BOZEMAN – Wildlife biologists with Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks are collaring elk on private land south of Bozeman this winter to gather herd migration data that will inform elk management and land-use planning in parts of the Gallatin Valley.
GPS collars provide periodic locations of the collared animals, giving insights into movement pathways, habitat use and mortality.
This season’s collaring effort south of Bozeman has three main objectives:
- Identify trends as elk cross U.S. Highway 191
- Inform herd management through hunting regulations and habitat as elk migrate on and off national forest land
- Provide information for land-use planning to protect habitat and inform development
While it did not appear to have a population-level impact, the winter of 2022-23 was noticeably troubling for elk mortality due to vehicle collisions along Highway 191 south of Four Corners. The following winter, FWP collared four cow elk in the area to begin gathering more information. This winter is a continuation of that effort, and FWP staff hope to collar up to eight cow elk this season.
Biologists use a combination of clover traps and dart guns to capture and collar elk. Clover traps are netted cages that offer a method of capturing individual elk with minimal disturbance to the herd so that staff can deploy GPS collars. The collars will provide movement data for up to three years.
For more information about elk research and management in Montana, click here.
