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(Undated) -- Iowans are spotting more elk these days. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources says sightings have become more common in western Iowa especially. Wildlife biologist Tyler Harms says there have been some central Iowa elk sightings too, in Boone, Dallas, Guthrie, and Story counties. He says it's likely there are not many elk, just a handful of solitary young males who cover a lot of territory and are seen on numerous trail cameras in Iowa.
“I had reports coming in weekly to my office all fall,” said Josh Gansen, wildlife biologist with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources Saylorville Wildlife Unit covering nine counties in central and west central Iowa.
Experts say the elk rut (breeding season) out west is in September and October, which is around the same time as the juvenile elk have been showing up in Iowa. The Iowa DNR is collecting scat and muscle tissue for DNA analysis to learn more about these animals, including where they are coming from.
Elk and moose are protected under Iowa Code, which includes a $1,000 fine if illegally killed. That does not exclude the right of a person from dispatching an elk that is causing property damage or from causing physical harm.
The DNR says this fall, an elk was hit and killed on I-80 and another was found dead within sight of Hwy. 20, east of Sioux City. The Woodbury County elk was a 1 to 1-1/2-year-old adolescent animal weighing approximately 450-500 pounds which is significantly larger than a white-tailed deer.
An adult elk can weigh between 750-800 pounds.