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The question posed by sbiono51 in his post: http://huntingny.com/forums/topic/26963-elk-in-new-york/ got me thinking and inspired me to do a bit of research about elk in NY and effort to reestablish them. I'll share what I found out. 1.Elk in North America According to the USFWS elk have been in North America for the last 120,000 years, having migrated from Asia across the great land bridge which once separated the Bering Sea from the Arctic Ocean. More than 1 million elk exist in the US, mostly in the West with several small herds in the East. Figure 1, Current range of elk in North America The closest wild herd to NY is the Pennsylvanian herd numbering about 800 animals in Cameron, Clearfield and Elk Counties. In PA approximately 70 animals are taken by hunters each year through a state run lottery. 2. History of Elk in New York State According to the RMEF the fossil record shows Elk ranged throughout much the Eastern US for most at least the last 3000 years including all of NYS. Figure 2, Historical Range of Elk in the Eastern US The according to the RMEF ( http://www.otsego.org/prca/articles/eastelk.htm), prior to the modern era the last elk was killed in NY in 1847. 3. Reintroduction attempts in the 20th Century. Historically, there have been several attempts to restore elk in NY State. A number of unsuccessful attempts were made from 1900 to 1940 in the Raquette Lake area of the Adirondacks. An initial release of 20 animals by private citizens was made in in 1900 followed by subsequent releases for 155 additional animals. Successful reproduction in the wild was taking place and the herd around Raquette Lake grew to an estimated 350 animals. Another attempt was made by the NYSDEC in the Debar Mountain Refuge area near Meacham Lake in 1932. Figure 3. Elk at Debar Mountain Refuge prior to release. it believed that the Adirondack population due to both release sites was totally wiped out by 1946 due to poaching and/or brain worm disease. 4. Recent Studies In October of 1998 a report was released discussing the feasibility of restoring Elk New York State. The report was sponsored by the RMEF and the study was conducted jointly by the SUNY ESF, Syracuse, University and the Human Dimensions Research, DNR, Cornell, University. The results of the study indicated that suitable habitat existed in three area of NYS. Namely the Peripheral Adirondacks, the Catskills and a SW NYS area. Factors such as forage, cover, habitat diversity, road density and social acceptability were taken into account. Figure 4. Habitat suitability results. If any introductions are made in the future it would likely be in the "Peripheral Adirondack" or Catskill area. The study in its entirety can be found at: http://www2.dnr.cornell.edu/hdru/pubs/FeasElkNYS.pdf