![]() From 2012–2014, 75 elk were translocated from eastern Kentucky to restored mine lands in Buchanan County, Virginia. Growing interest in elk from the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (DGIF) Board led to a directive in 2009 for staff to develop an operational plan for elk restoration. Therefore, restoration efforts were put on hold. Completed in 2000, the study revealed adequate habitat for the animals but a lack of public support. This prompted Virginia to conduct a feasibility study for restoring elk once again. Kentucky started a massive elk restoration project in 1997 in the eastern part of the state. By 1970, elk were again absent from the Commonwealth. To revive the population in 1935, more elk were imported from Yellowstone National Park. By 1926, only two herds survived in the wild. A variety of factors, including over-harvest and poaching for crop damage, poor habitat quality, and poor selection of release sites, led to the waning of the elk population over the next few decades. For 60 years there were no elk grazing in the state of Virginia, the first reintroduction of elk began between 1913-1922 when elk were imported and released in Augusta, Bath, Botetourt, Cumberland, Giles, Montgomery, Princess Anne, Pulaski, Roanoke, Rockbridge, Rockingham, Russell, Warren, and Washington counties. Due to hunters harvesting elk faster than populations could recover and loss of grazing habitat, the last native elk was killed in 1855 in Clarke County before the Civil War. There are many places in Virginia that carry the elk's history as well as their name, like Elk Island in Goochland County or Elk Garden in Russell County. The summer habitat was on mountain ridges and winter in valley bottoms. Native Virginia elk (Cervus elaphus) once actively roamed across east Virginia to the Fall Line. The elk viewing stations are made possible by the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources. Subscribe to the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources Email Newsletter The best times to see elk are during September and October around dusk and dawn hours.įor more information about Virginia Elk, visit the Virginia DWR website here. An estimated 8,000-10,000 visitors frequent this area every year to view elk and other wildlife, a number that is sure to only grow. A designated site on the Virginia Bird & Wildlife Trail, these three sheltered platforms have bench seating, are accessible, and overlook managed wildlife habitat areas that provide visitors the opportunity to view elk, white-tailed deer, turkey, grassland birds, butterflies, and the occasional black bear. To provide an in-person elk viewing opportunity, the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources worked with Southwest Virginia Sportsmen and Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation to help provide an Elk Viewing Area, which contains multiple elk viewing platforms on a Buchanan County-property in Vansant, accessible from the Southern Gap Outdoor Adventure Center. NEW - Live 4K UltraHD Virginia Elk Cam Brought to you by the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |