Elk increase?

The state Fish and Wildlife Department has come up with a draft elk management plan for northeast Washington that specifically addresses hunter demand for more animals in that corner of the state.

Kevin Robinette, the department's regional wildlife manager in Spokane, said sportsmen’s groups and others have long expressed an interest in elk numbers in some parts of northeast Washington, and this draft “Selkirk Elk Herd Plan” addresses that hunter input.

“We have managed elk in this part of the state -- where elk groups are small and scattered -- with liberal hunting rules to keep elk numbers low and minimize agricultural damage,” Robinette said. “But we have heard from hunters that they want to see more elk.”

Robinette said game managers will try to address the issue by shifting from “any elk” hunting seasons to restrictions on antlerless elk hunting in the Pend Oreille sub-herd areas, including units 101, 105, 108, 121, and 204.

See the draft plan through Feb. 10 here. If adopted by the state Fish and Wildlife Commission in April, the rules would become part of the 2012-14 rules package.