Deer Disease Containment For Jefferson County

By Scott Shalaway, Pittsburgh Post Gazette

The good news from the Pennsylvania Game Commission is that Chronic Wasting Disease was not detected in any samples collected from white-tailed deer harvested during the 2013-2014 deer hunting seasons.

Troubling news is that CWD persists in Pennsylvania. Two road-killed deer in Bedford County tested positive for the disease last fall. Another infected individual was found at a captive deer farm in Jefferson County -- that facility and the Northampton County deer farm where the deer was born have been placed under quarantine. An infected free-ranging deer was detected just south of the Pennsylvania border in Maryland, and a new disease containment zone is planned for Central Pennsylvania.

Deer are the state's most economically valuable wildlife species, and are vital to the habitats of many other species. The PGC has established Disease Management Areas (DMA) to monitor the occurrence and spread of the disease. In response to these new cases, the DMA program will expand in 2014-2015.

CWD was discovered in 1967, but is relatively new to Pennsylvania. It is spread from individual to individual by direct and indirect contact. It attacks and destroys brain cells and is always fatal. The cause is unknown, there is no practical way to test live animals for the disease, and there is no vaccine.

The Game Commission takes this threat seriously. Since 1998 it has gathered and submitted more than 48,000 samples from wild deer and elk for testing. To date, only five wild deer have tested positive.

DMA 1 (600 square miles) was established in 2011 in York and Adams counties after an infected deer was detected at a captive deer facility there. DMA 2 (1,600 square miles) was established in 2013 after three infected deer were killed by hunters, and was enlarged to include parts of Blair, Bedford, Huntington, Cambria and Fulton counties. A third DMA is planned for Jefferson County.

"There is no scientific evidence that CWD has or can spread to humans, either through contact with infected animals or by eating the meat of infected animals," reports the Game Commission on its website. However, people are advised not to eat meat from animals infected with CWD.

For more information about the commission's CWD Response Plan and descriptions of the boundaries of the DMAs, see the PGC website at www.pgc.state.pa.us.

Biologist, author, and broadcaster Scott Shalaway can be heard 8-10 a.m. Saturdays on 1370 WVLY-AM (Wheeling) and online at www.wvly.net. He can be reached at www.drshalaway.com, sshalaway@aol.com and 2222 Fish Ridge Road, Cameron, W.Va., 26033.

River Walleyes Fare Differently

By Bob Frye

One of the rivers once so polluted that almost nothing could live in it is doing pretty well these days.

The Allegheny, upstream of Pittsburgh, is healthy enough that it's sustaining a walleye fishery without the need for supplemental stocking, according to survey work done by the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission. Not every similar waterway statewide can say that.

“It is encouraging,” said Bob Lorantas, warmwater unit leader for the commission. “As one who grew up in that area, to see the improvements and the fisheries coming back, it's great. Mother Nature has come back to at least equal what we were accomplishing with our own walleye stockings.”

That's noteworthy because the commission is deciding which rivers it will stock with walleye fry and fingerlings and which it will not.

There was a time when it stocked them all. That changed in 2008.

That year, the commission put an end to river system stockings to see if the waterways could support walleyes in great enough numbers to satisfy anglers on their own.

“If we can identify self-sustaining walleye populations, we can remove those waters from the stocking program and distribute fry and fingerlings where they are needed in order to meet angler demand,” said Dave Miko, chief of the commission's division of fisheries.

Surveys done between 2008 and 2013 showed that some waters — like the Allegheny between Ford City and Oil City — could sustain themselves walleye-wise. But others, including the upper Allegheny, could not.

“It is recommended that walleye fry stocking be resumed in a portion of the Allegheny River from the Kinzua Dam to Tionesta,” said Tim Wilson, a fisheries biologist in the commission's area 1 office in Linesville.

Other major river sections that will be managed for self-sustaining walleye populations — meaning no stocking — include the Monongahela River; North Branch Susquehanna River; Youghiogheny River from the Connellsville Dam downstream to the mouth; Ohio River; and West Branch Susquehanna River, from Moose Creek downstream to Bald Eagle Creek.

Stocking will not resume in the Delaware or Lehigh rivers, either.

Waters that again will be stocked with walleyes are Crawford County's French Creek; the Juniata River from the confluence of the Raystown Branch downstream to the confluence of the Kishacoquillas Creek; and the Susquehanna River from the confluence of the Juniata River downstream to the York Haven Dam.

That's subject to change, long-term. Miko said the commission will continue to monitor all the rivers to see how walleye populations do. He said it wants to make sure spending the money to stock fish provides better fishing.

Open season for walleye started Saturday, with a daily limit of six fish (which must be at least 15 inches), and walleye anglers are undoubtedly hoping for the best. So is the commission, Lorantas said.

“Returning fish to the creel, that's what we're about in all of our programs,” he said.

What Types Of Outdoor Recreation Are Most Important?

Pennsylvanians can weigh in by taking online survey.

          Pennsylvania’s hunters, trappers, sport shooters and wildlife enthusiasts have the opportunity to make their opinions known.

          An online survey, the results of which will be considered as part of an update to the Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan, remains open and can be completed in minutes.

          Questions on hunting, conservation programs, wildlife habitat and land acquisitions are included on the survey.

          State agencies are working with experts across Pennsylvania to update the Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan, which will help to guide future recreation investments, policies and facilities through 2018.

          A new plan is required every five years in order for Pennsylvania to qualify for federal Land and Water Conservation funding.

          Citizen feedback is a component that’s important in building the plan’s goals.

          The online survey is one of three surveys that will be considered as part of Pennsylvania’s outdoor recreation plan update. A scientific survey was conducted earlier this year, and a survey of recreation providers also is being developed.

          The online survey is completely confidential and can be accessed at https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/paoutdoorrec. The survey remains open until May 16.

          After feedback from all three surveys is analyzed, a draft plan will be written in late summer and will be available for review and comment on the plan’s website. Feedback sessions will allow citizens, providers and interested stakeholders to give their input before a final document is presented to the National Park Service later this year. Learn more at www.paoutdoorrecplan.com.

In Memory Of Long Time Member Bill Stanislaw

Bull Creek is sad to announce the passing of long time member Bill Stanislaw. Here is a message from his wife Lynda: 

It is with a heavy heart that I am informing you of the passing of Bill Stanislaw. I know he was a member of Bull Creek Rod and Gun Club for many years. I know that he had many great times with all of the people there. He truly enjoyed his time on the trap team and as the representative to the county league. 

His favorite charity was the Friends of the NRA. He attended the ba...nquet and was a sponsor every year. Although he never had any children of his own, he believed that it is important to support the education of the shooting sports for the kids.

Thank you for thinking of him.
Your friend
Lynda

Plenty of turkeys available if hunters know where to look

By Bob Frye

A hunter sets up decoys in a field hoping to attract a turkey.
Turkey season opens Saturday, May 4, 2014, in Pennsylvania.

Forget about it.

If it's solitude you seek, rest assured you're not going to have the woods to yourself over the next month.

Pennsylvania's spring gobbler season, which kicks off Saturday, has grown in popularity to become the second-biggest hunt on the calendar. It drew nearly 207,000 hunters in 2013, according to Pennsylvania Game Commission statistics. Only the firearms deer season attracts more participants.

That's a lot of camo-clad, call-totin', gun-bearin' folks.

But there are a lot of turkeys out there, too. Pennsylvania is home to an estimated 186,000, said Mary Jo Casalena, the commission's turkey biologist and a gobbler hunter. If that's less than the state had when populations peaked in 2001, it's still enough that hunters kill an average of 34,000 gobblers annually, she said.

No other Northeastern state comes close to matching that.

“I want to reiterate: We've still got a lot of turkeys. There's just not a turkey behind every tree like we had in 2001,” Casalena said.

Many hunters undoubtedly will look for birds on public land. And make no mistake. That kind of crowd will change how turkeys behave.

“We have a lot of turkey hunters, so turkeys become pretty wary shortly after the season begins,” Casalena said. “They have a pea-sized brain, so I wouldn't call them smart, but they are wary. They learn very quickly.”

But there's some good hunting to be had on public land, especially if you seek out areas with certain habitat features.

Turkeys like open spaces, Casalena said. Hens congregate there to feed on bugs, and gobblers follow to strut where they can be seen.

In mountainous terrain, like the ridge-top country that makes up game land 42 in eastern Westmoreland County and game land 228 in Somerset, gated access roads provide that kind of habitat, said Travis Anderson, the commission's land management group supervisor in Westmoreland, Somerset and part of Cambria. Hunters can find birds by setting up along roads, he said.

“Basically they're like food plots running across the mountains,” Anderson said. “A lot of times, when we're out early in the morning, we'll see turkeys on those roads. The hens are bugging, and the gobblers are strutting.”

Some access roads are especially good. On game land 296 in Westmoreland County and game land 51 in Fayette, for example, the commission is doing border cuts along some roads. The intent is to create brushy habitat, providing a buffer of new growth between the road and the mature forest, said Steve Leiendecker, a land management group supervisor in Fayette and Greene counties.

“Wildlife likes messes. They don't like really neat things,” he said. “By creating edge habitat, you attract a lot of wildlife, including turkeys.”

Hunters also would be wise to walk some of those roads to find “secret” hot spots.

The game commission always has developed food plots on its game lands. It's been able to ramp up that work over the last two years or so thanks to funding from the National Wild Turkey Federation and record levels of federal excise tax dollars, Anderson said.

“In the past, the emphasis was always on maintaining what we had as opposed to creating new plots,” Anderson said. “Now with some extra resources, we've been able to create some new stuff.”

Some of those forest openings — one- to two-acre fields of clover and legumes — are so new that they're not on maps yet. All are off access roads, though, so hunters willing to walk and do a little scouting can find “unmarked” turkey magnets to hunt, Anderson said.

Hunters also can find public land gobblers by looking for Marcellus Shale drilling activity.

Well pads, pipelines and rights-of-way can look ugly when under construction, and some hunters have been upset to see one-time hunting spots disappear, said Doug Dunkerly, a land management group supervisor in Washington, Beaver and Greene counties. But when reclaimed with clover, sunflowers, timothy, orchard grass and such, those disturbed areas draw turkeys as well as deer and other species.

Hunters are learning they can hunt those reclaimed well pads and openings with success, Dunkerly said.

“If you're talking about a privately owned hay field or corn field that's been cut, and there's just stubble left in it, I'd like to think that some of our reclaimed areas are a little richer,” Leiendecker said. “Some of these places, they have alfalfa that's ankle deep.”

Don't give up if you find other hunters on or near your chosen public land stand, Casalena said. Turkeys move more than some people think — four to five miles is not uncommon — and hunting pressure drops as the season goes along.

Hunters who stick it out, even on public land, can do well late into the season.

“You can't not hunt the first weekend, especially if the weather is good. But what I really like is the third week of the season,” Casalena said. “The pressure is off. The gobblers have started getting back to their normal routine. And they start gobbling again.

“So if you can't find a good place to hunt early in the season, all is not lost. The season is a whole month long.”

Details

Turkey season details

The spring gobbler season runs May 3-31. It again will feature a mix of half-day and all-day hunting.

During the first two weeks of the season, hunting begins a half-hour before sunrise and ends at noon. Hunters are asked to be out of the woods by 1 p.m. to minimize disturbance of nesting hens.

During the season's last two weeks, when hunting pressure is lower and hens are less likely to abandon nests, hunting is from a half-hour before sunrise until a half-hour after sunset.

Hunters should expect to see higher numbers of year-old males, commonly called “jakes,” this year as a result of above-average reproduction in 2013, said Pennsylvania Game Commission turkey biologist Mary Jo Casalena.

Those aren't necessarily the birds hunters look for, she said. About 80 percent of the annual spring harvest typically is made up of adult birds 2 years old and older, as hunters “hunt the gobble” and pursue longbeards.

But the jakes should offer lots of turkey sightings, additional harvest opportunities and more birds down the line, she added.

Some of the best hunting around will occur close to home, too. According to 2012 spring turkey harvest statistics, wildlife management unit 2G gave up more spring gobblers than any other, with unit 3C in the Poconos ranking second. But units 1A, 2D, 2C and 2A in Western Pennsylvania ranked fourth through sixth. 

Bob Frye is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. Reach him at bfrye@tribweb.com or via Twitter @bobfryeoutdoors.

PA Turkey population has reached a new normal with mixed predictions for the spring harvest

By John Hayes / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Pennsylvania ranks third in the United States in the harvest
of one of the most savvy game species. Turkey numbers are down
 in the state since 2001, but more than
30,000 spring gobblers are taken per year.

If fly fishing requires an angler to know more about the animal and master special skills, it's fair to say spring gobbler season is the fly fishing of hunting.

And just as public interest in steelhead began in the Pacific Northwest, turkey-mania was boosted, if not started, by the writings and product lines of former Game Commission biologist, former Pittsburgh Press outdoors editor Roger Latham.

During the May 3-May 31 season, hunters could see higher numbers of year-old jakes as a result of above-average reproduction in 2013. But just south of the Mason-Dixon, West Virginia hunters could see a decreased harvest when that state's season opens tomorrow.

It's unclear what those conflicting harvest forecasts could mean for Pennsylvania turkey hunters in the bordering southwestern counties of Greene, Fayette, Somerset, Bedford and Fulton.
"Since the typical gobbler harvested is usually a two-year-old bird, the [West Virginia] DNR routinely uses the brood reports from two years prior to estimate harvest trends," said Curtis Taylor, head of the Division of Natural Resources Wildlife Resources Section, in a written statement.

West Virginia has an estimated 140,000 turkeys. The 2013 spring harvest was 10,974.
"On a statewide level, the brood reports from 2012 were lower than the five-year average, indicating that the statewide harvest may be lower in 2014," said Taylor. "There were regional variations in the data. Hunters in the southern region may not see a decline. Hunters in the mountain and western regions, however, will likely notice fewer birds."

In Pennsylvania, where the turkey population is larger (estimated 191,000) and the 2013 spring harvest was greater (34,158), the forecast is brighter but with a caveat.

"The season that awaits promises to be a memorable one for Pennsylvania's turkey hunters," said Mary Jo Casalena, the Pennsylvania Game Commission's wild turkey biologist, in her annual preseason forecast. "While the statewide turkey population has experienced moderate declines in recent years, Pennsylvania hunters for nearly 20 years have consistently harvested more than 30,000 turkeys in the spring season, which is open to hunting only bearded birds -- typically males. This year, hunters should see higher numbers of year-old males ... as a result of above-average reproduction in 2013. And while many hunters prefer to hold out for the bigger and larger gobblers, the abundance of jakes out there could lead to increased sightings and hunter harvests."

In a wild turkey population trend analysis published in January, Casalena wrote that turkey numbers peaked in 2001 at about 275,000, and by 2009 had dropped to a new normal of around 175,000.

"Eastern wild turkey populations across their range have recently been trending downward and Pennsylvania's wild turkey population is showing the same trend," she wrote. "There are several reasons for the decline: the natural leveling off of the populations following population restoration from trap and transfer, fluctuations due to annual nest success and poult survival, fall harvests and changing environmental conditions. Our challenge as wildlife managers is to determine what the new sustainable population level should be given current and future socio-environmental conditions. Wild turkey populations have been below average for the last four years."

Outdoor Life magazine's Strut Zone turkey blog, which included Pennsylvania in its recent assessment of "10 big-time turkey states," shared a pragmatic view.
"Brood production in 2013 was below average with some exceptions, but older gobblers are fairly abundant [in Pennsylvania]," wrote turkey correspondent John E. Phillips. "Turkey numbers are down, but there are still plenty of turkeys available. Gobbling activity may be suppressed by the lack of 2-year-old birds."

The report recommended hunting in several State Game Lands and state forests in Eastern Pennsylvania. The only place west of State College mentioned was Allegheny National Forest.
Split season hours continue this season. May 3-17 hunting is permitted 30 minutes before sunrise until noon, May 19-31 the hours are 30 minutes before sunrise until 30 minutes after sunset.

Pennsylvania Achieves Safe-Hunting Milestone

Report shows record-low number of hunting-related shooting incidents in 2013.

For the second year in a row, Pennsylvania hunters have rewritten history in regard to safe hunting.

According to a newly released report from the Pennsylvania Game Commission, there were 27 hunting-related shooting incidents (HRSIs) in 2013. That total not only represents a decrease from the previous year, it’s a record low.

The Game Commission has been tracking HRSIs since 1915, and there never before had been fewer than 33 incidents reported in a year. Decades ago, hundreds of incidents occurred each year.

Requirements for hunters to wear orange in many seasons and ongoing hunter-education efforts are essential to the upward safety trend, the report states.

In 2013, 40,971 students received their Basic Hunter-Trapper Education certification in Pennsylvania.

Game Commission Executive Director R. Matthew Hough said the latest report is something about which those student graduates, their volunteer hunter-education instructors and the hunting public at large all can be proud.

“There’s still work to do,” Hough said. “Even one incident is too many and, as the record shows, we do not take hunter safety lightly. That said, we continue to be encouraged by record-low numbers of incidents and the continuing trend of safer hunting in Pennsylvania.”

In Pennsylvania, hunting-related shooting incidents have declined by nearly 80 percent since hunter-education training began in 1959.

The latest numbers build upon the previous year, during which 33 incidents were reported, tying the previous record-low.

Two of the 27 incidents reported in 2013 were fatal. Except for 2012 – the first year without a single reported fatality related to gun handling in hunting and trapping in Pennsylvania – at least one fatality has been reported each year. The number of fatal incidents has declined sharply over the years.

In 2013, nine of the 27 incidents with an identified offender resulted from individuals with 10 or fewer years of hunting experience.

It is important to note, however, that no incidents during 2013 involved youth participating in the Mentored Youth Hunting Program – a program whereby hunters under the age of 12 are permitted to harvest certain wildlife species, if they are accompanied by a licensed adult. Nearly 34,000 Mentored Youth Permits were issued during this timeframe.

In its annual reports on HRSIs, the Game Commission establishes an incident rate by computing the number of accidents per 100,000 participants. The 2.85 incident rate reported for 2013 is 20 percent lower than the 2012 rate of 3.52.

An analysis of offender ages revealed individuals ages 16 and younger had an incident rate of 3.26 per 100,000 participants.

The leading causes of hunting-related shooting incidents in 2013 were unintentional discharge and a victim being in the line of fire, each accounting for one-third of the total. It should be noted that incidents resulting from a sporting arm carried in a dangerous position decreased substantially from the previous year (Two incidents in 2013 compared to eight in 2012).

Game Commissioner Timothy Layton, of Windber, said hunter education is instrumental in reducing the number of HRSIs. He thanked the dedicated corps of 2,280 volunteer instructors for the crucial role they play, and the hunters in the field for continuing to put safety first.

“If there’s one thing these numbers make clear it’s that hunting in Pennsylvania is safe and getting safer,” said Layton, who chairs the commissioners’ Information & Education committee. “As hunters, I’m sure we all can appreciate how far we’ve come and look forward to many more safe seasons ahead.”

It's Turkey Time In PA!

Pennsylvaina's spring gobbler season kicks off Saturday with youth hunt.

         

Another spring gobbler season is just days away from kicking off. 

             Hunters ages 16 and younger can take advantage of an early-season opportunity beginning a half-hour before sunrise on Saturday, April 26. Pennsylvania’s youth spring turkey hunt is open to properly accompanied junior hunters and mentored youth. 

          Hunters of all ages then can participate in the May 3 opener of the statewide spring gobbler season, which runs through May 31. 

          The season that awaits promises to be a memorable one for Pennsylvania’s turkey hunters, said Mary Jo Casalena, the Pennsylvania Game Commission’s wild turkey biologist. While the statewide turkey population has experienced moderate declines in recent years, Pennsylvania hunters for nearly 20 years have consistently harvested more than 30,000 turkeys in the spring season, which is open to hunting only bearded birds – typically males. 

          This year, Casalena said, hunters should see higher numbers of year-old males – commonly called “jakes” – as a result of above-average reproduction in 2013. 

          And while many hunters prefer to hold out for the bigger and larger gobblers, the abundance of jakes out there could lead to increased sightings and hunter harvests, she said. 

          All participants in the youth hunt must be accompanied by adults as required by law. A complete list of regulations applying to mentored youth and junior hunters can be found in the Pennsylvania Hunting & Trapping Digest, which is issued at the time hunting licenses are purchased and is also available online at http://www.pgc.state.ps.us. 

          Hunting hours during the youth hunt end at noon. Junior hunters and mentored youth may also participate in the statewide spring gobbler season. 

          Hunting hours begin one-half hour before sunrise and end at noon for the first two weeks of the statewide season (May 3 through May 17). Hunters are asked to be out of the woods by 1 p.m. when hunting hours end at noon. This is to minimize disturbance of nesting hens. 

          From May 19 through May 31, hunting hours are from one-half hour before sunrise until one-half hour after sunset. The all-day season allows more opportunity at the point in the season when hunting pressure is lower and nesting hens are less likely to abandon nests. 

          During the spring gobbler season, hunters may use manually operated or semi-automatic shotguns limited to a three-shell capacity in the chamber and magazine combined. Muzzleloading shotguns, crossbows and long, recurve and compound bows also are permitted. For a complete list of regulations, consult Page 35 of the Pennsylvania Hunting & Trapping Digest. 

          Pennsylvania hunters again this year are able to purchase a license to harvest a second gobbler in the spring season, but only one gobbler may be taken per day. This license must be purchased no later than May 2 – before the statewide season begins. 

          The $ 21.70 license ($41.70 for nonresidents) may be purchased online, but cannot be printed at home. Therefore if a hunter expects to need the license early in the season, purchasing it directly from an issuing agent might be better. General hunting licenses purchased online also are sent by mail. 

          Casalena said the spring gobbler seasons likely can’t come too soon for hunters. Pennsylvania has a strong spring turkey hunting tradition. The state has more spring turkey hunters and boasts higher harvests than all other northeastern states, and Pennsylvania’s youth season harvest exceeds the total spring harvest of some states, she said.
          “With the warm temperatures, songbirds returning, emerging wildflowers and mushrooms blooming, spring gobbler season is a wonderful time of year to enjoy Penn’s Woods, and share the experience with others,” Casalena said. 

Bald Eagle Pair In Harmar Is Also Seen Raising A Family

By John Hayes / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

On a steep bluff above the Allegheny River in Harmar, bald eagles in Allegheny County's most recently inhabited nest appear to have hatched at least one eaglet.

The Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania confirmed the hatching Thursday based on behaviors observed through optics from a point near the Hulton Bridge.

Unlike the Hays eagle site, no camera monitors the Harmar nest.

Jim Bonner, executive director of the Audubon chapter, said at least one egg is believed to have hatched Tuesday.

"During the incubation period, the male and female would switch places on the nest," he said. "Six times in the last couple of days, I've observed the male bringing food to the nest, interacting briefly with the female, and leaving. Now, she stays on the nest. Before we saw her head moving in a way that suggested she was rolling an egg or eggs. Now she's up for four to seven minutes at a time, and we see her pulling at stuff as if it's food and moving her head in what appear to be feeding motions."

Audubon observers said something that appeared to be food in the female's beak was gone when she raised her head, suggesting the feeding of an eaglet. She has been observed concentrating her attention on something at the bottom of the nest. The adults' new behaviors began about 36 days after previous activity suggested that an egg had been laid and incubation had begun.

"These are all behaviors consistent with the hatching of one or more eggs," Mr. Bonner said.
This would be the Harmar couple's first hatching. In 2013, the eagles stole the nest from red-tailed hawks, and the eagles were seen engaging in mating activities. But they abandoned the nest. Mr. Bonner said one of the eagles had head coloration that suggested it may have been sexually immature.

A year older, the eagles returned in January, upgraded the nest and were observed mating. Researchers won't be able to determine the level of their reproductive success for about a month.
"We should know in three or four weeks whether there is more than one eaglet," he said. "They'll be big enough that we'll see their heads above the nest."

With construction on the Hulton Bridge, generally heavy traffic on Route 28 and Freeport Road and narrow berms, there is no safe public observation site. The Audubon Society has special permission to watch from a spot just downstream from the bridge.

At Hays, the male eagle has provided ample food from the Monongahela River and surrounding area. The three eaglets that hatched March 28 through April 1 have grown into fuzzy gray balls that alternately eat and sleep, progressing at rate predicted by ornithologists.

Mr. Bonner said it's more difficult to monitor Allegheny County's third bald eagle nest on private property in Crescent. The couple fledged multiple eaglets in 2013 and 2012. They are believed to be in incubation mode.

Elk attempts to jump fence to follow massive herd but fails miserably

After 1.5 minutes of trying, the elk finally succeeds and rejoins the herd

April 06, 2014 by David Strege

An elk herd estimated at to be 200 in number jumps a fence and crosses 

a road near Yellowstone National Park. Screen grab from video

An incredibly large herd of elk followed the leader over a wire fence, across a roadway, and onto a snowy field. But for one elk, the exercise wasn’t so easy. After the entire herd crosses the road ahead of it, the elk not adept at jumping hurdles was left behind, struggling to get over a fence that was negotiated easily by the rest of the herd.

The incident occurred in Bozeman, Montana, near Yellowstone National Park and was captured on video by Austin Stonnell. It’s a perfect example of the “If at first you don’t succeed … ” axiom:

The elk left behind tried jumping over the fence, but that didn’t work. It tried going through the fence, but that didn’t work. It ran up and down next to the fence trying to find a better way through until a car passed and scared it away from the fence.

With a newfound determination, the elk finally made it over the fence and rejoined the herd after one and a half minutes of trying.

In an email to GrindTV Outdoor, Stonnell described how he stumbled upon the scene and got the video:

“I was heading into town and thought it was a big herd of cows at first, but then I saw the alpha male leading the herd so I pulled out my camera and was gonna get some close-ups. But then they started jumping [over the fence].

“I estimated there were 200 elk, but it may be less. I am fairly new to Montana, so I thought this size of herd was normal, but no [it isn’t]. The largest herd I’ve seen until this was only a few elk. I felt so bad for the lone elk that I was close to hopping out of my car to cut the fence.”

In the end, that wasn’t necessary, because the lone elk discovered the art of the running start.

Submitted by club member Jim Martin