The Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources (Ontario MNR) and the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters (OFAH) have jointly announced that the Bancroft-North Hastings area of Ontario will be open to a one week elk hunt in 2011.
There has not been an elk hunt in Ontario for over 100 years, but the ground work for this new hunting opportunity began ten years ago in Elk Island National Park, Alberta. According to the Ontario MNR website, elk were transferred from Alberta (between 1998 and 2001) and released into these areas: Nipissing/French River, Bancroft/ North Hastings, the North Shore of Lake Huron, and Lake of the Woods. (Entire Article Here)
Ontario Elk - Photo: Ontario MNR Website
An article from the Science Daily shared that the transplanted elk encountered a high mortality rate of 41% during the years of 1998 – 2004 attributed to wolf predation, illegal hunting and stress from the transfer process.
Since that time, the mortality rate has decreased yearly and the population has increased in many areas. The elk population in the Bancroft area is now estimated to be between 330 and 766 animals. (Ontario MNR Website)
The OFAH news announcement shares details about the Bancroft 2011 elk hunt,
“A limited number of licenses and seals will be available through a random draw process for designated Wildlife Management Units in the Bancroft-North Hastings area. The short season is slated to run from the third Monday in September to the following Sunday, which is September 19 to 25 in 2011.”
Some Hunters and residents have reported to me that some elk have been seen in our area.
Muskoka Outdoors salutes all partners involved in this historic announcement.
*Science Daily Article: Blackwell Publishing Ltd. (2007, February 27). Over A Century After Disappearing, Wild Elk Return To Ontario. ScienceDaily. Retrieved
