- The elk is a very adaptable animal.
In less than 10,000 years,
they spread all across North America.
Elk were here originally.
Most of the elk in Wisconsin
were associated with the prairie parts of the state;
the western part of the state and
the southern part of the state.
A lot of the--
prior to white explorers visiting Wisconsin,
the Native Americans here in Wisconsin
conducted their own wildlife management and
they did a lot of burning.
The Ho-Chunk Nation has been a very strong partner in that.
They have contributed over $200,000
towards that restoration.
In this area, we're in the ceded territories,
the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission is the DNR,
their natural resources department for the Ojibwe Nation
and they are a strong partner.
They're involved in all aspects of wildlife management and
fisheries management
that they want to be involved in.
Certainly Dr.Jonathan Gilbert,
their director of wildlife,
is a member of the Elk Advisory Committee.
So they've been involved
in the development of our management policies and
our management efforts of elk.
And the Ojibwe have been contributing financially
to the management
through the gaming monies that they provide.
Much of the elk management budget comes from those funds.