The unchecked wolf population did it in Montana.
Now, it appears that the same thing is happening in the Black Hills of South Dakota. The two culprits (in my opinion) are mountain lions and the SD Game Fish and Parks.
Let me tell you why I believe this to be true.
During the 2018 elk season, I have spent considerable time and covered a large area. Yes, we have seen elk. Not particularly large numbers of elk, but a reasonable number. Reasonable enough to reach some conclusions. Of all the cow elk we have seen, the accompanying calves have been alarmingly low in number. The calf crop we have observed is less than 10%. By any standards, a mortality rate of over 90% should be sounding the alarm everywhere. That doesn’t appear to be the case. We routinely saw herds of up to a dozen cows, with only one calf at side.
One thing we have seen is plenty of mountain lion sign, including a young kitten.
Following the model provided by Montana, the SD GF&P has adopted policies that protect the predator at the expense of the elk herd.
If the objective is to reduce the size of the elk herd in the Black Hills, the solution would be very simple. Issue more elk tags. I doubt that is their actual objective, but reports of an increase in the population of mountain lions hasn’t resulted in any substantial changes in their management of the large predator.
The Game and Fish has insisted that lions have nothing to do with the populations of mountain goats or big horn sheep. That is hard to believe. It would appear that the GF&P is sitting on their hands, while the wonderful big game herds of the Black Hills are suffering the consequences.
An easy solution, for starters, would be a lion quota that would actually reduce/control the numbers, and establishing a year-round season which would remain open until the quota was reached. There are many other options that could be added or included, but if the GF&P has any interest in preserving the big game populations in the Black Hills, they need to be doing something to deal with mountain lions…
SOON!!!
*** Gordon Howie *** is an author and CEO of Life and Liberty Media 
Follow me on Twitter @GordonHowieSD
“friend” me on facebook for daily updates.
See more about Texas Longhorn Cattle, Real Estate, Music and Politics at www.ghowie.com
Our mission is to promote Conservative Christian principles, help the hurting and provide truth and information to a lost and dying world.
“It’s not about right or left, it’s about Right or Wrong.”
