Wildlife regulators investigate illegal elk killing in central Wisconsin

State wildlife regulators are investigating the illegal killing of a bull elk in Jackson County that was one of the largest and most-photographed bulls in Wisconsin.

The bull, known as 244, was one of the last remaining elk transferred to Wisconsin from Kentucky in 2016 as part of the effort to repopulate the species in the state where it had been eliminated in the 1880s by overhunting and habitat loss.

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources said it received a report of a dead elk on March 18 on private property just off East Snow Creek Road north of Black River Falls.

A necropsy revealed the elk had died from injuries from a gunshot wound.

The DNR said the elk was one of the largest and most-photographed in the state, as well as one of the primary breeding bulls for the central Wisconsin elk herd.

“The illegal shooting of bull 244 is a tremendous loss for the central elk herd and citizens of Wisconsin. The illegal harvest of a bull of this magnitude reduces opportunity to the hunting community and to recreationalists attempting to photograph or see elk within Jackson County,” said Christina Kizewski, the DNR’s central elk herd biologist, in a news release.

DNR staff were trying to capture, collar and relocate a small group of elk in the area where the dead animal was found. The elk was wearing a GPS radio collar, and the agency said trail cameras have provided detailed information about the shooting.

The DNR is asking the public to share any information about the shooting online or by calling 1-800-847-9367. 

The DNR said no additional information would be released as the investigation is ongoing.

In 1995, the state began introducing elk at Clam Lake in northern Wisconsin. A decade later, the state began adding more elk in northern Wisconsin and a new herd at Black River State Forest through an agreement with the state of Kentucky to relocate wild elk after they had been quarantined. The state introduced 23 Kentucky elk to the central herd in 2015 and 50 more the following year.

At least 9 elk from the central herd have been illegally killed since their reintroduction, according to the DNR.

The central Wisconsin herd is estimated to have around 188 elk of the state’s total population of 544 elk, a record high.

Cranberry growers and farmers in the area have voiced concerns about elk in the central herd damaging their crops.

Last year, the agency held its first hunt for the state’s central elk herd since their reintroduction. The state allowed a harvest of four bull elk. More than 7,700 people out of over 21,000 applicants sought a license to hunt animals there during the 2024 elk season.

The DNR is recommending a harvest of four bull elk and five anterless elk for the central Wisconsin herd when the season begins on Oct. 18.