SPORTS

Haunting sound of bugling elk echoes across Peck Ranch

Tom Uhlenbrock

WINONA Elk are early risers.

The best way to see an elk, on the self-guided driving tours at Peck Ranch Conservation Area, is to arrive at dawn. That’s when elk are most likely to stroll out of the woods to graze in the grassy fields along the gravel roads.

“You may see an elk at any time of the day, but your chances are greater during the hour after sunrise and the hour before sunset,” said David Hasenbeck, elk coordinator at the conservation area. “They’re at the food plots early in the morning and late in the evening. But these are wild animals, and it’s not a fenced-in park, so there’s no guarantee.

On my first visit to the area, pink clouds announced daybreak as I slowly cruised the main road and spotted huge dark forms near the edge of the woods. A bull elk stood like a sentinel while several cows moved out to graze. Two younger males locked horns in mock battle.

As an added treat, the bull bugled to keep his “harem” from roaming too far, and the eerie sound echoed through the valley. Like the plaintive cry of the loon, elk bugling is one of the signature calls of the wild.

“It’s haunting – once you hear it, you’ll know what it is,” Hasenbeck said. “It’s very cool, even for a crusty old biologist like me.”

The bugling is heard during rutting season, from mid-September through late October. With autumn colors decorating the hills and valleys, fall is a prime time to go for an elk tour.

“Winter also is a really good time because they tend to be out in the fields longer, and it’s easier to see them in the woods,” Hasenbeck said. “But you can see them any time of the year. As the herd expands, it’s going to get easier and easier to see elk.”

Setting the table for elk from Kentucky

Once found throughout most of Missouri, elk disappeared from the state about 150 years ago because of over hunting and habitat loss. In 2011, the Missouri Department of Conservation began restoring the species, using elk trapped in Kentucky.

Peck Ranch Conservation Area, in northwest Carter County and eastern Shannon County in southeast Missouri, was chosen as the release site. The area consists of 23,048 acres of rugged hills covered in oak and pine, pocked with rocky glades.

The hills are separated by deep, dark hollows and several fields include feed plots to ensure the animals’ health.

In the spring of 2011, 2012 and 2013, the Conservation Department brought in three shipments of elk, for a total of just over 100 released. They thrived, producing calves that enlarged the herd to about 125 today. Radio collars are strapped to the released animals to monitor their movements.

“They stayed in the area because of good habitat conditions,” Hasenbeck said. “We kind of set the table for them, and it’s worked pretty well.”

Roaming the Ozarks

The Conservation Department has established a “target zone” for the elk expansion; an area of 350 square miles in Reynolds, Carter and Shannon counties. The goal is to have a population of some 500 animals in the zone, which could take up to 20 years at the current growth rate of about 10 percent per year.

The elk already have expanded into the nearby Current River Conservation Area, which has created self-guided elk driving tours through its 29,290 acres.

The driving tours at the two conservation areas are on marked gravel roads, which were in good shape on a recent visit. However, vehicles should have adequate ground clearance. Road conditions can be checked by calling 855-263-2355.

The conservation areas are adjacent to the Ozark National Scenic Riverways, the national park that preserves the Current and Jacks Fork rivers. Elk have been spotted along the Current River, especially from the Two Rivers access to Van Buren.

“One of the common misconceptions is that we intended this to be a border-to-border restoration, like deer and turkey,” Hasenbeck said. “We don’t intend for them to expand into the agricultural areas of northern Missouri. We will keep them in the Ozarks, where it’s more suitable.”

The Conservation Department is managing the elk as a game animal, meaning hunting seasons may be established when numbers increase.

“When we get to 200 animals, we will consider limited permits for hunting,” Hasenbeck said.

Elk, bear and mountain lions, too

While elk are the stars, Hasenbeck noted that improving habitat for elk also means quality conditions for other plant and animal species in the area.

“It’s not just about elk; you could run into deer, turkey, bobcats,” Hasenbeck said. “Somebody last week reported a very rare badger sighting. There are a large number of rare and declining species associated with this glade/woodland habitat. It just so happens that glades and woodlands are fantastic for elk. It’s a win-win situation.”

Game cameras set up in the area have recorded the natural return of two other animals that formerly roamed Missouri: black bear and mountain lions.

Park staffers set up some of the cameras around the carcasses of elk that died of natural causes.

“We have four different instances of lions scavenging on these elk,” Hasenbeck said. “What better use of a dead elk than to feed a mountain lion? That’s a pretty neat interaction between two of the rarest mammals in Missouri.”

With the word getting out that the two conservation areas are open to driving tours, more and more vehicles are showing up, including some with license plates from surrounding states,” Hasenbeck said.

“A lot of the tourism in this part of the state is related to the Ozark National Scenic Riverways,” he said. “With elk, we’re just cracking the tip of the iceberg.”