I am going to do a mini-documentary on Texas elk populations and I need your help.
I need video, photos and accounts of elk in Texas. It can be recently or in the past.
There are four key areas I am looking for. They are as follows:
* East Texas: There is a small but seemingly growing population of elk in an isolated pocket of East Texas.
*Hill Country: There are elk in several areas of the Hill Country that seem to be increasing including around Rocksprings and in Kendall County.
*Trans Pecos: This is where our native herd still exists yet due to elk not being considered a game animal and there are no official surveys.
*Panhandle: I am hearing of these animals roaming several areas in the Panhandle region.
You can reach me via cmoore@fishgame.com with photos, videos and links to any content I might be missing out there.
I recently came across an incredible study by Richardson B. Gill, Christopher Gill, Reeda Peel, and Javier Vasquez.
It goes deeply into historical accounts of elk in the Lone Star State and as the study shows, elk were not limited to theTrans Pecos.
The earliest recorded sighting of elk in Texas occurred in 1601 according to the authors. The Spanish governor of New Mexico, don Juan de Oñate, embarked on an exploration of lands to the northeast of Santa Fe.
“This river [the Canadian] is thickly covered on all sides with these cattle [bison] and with another not less wonderful, consisting of deer which are as large as large horses. They travel in droves of two and three hundred and their deformity causes one to wonder whether they are deer or some other animal.”
Translation: Elk.
The documentary will be released in October and will open many people’s eyes to a truly unique wildlife story in Texas.
Chester Moore