Where would elk restoration take place?
Based on our 2000 Elk Reintroduction Feasibility Study, the Department identified a defined geography around Peck Ranch Conservation Area in southeast Missouri as a potential restoration zone. This elk restoration zone covers parts of Carter, Shannon and Reynolds counties. This wild area in southeast Missouri is mostly public land, has suitable habitat, limited roads and limited agricultural activity. Sixty (60) percent of the land in the restoration zone in southeast Missouri is public land. Another 27 percent consists of Pioneer Forest land owned by the L-A-D Foundation, which supports our elk restoration efforts. We will carefully manage the elk to keep them healthy, keep them where they are wanted and remove them from where they are not wanted. Other states have larger elk numbers than we will have and their herds cover larger areas than ours will. For example, Kentucky has about 10,000 elk over thousands of square miles and Michigan has about 1,300 elk covering 800 square miles. T
