On July 7, North Carolina’s governor signed legislation authorizing two elk hunting permits to be issued in 2027—the first since the animal was reintroduced 25 years ago. Elk vanished from The Tarheel State nearly 200 years ago, but today biologists estimate the state is home to roughly 250.
It signals yet another huge victory in the effort to restore them to the historic range they once inhabited in the eastern United States. Tennessee reintroduced elk in late 2020. Virginia followed from 2012 to 2014. Both states currently raffle a limited number of permits annually.
A small number returned to Kentucky in 1997. This fall 500 hunters will try to fill their tags in that state, where the herd has a taken a solid foothold, a resurgence appreciated by sportsmen and wildlife watchers alike.
Money raised by the North Carolina permits will be used to fund conservations measures officials hope will be just as successful. According to a Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation summary, the measure allows “…one resident elk tag to be issued via a raffle conducted by the NCWRC [North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission]. Residents will have the option to purchase raffle tickets at $20 per ticket or a maximum of 30 raffle tickets for $500. The NCWRC will be able to retain proceeds from the raffle up to the actual cost of conducting the raffle and additional proceeds shall be deposited into the Wildlife Resources Fund to be used for the conservation and management of elk in North Carolina.”
The second permit will be auctioned by a NCWRC-designated non-profit conservation organization. The amount that group can retain from the highest bid is limited to a maximum of 25 percent. The remainder of the money goes to the Wildlife Resources Fund and designated for the above-mentioned purposes.
The measure signed this month also allows North Carolina to issue additional permits, if deemed necessary to meet management goals.
