Cumberland Times-News

Outdoors

October 13, 2012

Thinking twice about elk

Cumberland Times-News

Dear Mike,

When I first saw the article about the possible return of elk in Almost Maryland, I was ecstatic. I thought this would be a boost to tourism and the hunting community, and the farm lands of Mount Savage would be the perfect place.

The more I thought about it, however, I realize it’s a bad idea, for two reasons.

1) Any cattle farmer around has a story of deer clipping the electric fence with their hooves, and cattle being out of the pasture overnight. To prevent this with elk, farmers will have to install two or three wire high-tensile fencing. The average cost for two wire high-tensile fencing is approximately $2 a foot. A square mile requires 1,800 feet of fencing. Multiply that by two equals 3,600 feet.  

How many acres is the average cattle farm in Allegany County? How about Garrett County? The great thing is, there are taxpayer funded subsidies to help pay for this fencing at approximately $1 a foot. Return elk to Almost Maryland and the amount of requests for subsidizing high-tensile fencing will definitely increase. Assuming most of your readers are against wasteful government spending, they will have second thoughts about supporting the return of elk.

2) The health of our forests has been greatly diminished with the absence of predators, four-legged and two-legged type. I know I’m out of the ordinary because I’m all about hunting doe, but most of my fellow farmers understand that.

The return of elk is not going to increase the number of hunters in Maryland. Maybe on the short term, but the novelty will wear off and we’ll be back to a small number of hunters in the mountains again. I’m seeing enough damage in our woods: native plants, oak regeneration, and Japanese stilt grass spreading into the forests around Mount Savage and the Highlands Trail. We don't need another large herbivore!

Thanks for maintaining a great Outdoor Page every Sunday.

Sam White

Mount Savage

Text Only
Outdoors
  • Canaan now has sporting clay range

    A new
    sporting clays, five-stand
    clay target field is set to
    open in West Virginia at
    Canaan Valley Resort
    State Park during Memorial
    Day weekend.

    May 18, 2013

  • Fishing rodeo set

    The 65th
    Annual Fishing Rodeo for
    the physically impaired
    will take place June 8
    from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at
    the Cumberland Outdoor
    Club property on state
    Route 51 just south of Oldtown.

    May 18, 2013

  • Gobbler getters MARYLAND BIRDS

    May 18, 2013 3 Photos

  • Broadwater wins at Redding

    Team Easton’s Jesse Broadwater, an
    Allegany County resident, made history recently by becoming
    the first archer to shoot 139 out of 140 — dropping only
    one point — and smashing the previous record of five points
    down, according to an article on The Archery Wire.

    May 18, 2013

  • ‘Somebody flipped the switch’

    The number of bears to die
    on Maryland roadways this
    year has risen to nine since
    April 11, according to the
    unofficial count maintained
    by the Cumberland Times-
    News.

    May 18, 2013

  • W.V. apprentice hunting license circumvents safety

    This is the first of a two-part series about the
    West Virginia apprentice hunting license and
    hunter recruitment. See the Outdoors page of
    May 26 for the second part.

    May 18, 2013

  • MIKE SAWYERS FEATHERED NIRVANA

    They’ve started, you know. The gobbler seasons.
    Well, actually, one has, that being Maryland, and two will, one in West Virginia tomorrow and then another in Pennsylvania soon after that.

    April 20, 2013 8 Photos

  • What Maryland’s new firearms laws will mean to you

    The following information that deals with the impacts of the Firearms Safety Act of 2013 (Senate Bill 281), that will become law in October, was sent to the Times-News by State Delegate Wendell Beitzel.

    April 20, 2013

  • Nugent alive, not jailed

    Fans of Ted Nugent, who calls himself Uncle Ted as well as the Motor City Madman, are likely rejoicing.

    April 20, 2013

  • Junior Hunter Field Day set

    A Junior Hunter Field Day will take place May 11, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., for ages 8-16, at the Midland Sportsman’s Club.

    April 20, 2013