Post by Hood on Sept 14, 2005 16:34:10 GMT -5
www.fortwayne.com/mld/journalgazette/news/local/12641658.htm
Elk spotted in Steuben might be on the lam
By Phil Bloom
Outdoors editor
A bull elk showed up Friday in a fog-shrouded field in rural Steuben County.
Nobody seems to know where it came from, or where it went.
“I saw it Friday afternoon and again Friday evening, but I haven’t seen it since,” Tom Hanselman said. The elk was first spotted at his farm Friday morning.
Hanselman was alerted to the misplaced beast by Bill Hanna, superintendent of transportation for Angola schools.
Hanna, who regularly hunts white-tail deer on the Hanselman property, was driving the rural roads checking fog conditions.
“About 5:50, 5:55 (a.m.), somewhere in there, as I’m driving by, I look out and see a tan patch,” Hanna said. “I’ve elk hunted in Colorado, so I know what that tan patch is. I stopped, looked it over and saw it was an elk.”
He immediately alerted one of his hunting partners, Dave Stoy.
“It was one of those deals where I wanted someone there to make sure I was seeing things correctly,” Hanna said.
“He called and said, ‘Dave, you’re not going to believe this, but there’s a bull elk standing here in a wheat field,’ ” Stoy said. “I told him, ‘Ah, you’re crazy.’ He said, ‘No, I’m not.’ ”
Stoy drove to the in time to see the elk enter a wooded area.
“It just stood there for a second and was gone,” Stoy said.
Elk, or wapiti, have not lived in the wild in Indiana since the 1830s, but elk farming has emerged in recent years.
Some elk farmers breed and sell the animals for meat and other byproducts, and others have established hunting preserves for elk as well as other game species.
Last month, Indiana Department of Natural Resources director Kyle Hupfer issued a ban on the hunting of exotic species in fenced enclosures, including elk.
“Now that you can’t hunt them in pens in Indiana, well, some of the elk are just getting out,” Hanna said.
Stoy also speculated that the animal they saw might be an escapee from an elk farm.
Lt. Dean Jenkins, supervisor of DNR Law Enforcement for the northeast Indiana district, confirmed the elk sighting and said DNR conservation officers are investigating.
Denise Derrer of the state Board of Animal Health said the agency’s normal response in such cases is to contact elk producers. She said the agency was informed six months ago about an elk escape in Michigan near the state line, but she said there had been no recent reports of missing elk.
“There is no specific requirement to report right away,” Derrer said. “(Elk farmers) are required to make note of it, and it needs to appear on their inventory. Our field staff does at a minimum annual inventory checks.”
There are a number of elk farming operations in the state, including one in Steuben belonging to Jeff Berlew.
He said the bull elk seen Friday south of Angola is not his. Berlew said he has only three elk in captivity – a cow and two calves.
Hanna said the roaming elk he saw is “a 4x4,” meaning it had four tines on each side of its antlers.
“Most 4x4s are probably 2 years old,” Hanna said. “I’m guessing it was probably between 500 and 550 pounds. It looked very healthy. I’d hate to hit one with a car.”
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Elk spotted in Steuben might be on the lam
By Phil Bloom
Outdoors editor
A bull elk showed up Friday in a fog-shrouded field in rural Steuben County.
Nobody seems to know where it came from, or where it went.
“I saw it Friday afternoon and again Friday evening, but I haven’t seen it since,” Tom Hanselman said. The elk was first spotted at his farm Friday morning.
Hanselman was alerted to the misplaced beast by Bill Hanna, superintendent of transportation for Angola schools.
Hanna, who regularly hunts white-tail deer on the Hanselman property, was driving the rural roads checking fog conditions.
“About 5:50, 5:55 (a.m.), somewhere in there, as I’m driving by, I look out and see a tan patch,” Hanna said. “I’ve elk hunted in Colorado, so I know what that tan patch is. I stopped, looked it over and saw it was an elk.”
He immediately alerted one of his hunting partners, Dave Stoy.
“It was one of those deals where I wanted someone there to make sure I was seeing things correctly,” Hanna said.
“He called and said, ‘Dave, you’re not going to believe this, but there’s a bull elk standing here in a wheat field,’ ” Stoy said. “I told him, ‘Ah, you’re crazy.’ He said, ‘No, I’m not.’ ”
Stoy drove to the in time to see the elk enter a wooded area.
“It just stood there for a second and was gone,” Stoy said.
Elk, or wapiti, have not lived in the wild in Indiana since the 1830s, but elk farming has emerged in recent years.
Some elk farmers breed and sell the animals for meat and other byproducts, and others have established hunting preserves for elk as well as other game species.
Last month, Indiana Department of Natural Resources director Kyle Hupfer issued a ban on the hunting of exotic species in fenced enclosures, including elk.
“Now that you can’t hunt them in pens in Indiana, well, some of the elk are just getting out,” Hanna said.
Stoy also speculated that the animal they saw might be an escapee from an elk farm.
Lt. Dean Jenkins, supervisor of DNR Law Enforcement for the northeast Indiana district, confirmed the elk sighting and said DNR conservation officers are investigating.
Denise Derrer of the state Board of Animal Health said the agency’s normal response in such cases is to contact elk producers. She said the agency was informed six months ago about an elk escape in Michigan near the state line, but she said there had been no recent reports of missing elk.
“There is no specific requirement to report right away,” Derrer said. “(Elk farmers) are required to make note of it, and it needs to appear on their inventory. Our field staff does at a minimum annual inventory checks.”
There are a number of elk farming operations in the state, including one in Steuben belonging to Jeff Berlew.
He said the bull elk seen Friday south of Angola is not his. Berlew said he has only three elk in captivity – a cow and two calves.
Hanna said the roaming elk he saw is “a 4x4,” meaning it had four tines on each side of its antlers.
“Most 4x4s are probably 2 years old,” Hanna said. “I’m guessing it was probably between 500 and 550 pounds. It looked very healthy. I’d hate to hit one with a car.”
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
