In 1995, the Wisconsin DNR, with help from the state's tribal nations, started reintroducing elk in the state with a herd of about 25 from Michigan.

Once the central herd was established, transient elk in southern Wisconsin have become far more likely. And at least one has been documented in southern Wisconsin each year since at least 2020.

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources will release a report Wednesday, noting the state's elk population may be as high as 515 across its two confirmed herds come July.

Elk were native to Wisconsin but wiped out by unregulated hunting and habitat loss in the 1800s. In 1995 the state embarked on an elk reintroduction with the transfer of 25 animals from Michigan.

The 2025 elk hunt application period for Wisconsin residents is expected to open with the new license year on March 1 and run through May 31, 2025. The 2025 elk hunting season will open on ...

Wisconsin's population of wild elk increased to about 515 animals this summer, the most since the species was reintroduced to the state in 1995. The population was bolstered with about 115 calves.

Hunter interest is high in the Wisconsin elk hunt but has decreased since it was initiated. In 2018 the DNR received 38,494 applications for the hunt with the number falling to 21,313 in 2023.

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is asking for the public’s help in identifying the person responsible for the illegal killing of the elk, known to department staff as #244, found ...

Hunter interest is high in the Wisconsin elk hunt but has decreased since it was initiated. In 2018 the DNR received 38,494 applications for the hunt with the number falling to 21,313 in 2023.

Wisconsin had an estimated 515 elk in summer 2023, the most since the reintroduction began in 1995. A limited hunt is proposed for the central herd.

Elk were native to Wisconsin but were gone by the 1870s due to overhunting. But the state now has a growing elk population thanks to two restoration efforts that began in 1995 and concluded in 2019.

Wisconsin hunters from Fort Atkinson, Hudson and New Richmond were the three lucky enough to be drawn from more than 25,000 resident applicants for the 2022 northern Wisconsin elk hunt tags available.