Alaska Elk Hunting Guides and Outfitters

Elk: This big game animal’s common name for two different members of the deer family is Cervidae. In Europe and Asia the name is applied to deer of the genus Alces; in North America these same deer are known as moose. The deer known in North America as the elk is, less confusingly, also called the wapiti, a Shawnee Indian word meaning “pale” or “white”. This article deals with the European elk, or moose.

The elk, A. alces, is one of the largest member of the deer family in the world. In Europe it inhabits forests in Siberia, Sweden, Norway, and the Baltic region. In North America it is found in wooded areas of Canada and the northern United States. It reaches maximum size in Alaska, where a bull may stand more than 6 feet high at the shoulders and weigh more than 1400 pounds. The males bear enormous broad, flattened antlers with marginal prongs, or tines. The antlers are shed each year after the mating season, by which time they can attain a spread of 5 feet or more.

The body color of the elk varies from almost black to light brown, becoming grayish in winter. The legs are lighter in color than the body. The protruding muzzle and the long legs enable the animal to browse on brush and to wade into lakes and pounds to feed on aquatic plants. The shoulders of the elk are higher than the hide-quarters, giving it a humpbacked appearance that is accentuated by the short neck. In order to reach low-growing plants or to drink from a shallow pool, the elk is forced to kneel. It is an excellent swimmer.

Elk generally are solitary, although they may form into small bands in winter and trample down the snow where good cover exists, making a “moose year” where the animals stay while the food lasts. In deep snow an elk is helpless and easily hunted by humans on snowshoes. During the mating season, bull’s battle for the cows and their roars may be heard for great distances. After a gestation of eight months, one to three calves are born; they stay with the mother for two years.

Alaska Hunting Season Schedule

Alaska Hunting License

United States Weather

The links above are for additional information on hunting seasons and regulations for this big game animal. It also has information that will affect the Alaska hunting guide or outfitter that you hire, in regards to the time of year and perhaps the location of your trip or guided hunt. For a time the species was threatened with extinction, both in Europe and North America, because of indiscriminate hunting. Modern game laws and areas set aside for the protection of this big game animal have helped to save them.