couple of years and they will disperse to better forage; problem solved.

To bad we have not a hard enough winter to "starve" the mudflow elk in 3 or 4 years

[KopperBuck]

OK, there aren't too many elk hunts that go past Dec, but the ones that do are basically to keep elk out of agricultural areas. So if you end those hunts, what do you tell the farmers? "Build a 10 foot fence around your property"?

PS...... personally, I don't like the idea of private property owners having anything to do or say about setting hunting seasons. Especially when they don't allow public hunting on their property. My thought is, if they co-operate with the public, then the public can co-operate with them to a degree.  If they want to keep the public out, they can keep the wildlife out themselves too. If that includes a chain link fence around their property, so be it. Unless of course that interferes with natural migration routes.

They'd probably just break that fence down as well...  In our instance we have an adjoining landowner who won't let anyone hunt his property, nor does he. Consequently we now have an elk haven immediately south of much of our pasture ground, which spill over often late in the year overgrazing due to the size of the herd (think 300-500 elk) and just tearing the sh*t out of our fences. Not to mention they've chased all the mule deer down into the lower country! And now we have WTs showing up

Many of these late tags are held by landowners who aren't going to be chasing these herds all over the country, it's more of an opportunistic hunt. I can see where the general public might oppose landowners receiving these tags, but they foot the cost of the damage caused, as well as help support these herds through sterwardship of the land that's an auxillary benefit. It's not something we celebrate, just a means of management that we should support since it's at the basis of our pastime. At least that's how I look at it.