Elk in New York State

The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation funded a feasibility study conducted by SUNY-ESF at Syracuse and by Cornell University which focused on the combination of biological (habitat for elk) and sociological (community acceptance of elk) aspects of an elk reintroduction into New York state. The study was completed and an Environmental Impact Statement was drafted for a restoration effort in the Catskill Mountains. As of this writing the the Draft Environmental Impact Statement was submitted to the DEC, but all actions by the DEC concerning the elk project are on hold due to regulations passed prohibiting the importation and release of wild elk because of chronic wasting disease (CWD)concerns. There will probably be no changes until a proven live animal test for CWD emerges.

My own personal favorite for a reintroduction site would be the Tug Hill Plateau region of Oneida, Oswego, Jefferson and Lewis Counties. It's a very large, sparsely populated area of mostly forested land that gets more snow than any place else east of the Rockies. But since the majority of it is privately held, I think food plots could be made to encourage the elk to stay there without running into the problems of a Forever Wild Area which cannot be altered for wildlife habitat improvement as may be the case in the Catskills. But this is just my idea and it may be totally wet.

It may turn into a moot point however as wild elk from Pennsylvania have been sighted in the Alma Pond area of Allegany County, NY, where they probably crossed over from Potter County, PA.