Elk Near Missoula Monitored by Radio Collar For Study

Right now, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, the Forest Service, and other groups are tracking a herd of 60 Elk in the Sapphire Mountains south of Missoula.

"There's been a perception that elk in that portion of the valley have started to lose their migratory behavior," said FWP spokesman Ben Jimenez who has been tracking the elk. "What we're trying to do is, just trying see first off, 'A' if that's happening, and then 'B' what kind of factors are contributing to it."

Some of those factors can include food accessibility on public and private land, predation by wildlife, and hunting accessibility.

The study started with 65 collared elk of which only 51 remain. Nine of those elk were taken by hunters, the other missing five are thought to be collar malfunctions.

Jiminez says hunters should not be deterred from hunting the herd.

"We've had a handful harvested, and we certainly don't ask people not to shoot a collared animal. It's totally fine to shoot a collared animal. We just ask that if somebody does shoot a collared animal, bull or cow, that they let us know as soon as they can."

The collars have batteries that can be saved if they are returned promptly. Hunters are advised to call the number printed on the collar to coordinate with FWP to drop off the collar.

Jiminez says hunters that know about this study have actually called to try to get coordinates of where the elk are, but have had to leave empty handed.

"The general rule is that, especially during hunting season, that there is no publicly available locations of animals," Jimenez. We don't even do a whole lot with the locations other than moralities during hunting season."

The elk will continue to be tracked for another year, and information about the study is expected to pop up in journals and other publications after that.