Biology of the elk calf, Cervus Canadensis Nelsoni
by Donald E Johnson
A THESIS Submitted to the Graduate Faculty in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree
of Master of Science in Fish and Wildlife Management at Montana State College
Montana State University
© Copyright by Donald E Johnson (1950)
Abstract:
A study of elk calves was conducted in southern Gallatin County, Montana, and northwestern
Yellowstone National Park in 1949 and 1950.
A general physical description of the calving grounds with reference to location, vegetation,
topography and climate is given with a list of the associated mammals. The calves were found by
covering the calving grounds on horseback. Weights, standard measurements and other biological data
were obtained. One hundred thirty-two calves were tagged with numbered metal stock ear tags and
colored plastic markers composed of a large outer symbol alone or combined with a smaller inner
symbol of contrasting color. Combinations of shapes, colors', sizes and ear to which it was attached
identified the individual and drainage where tagged. Following the calving period observations were
made on the marked calves.
The range and peak of the calving period were May 21 to June 12 and June q, respectively. Sagebrush
types contained 77 per cent of the calves, timber 11 per cent and "edge" 4.5 per cent. Calves found in
open types averaged 73=7 yards from timber, while those in timber averaged 10.0 yards from open
areas, illustrating the importance of "edge effect". According to age classes, determined by physical
characteristics, average weights of calves were: newborn-1 day, 32.5; 2-4 days, 36.08; 5-7, 44.71; and
8-over, 53.18 pounds, Average standard"measurements for the Same age classes were:
38.31-2.05-15.46-4.38; 39.98-2.23-15.7-4.42; 42.36-2.24-l6.2-4.7; and 44.32-2.29-16.61-4.77 inches.
Weights of male calves' exceeded that’ of females, fbr the above age "classes As follows: it. it I, .22$
2.62 and .3it pounds, respectively. The sex ratio for 155" calves was 96 males : 100 females.
Descriptions of coloration, glands, odor, reactions and voice are discussed. Average daily weight and
measurement increases for 16 wild calves were 2.0 pounds"and".69-.01-.10-.03 inches ^respectively,
for the "first "two" weeks". " Average daily gain" for" 1 captive’ calf was 1.0" pound
with"measurement"increases bf .21-.01-.05-.0l"inches "per"day¦ over a" 31" day "period: "
Certain'activities" such" as walking, swimming, nursing, grazing, etc. are discussed. The average
monthly- distance that marked calves were observed from the calving grouhds illustrated the general
pattern of elk migration in the Gallatin drainage. Observations of 1949 markers (celluloid) showed 4
negative results in 8 late observations, while the 1950 marker (plastic) showed no completely negative
results for'the same number of observations, although 2 markers were damaged. Predation observations
were limited to 2 suspected bear attacks on calves during the study but 2 1948 bear kills are reported.
Insects appeared to be a major nuisance factor in the summer. Hunter kills during the fall "represented
the greatest mortality factor. The average annual calf harvest for 10 years was 91 animals. BIOLOGY OF THE ELK CALF,
CERVUS CANADENSIS NELSONI
Dy
DONALD E. JOHNSON
A THESIS
S ubm itted t o th e Graduate F a c u lty
in
p a r t i a l f u l f i l l m e n t o f th e req u irem en ts
f o r th e d eg ree o f
M aster o f S c ie n c e i n F is h and W il d l if e Management
at
Montana S t a t e C o lle g e
' Approved?
LdL
Head, Major Department
Chairman, Examining Committee
^ p d an , Graduate D iv is io n
Bozeman, Montana
Decem ber, 1950
1I 'Ij1I1Ii.1
! I l 11H l d t I
/1/ 57/
J lrilb
2
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
................................................................................................................
3
INTRODUCTION......................................................................................................
It
METHODS
................................................................................................................
5
GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF CALVING AREA....................................................
12
CALVING
................................................................................................................
Hi
C alvin g P e r i o d ............................................................................................
R e la tio n to Cover T y p e s ...........................................................................
lit
18
PHYSUAL CHARACTERISTICS...........................................................................
20
W eights and Standard Measurements ....................................................
Sex R a t i o .........................................
C o l o r a t i o n ...........................................................
Glands
...........................................................................................................
Odor
R e a c t i o n s ............................................................
V oice
...........................................................................................................
Development
..................................................................................................
2$
27
28
30
30
32
32
35
A C T IV IT IE S ...........................................................................................................
36
Walking
...........................................................................................................
S w im m in g ...........................................................................................................
N ursing
...........................................................................................................
G razing
................................................................
P lay
...........................................................................................................
R e la tio n s h ip to C o w ....................................................................................
M ovem ents...........................................................................................................
36
36
37
38
38
38
39
EFFECTIVENESS OF THE MARKER ......................................................................
Itl
MORTALITY AND NUISANCE FACTORS..............................................
U5
SUMMARY
U8
ABSTRACT
v,
C
I
tM
5
................................................................................................................
LITERATURE CITED
.............................................................................................
96964
5l
3
ABSTRACT
A stu d y o f e lk c a lv e s was conducted i n sou th ern G a lla t in County,
Montana, and n o rth w estern Y ello w sto n e N a tio n a l Park i n 19&9 and 1950»
A g e n e r a l p h y s ic a l d e s c r ip t io n of th e c a lv in g grounds w it h r e fe r e n c e
t o l o c a t i o n , v e g e t a t io n , topography and c lim a te i s g iv e n w ith a l i s t
o f th e .a s s o c ia te d mammals•» The c a lv e s w ere found by c o v e r in g th e
c a lv in g grounds on h orseb a ck . W eig h ts, stan d ard measurements and
o th e r b i o l o g i c a l d a ta w ere o b ta in e d . One hundred t h ir t y - t w o c a lv e s
were ta g g e d w ith numbered m eta l s t o c k e a r t a g s and c o lo r e d p l a s t i c
markers composed o f a la r g e o u te r sym bol a lo n e or combined w ith a '
s m a lle r in n e r symbol o f c o n tr a s tin g c o l o r . ' C om binations o f sh a p es,
co lo r s', s i z e s and e a r t o w hich i t was a tta c h e d i d e n t i f i e d th e in d i­
v id u a l arid d rain age where ta g g ed . F o llo w in g th e c a lv in g p e r io d
o b s e r v a tio n s w ere made on th e marked c a l v e s i
The range and peak o f th e c a lv in g p e r io d were May 21 t o June 12
and June I 9 r e s p e c t i v e ly . Sagebrush ty p e s co n ta in ed 77 p er cen t o f
th e c a l v e s , tim b er 11 p er cen t and lfBdgew IuJTper c e n t . C a lv es found
■in open ty p e s averaged 73=7 y a rd s from tim b e r , w h ile t h o s e i n tim ber
averaged 10 . 0 "yards"from o p e n 'a r e a s, i l l u s t r a t i n g th e im portance o f
"edge e f f e c t * . ' A ccording t o age c l a s s e s , determ ined b y p h y s ic a l •
c h a r a c t e r is t id S , average w e ig h ts o f c a lv e s w ere: newborn-I day, 32 , 5 »
2-U d a y s, 36«08; 5 - 7 , W o ? !; and 8- o v e r , 5 3 » l8 pounds, 1Average
standard"m easurem ents f o r th e Shme age c l a s s e s w ere: 3 8 .3 1 -2 .0 5 - 1 5 « L61u 3 8 5 3 9 ,9 8 ^ 2 .2 3 -1 5 « 7-luU 2; U 2 ,'3 6 -2 .2 lt-l6 .2-1*. 7; and U u 3 2 - 2 .2 9 - 1 6 . 6 l U."77 in c h e s . W eights o f m ale c a lv e s ' exceed ed t h a t ’ o f fe m a le s , fb r th e
above a g e " c la s s e s a s f o llo w s : U»U l, . 22 ; 2.62 and „3k pounds, re­
s p e c tiv e ly .- The s e x r a t i o f o r 155' c a lv e s was 96 m ales : 100 fem a le s.
D e s c r ip tio n s o f c o lo r a t io n , g la n d s , o d o r, r e a c tio n s and v o ic e are
d is c u s s e d . Average d a i l y w eig h t and measurement in c r e a s e s for. 16
w ild c a lv e s were" 2 .0 p ounds"and" . 69--; 01 -= 10-„03 in c h e s ^ r e s p e c t i v e l y ,
f o r th e " fir s t "two" weeks". ""Average d a i l y gain" for" I c a p t iv e ’ c a l f was
1 . 0 "pound with" m easurem ent"in c r e a s e s o f . 21- . 01- . 05- . 01 " in ch es"p er" d ay■
o v er a 31 day p e r io d » C e r ta in a c t i v i t i e s such a s w a lk in g , swimming,
n u r s in g , g r a z in g , e t c . are d is c u s s e d . The average m onthly d is ta n c e
t h a t marked c a lv e s were ob served from th e c a lv in g grouhds i l l u s t r a t e d
th e g e n e r a l p a t t e r n o f e l k m ig r a tio n i n th e G a lla t in dhairiage. Obser­
v a tio n s o f 19 U9 markers ( c e l l u l o i d ) showed U n e g a tiv e r e s u l t s in 8
l a t e o b s e r v a t io n s , w h ile th e 1950 marker ( p l a s t i c ) showed no co m p lete ly
n e g a tiv e r e s u l t s f o r ' t h e same number o f o b s e r v a tio n s , a lth o u g h 2
markers w ere damaged. P r e d a tio n o b s e r v a tio n s were lim it e d t o 2
su sp e c te d b ea r a tta c k s on c a lv e s during th e stu d y b u t 2 19 k 8 b ea r k i l l s
are r e p o r te d . I n s e c t s appeared t o be a m ajor n u isa n ce f a c t o r in th e
summer. H unter k i l l s d u rin g th e f a l l "represented th e g r e a t e s t
m o r t a lit y " f a c t o r . The average annual c a l f h a r v e st f o r 10 y e a r s was
91 a n im a ls.
It
IKTECDUCfION
A lthough c o n s id e r a b le d a ta co n cern in g e l k have b een .p u b lish ed ,
v e r y l i t t l e q u a n t it a t iv e in fo rm a tio n p e r ta in in g t o th e in d iv id u a l c a l f
i s a v a il a b l e .
Rush (1 9 3 2 ), Young and R o b in e tte (1939)* Schw artz and
M itc h e ll
and o th e r s have c o n tr ib u te d much t o our knowledge.
The p r e s e n t paper a ttem p ts t o supplem ent th e a v a ila b le in fo rm a tio n
p a r t ic u l a r ly w ith r e fe r e n c e to e l k h a lv e s .
The G a lla tiih e lk h erd , w hich 'rahges i n th e upper West G a lla t in
r i v e r d rain age o f so u th w estern Mohtaria and n orth w estern Y ellow stbrie
N a tio n a l Park, p ro v id ed an e x c e lle n t o p p o rtu n ity f o r co n cen tra ted
stu d y .
I t i s one o f rbhe more im portAnt h erd s in th e U n ited S t a t e s .
The average w iriter 'corint f o r th e p e r io d 1939 through 19it9 was 1 ,7 0 0
w h ile th e average annual h a r v e s t ov er th e same p e r io d was 5#0 (Arigstman
and Gaab, 1 9 3 0 ).
These- e lk are rou gh ly d iv id e d in t o two grou p s,
m ig ra to ry and r e s id e n t ;
The m ig ra to ry a n im a ls, com p risin g th e la r g e r
segment o f th e p o p u la tio n , summer i n th e h ig h "back” co u n try o f
Y e llo w sto n e Park a t e le v a t io n s up t o 1 0 ,0 0 0 f e e t .
They w in te r a lo n g
th e n o rth w estern park bbundry a t an e l e v a t io n o f ap p ro x im a tely 7*000
f e e t , and w it h in th e G a lla t in N a tio n a l P o r e st a t e l e v a t io n s betw een
6 , 5 OO..and 7 ,3 0 0 f e e t .
-The r e s id e n t an im als are d is t r ib u t e d w it h in
th e G a lla t in F o r e s t and a p p a ren tly do n o t ta k e p a rt i n t h e e x te n s iv e
s e a s o n a l movements.
D uring th e summer o f 19U9 and 1930 a stu d y was ipade o f th e c a l v e s ,
’ p a r t ic u l a r ly t h o s e o f t h e m igratory h erd .
2
Thanks are exten d ed t o th e Montana F is h and Game Department f o r
p e r m issio n t o conduct th e s tu d y > f o r f i n a n c i a l support and equipm ent»
Other members o f th e departm ent, t o whom acknowledgem ents are d u e, a res
Jo Eo Gaab, E. L. Hodder, 7 , Eo S y lv e s t e r j J„ -B. Angstman, and A. R0
Brazda f o r a id In th e f i e l d .
The w r it e r f u r t h e r e x te n d s h is g r a t e f u l
a p p r e c ia tio n t o B r. Bdn C. Quimby, Montana S ta te C o lle g e , who d ir e c t e d
th e stu d y .
•METHODS
To s a t i s f a c t o r i l y stu d y th e c a lv e s i n th e f i e l d a s u it a b le
marking te c h n iq u e f o r r e c o g n it io n o f in d iv id u a ls i s d e s ir a b le .
A
r ev iew o f th e l i t e r a t u r e on anim al marking (summarized by M an ville,;
19h9 ) f a i l e d t o r e v e a l a l i q u i d m arking m a te r ia l w hich w ould be
s u it a b le f o r th e stu d y .
An attem p t was made t o f in d such a m a te r ia l.
F o r ty H ereford s t e e r s w ere e x p e r im e n ta lly marked w ith com m ercial h o u se,
au to and sh eep branding p a in t s , a n i l i n e d y e s, in k s and v a r io u s b le a c h e s .
None exh ib it@ d _ a ]] o f th e d e s ir e d p r o p e r t ie s ; c o lo r f a s t n e s s , r e te n tio n
t o th e h a ir , e a s e o f a p p lic a t io n and v i s i b i l i t y ^
Marking mammals and b ir d s w ith p l a s t i c sym bols has b e e n record ed
by T rip p en see ( I p lil) and H osley ( lp li2 ) .
F o llo w in g t h e i r p r in c i p l e s ,
c o lo r e d p l a s t i c e a r m arkers a tta c h e d by liv e s t o c k ea r t a g s were u sed .
(H ow itt P l a s t i c s Company, P o rtla n d , Oregon su p p lie d th e m a t e r i a l.)
The c o lo r o f th e sym bols in d ic a te d th e y e a r th e anim al was ta g g ed j red
and w h ite f o r 19h9 and b lu e and y e llo w f o r 1950»
c o lo r s and sh apes p ro v id ed ii 8 co m b in a tio n s.
M an ip u lation o f
Two in c h sq u a r e s, c i r c l e s .
6
h a l f c i r c l e s o r t r ia n g l e s e i t h e r p la in dr w ith I in ch in n e r symbols
o f th e same sh apes cem ented by a c e to n e were u sed ( F ig , I ) ,
Each
sym bol, when d u p lic a te d - f o r attachm ent t o th e " o p p o s ite e a r , doubled
th e t o t a l number o f p o s s i b i l i t i e s .
The shape o f th e o u te r symbol
in d ic a te d th e d rain age w here a c a l f was t ig g e d w hile' t h e in n e r
sym bol i d e n t i f i e d th e in d iv id u a l" a n im a l, e x c e p t when c e r t a in la r g e
sym bols a lo n e i d e n t i f i e d b o th in d iv id u a l and drainage--,(Fig^e 1 )._
L ocatin g th e r e c e n t ly b o r n -c a lv e s WaS accom p lished b y sea rch in g
th e sageb ru sh s lo p e s and tim b er ed ges d u rin g May" and June (F ig . 2 )
on h orseb ack and a t th e same tim e o b serv in g unusual a c t io n s o f '
s i n g l e s or sm a ll groups o f fe m a le s w hich o c c a s io n a lly in d ic a te d th e
p resen ce o f c a lv e s i n th e v i c i n i t y .
By b low in g a c r o ss a b la d e o f g r a s s
h e ld ta u t betw een th e thumbs and h e e ls o f th e hands a t o n e , s im ila r t o
th e c a l l o f a c a l f , was c r e a te d , • T h is to n e appeared t o e x b it e th e
fem a le e l k and many tim es t h e i r s u s p ic io u s a c tio n s d is d lo s e d th e
lo c a t i o n o f t h e i r c a l v e s .
M e n lo c a te d j th e c a lv e s were ta g g ed i n b o th ea rs j one w ith a
numbered m e ta l sto c k ta g o n ly , th e o th e r w ith a numbered m eta l sto ck
t a g t o w hich a p l a s t i c marker was a tta c h e d ( F ig 6 3 ),
W eigh ts w ith a
s t e e ly a r d o r sp r in g s c a le s (Figg0 U arid ^ ) , standard m easurements w ith
a s t e e l t a p e , d e n ta l o b s e r v a tio n s and n o te s con cern in g p h y s ic a l
c h a r a c t e r is t ic s were o b ta in ed .
F o llo w in g th e c a lv in g 'p e r io d > a d d it io n a l data w ere c o l le c t e d by
o b serv in g th e marked c a lv e s through 6 and 8 power b in o c u la r s and a
7
Bi I ) "
S lflije )
KR*. i
-i-i
Si
♦1Tl -I* /•
m ; A
## » A
a n OO
□□OO
□a XX
flg o o
OO
F ig . I .
P l a s t i c ear markers showing a l l com bination
arrangem ents f o r two d ra in a g es (sq u a res and
c i r c l e s ) . T o ta l number o f p o s s i b i l i t i e s fo r h a lf
c i r c l e s and t r ia n g l e s not shown. Two numbered
m eta l sto c k ea r ta g s a r e shown in upper r ig h t
hand co rn er.
8
F ig . 2.
R id ers s e a r c h in g f o r c a lv e s in a sagebrush typ e
on th e c a lv in g ground, showing approxim ate
in t e r v a l u sed .
9
F ig . 3*
An ear marker a tta c h e d t o an e lk c a l f (n o te
m eta l sto c k ta g on o p p o site e a r ) .
10
F ig . U.
Weighing a c a l f u sin g a s te e ly a rd
11
F ig . 5 .
W eighing a c a l f u sin g a sp r in g s c a le
12
20 power s p o tt in g sco p e.
To make th e s e o b s e r v a tio n s , i t was n e c e ssa r y
t o f o llo w th e m ig r a tin g h erd s t o t h e i r summer ran ge.
T h is was '
accom p lish ed w ith sa d d le h o r se s arid a pack o u t f i t .
Some supplem entary in fo rm a tio n was secu red by o b se r v in g a c a p tiv e
c a lf.
GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF CALVING AREA
The m ajor p a rt o f t h i s c a lv in g a rea i s d rain ed by a 19 m ile
segment o f th e !Test G a lla t in R iv er and 6 o f i t s t r ib u t a r i e s (T aylor
F ork, Tepee C reek, D a ly Greek, S aw m ill G ulch, ■Lodgepole G ulch, and
Fan G reek ).
The area i s c h a r a c te r iz e d by broad open s lo p e s w ith open
tim b er sta n d s (F ig . 6 ) ,
B ig s a g e b r u sh ■( A rtem isia t r ld e r it a t a ) i s th e
dominant p la n t i n th e open a rea s w h ile LodgepoIe P in e (F in u s co r ito r ta )
i s th e dominant tim b er s p e c ie s .
The tim ber s ta n d s , w hich o f t e n become
v ery d en se on n o rth ex p o su r e s, may be made up o f m ix tu res o f Douglas
F i r (P seu d o tsuga t a x i f o l i a ) ,
Quaking Aspen ( Populus tr e m u lo id e s ) ,
Engelman Spruce ( P ic e a engelmanni) and Lodgepole P in e .
found in th e c a lv in g a rea are as f o l l o w s t
Other p la n ts
g r a s s e s and s e d g e s -
F e stu c a id a h o h e n s ls , S t ip a s p p ., K o e le r ia c r l s t a t a , Q a rex , spp.
Bromus c a r in a tu s , Agropyron s m i t h i i , JU sp icatu m , C a la m a g ro stis
ru b esceris, Elymus co n d en sa tu si shrubs
A rtem isia cana, D asip hora
f r u t i c o s a , Chrysothamrius s p p G u tie r r e z ia s p p ., A r c to sta p h y lo s
u v a - u r s i, S a l i x s p p . f o r b s - Lupinus s p p ., Phlox s p p ., A ntennaria
s p p ., •A ste r sp p.., A c h ill e a , la r iu le s a , P o t e n t i l l a s p p ., Erlogontm S p p .,
F ra g a ria s p p ., Erythronlum s p p ., D odecatheon p a u ciflo ru m , E rigerdn spp.
13
F ig . 6.
A p o rtio n o f th e G a lla tin c a lv in g grounds
shewing sag e b ru sh s lo p e s and open tim b e r
s ta n d s (m ainly Lodgepole P in e ).
ik
E le v a tio n s w ith iri th is ' area, range from ap p roxim ately 6 ,7 0 0 ffeet
t o 1 0 ,0 0 0 f e e t o
Maximum c a lv in g e l e v a t io n s found d u rin g t h i s s t u d y ,-
how ever, d id not ex ceed 9 ,000 f e e t , w ith th e b u lk o f th e c a lv e s
found b etw een ap p roxim ately 7,000 f e e t and 7 ,k 00 f e e t .
Temperature and p r e c i p it a t io n reco rd s w ere kept d u rin g th e two
c a lv in g p e r io d s 'in c lu d e d i n t h i s stu d y .
T hese reco rd s com piled on
a w eek ly b a s is w i l l be fotind i n T able I ,
A s s o c ia te d w ith t h i s c a lv in g area a re v a r io u s mammals o f which
e l k , m oose, mule d e e r , co y o te and b la c k and g r i z z l y b ea r can be
in c lu d e d as m ajor i n f lu e n t s .
In a d d it io n , p o rcu p in e, wbodchu&k,
gold en -m an tled a n d 'aruiatus ground's q u i r r e l s , chipmunk, red s q u ir r e l,
b e a v e r , m uskrat, b a d g er, p ik a , and snowshoe hare are en cou n tered .
On one o c c a s io n two b u f f a lo were ob serv ed ,
SALVING
S a lv in g P erio d
.
By e s tim a tin g th e age o f th e C alves when found, u s in g p h y s ic a l
c h a r a c t e r is t ic s (T able XT ) , c a lc u la t e d b ir t h d a tes were determ ined
and th e c a lv in g p e r io d d e lim ite d .
Extrem es were May 21 and Jun? 12
w ith th e peak o f b ir t h s f o r th e two y b a rs occurring Ju n e I (Pig* 7 )«
In n orth ern Id a h o , a June I peak was a ls o rep o rted (B u s t, 19k 6),
Rush,
(1 9 3 2 ) found extrem es on th e n o rth ern Y ello w sto n e herd o f May 11 and
June 1 0 , w h ile Schwartz and M it c h e ll 1s (1 9 k 5 ) were May Ik and J u ly 1 0 ,
du rin g t h e i r Olympic P e n in su la stu d y .
15
T able
I
Average Weekly T em perature and P r e c i p i t a t i o n R ecord
D uring th e C alv in g P e rio d
Temperature ( 0F0 )
tiigh
Low
Mean
Week o f
P r e c ip it a t io n ( in c h e s )
Rain
Snow
T o ta l Ppt.
19U9
May 15 -2 1
22-28
29-June U
5 -1 1
12-18
55
60
53
66
65
3U
36
38
38
38
a .5 a
U8
U5.5
52
5 i.5
No record
.12
T
T
.7 0
.2 8
.8 9
. 12d
.7 0
.28
.8 9
1950
May 15 -2 1
22-28
29-Ju n e U
5-n
12-18
^ fo r
b n
^ w
d t t
6
U
2
I
days
days
days
day
6U
57
55
62
67
26
28
30
35
30
U5 a
12 .5
4 2 .5 ,
M .5 ^
48.5
.4 1
.3 4
.2 2
.6 0
.7 2
.1 4
T
T
.5 5
.3 4
.22
.6 0
.7 2
16
25
F ig . 7»
27
B ir th d a te s o f 1$8 e lk c a lv e s c a lc u la t e d from approxi­
mate age when found.
17
Some l a t e c a lv in g was su sp e c te d i n th e G a lla tin when 2 c a lv e s
were ob served on J u ly 12 and J u ly lit,, r e s p e c t i v e l y > w hich were much
s m a lle r th a n o th e r c a lv e s in th e same g ro u p s.
These c a lv e s appeared
stu r d y and w e l l d ev elo p ed b u t n e it h e r seemed t o ex ceed th e s i z e o f
c a lv es, w hich were b ein g aged a t 5 and 6 days during' th e ta g g in g
o p e r a tio n i n May and June,
A l a t e b i r t h o b se r v a tio n was reco rd ed by
Schwartz and M it c h e ll (l9ltf?) on J u ly IQ f o r th e R o o se v e lt e l k .
Among
W h it e - t a ile d d e e r i n New 'York, -Cheatum and Mortdn (I9 it6 ) in d ic a t e th a t
l a t e b ir t h s r e s u lt e d from two f a c t o r s 5 rec u r ren t e s t r u s among a d u lt
fe m a le s and fawn b r e e d in g ,
known t o th e w r it e r .
No ev id en ce o f c a l f b reed in g among e lk is"
The ex a m in a tio n o f 21 fem ale e l k c a lv e s by
W alter K ittam s i n Y ello w sto n e N a tio n a l Park during th e 1949-1950 e lk
r e d u c tio n program (p e r s o n a l com m unication), i n w hich none, were pregnant
s u g g e s ts th a t c a lv e s do n o t b reed ,
Heape
rep o rted t h a t th e fem ale
e lk (Cervus ■c a n a d e n s is ) wI n c a p t i v i t y 1' e x p e r ie n c e s a co n tin u o u s s e r ie s
of
d ie s tr o u s c y c l e s l a s t i n g th r e e weeks (from -Asd e l l , 1 9 4 6 ),
T his
c o u ld e x p la in th e l a t e c a lv e s ob served in t h i s s tu d y , i f t h e same c y c le
i s e x h ib ite d by w ild e lk .
A l l ev id e n c e en cou n tered d u rin g t h i s stu d y in d ic a t e d fem ale e lk
gave b i r t h to o n ly I c a l f p er se a so n , ' A s d e ll ( 1946 ) r e p o r te d I i s th e
u s u a l number, "but o c c a s io n a lly 2 and 3 ” are born a t a tim e ,
a re uncommon" a cco rd in g t o R ust (1 9 4 6 ).
"Twins
Both Rush (1 9 3 2 ) and Schwartz
and M itc h e ll (1 9 4 5 ) found no e v id e n c e o f tw in pregnancy.
1
#
R e la tio n to Cover Types
The c a lv in g a rea i n th e G a lla t in i s lo c a te d m ainly on th e upper
l i m i t s o f th e w in te r r a n g e , as was a ls o found to be th e c a s e i n o th er
a rea s s tu d ie d (Rush, 2932, D a r lin g , 1937, Young and R o b in e tte , 1939 ,
and R u st, 19k6)°
Xt c o n s is t s o f s e v e r a l v e g e t a t iv e t y p e s .
im portant c a lv in g ty p e s are as f o llo w s :
The more
sagebrush (A r te m isia
t r i d e n t a t a ) , tim b er ( P inu s c o n t o r t a , Populus trem u lo id es o r b o t h ),
sagebrush and c in q u e f o il (P a sip h o ra f r u t i c o s a ) , c in q u e f o il and g ra ss
(F e stu c a s p p ,, S t ip a s p p ., Agrqpyron s p p . ) , sedge (Carex s p p .)', sedge
and low w illo w (.S a l i x sp p . ) , low w illo w and "edge".
The eco to n e
b etw een sageb ru sh and tim b er i s r e f e r r e d to as th e "edge type" i n t h i s
stu d y .
Three ty p e s e x h ib it more x e r ic c h a r a c t e r is t ic s th a n th e o th e r s ,
sa g eb ru sh , tim b er and ed g e.
C a lv es are recorded i n F ig . 8 accordin g
t o th e v e g e t a t iv e ty p e where th e y were fou n d .
reco rd ed s e p a r a t e ly .
Newborn c a lv e s are
A pproxim ately 77 p e r cen t o f a l l c a lv e s were
found in sageb ru sh t y p e s , -11 p er cen t i n tim b er and
th e edge o f tim b er and sageb ru sh .
p er cen t bn
For t h e newborn c a lv e s th e
p e r c e n ta g e s were 1|.2, 3 3 , and 2 $ , r e s p e c t i v e ly .
The d a ta f o r newborn
c a lv e s are more in d ic a t i v e o f p la c e o f p a r t u r it io n than t h a t f o r a l l
c a lv e s b ecau se v e r y probably' th e y had n o t moved.
In t h i s sam ple,
how ever, th e d a ta f o r a l l c a lv e s support th a t o f th e newborn w ith
regard t o p r e fe r e n c e f o r d r ie r s i t e s .
In th e p rece d in g paragraph i t was shown th a t th e c h a r a c t e r is t ic s
o f th e v e g e t a t iv e ty p e s were o f g r e a t im portance as f a r a s th e
19
A ll Age
C la s s e s (l$ W
Newborn (12)
Types I
2
3
U
5
6
7
8
-
Sagebrush
Timber
Edge
Sagebrush & C inquefoil
C in q u e fo il & G rass
Sedge
Sedge & Low Willow
Low W illow
Type
F ig . 8.
V e g e ta tiv e Types Where 15U E lk C alves Were Found.
20
lo c a t i o n o f c a lv e s was concerned.
I t a ls o appears t h a t th e r e la t io n ­
s h ip o f open and tim b er ty p e s t b each o th e r i s v ery im p o rta n t, e . g . ,
th e d is t a n c e s c a lv e s w ere found from th e b ou n d aries o f t h e s e typ e
grou p s.
F ig . 9 shows th e d is ta n c e s c a lv e s found i n open a rea s were
from th e tim b e r .
The extrem e d is t a n c e s a re 0 (e d g e ) and 500 y a r d s,
w ith a mean o f 73»7 y a r d s .
F ig . 10 shows th e d is t a n c e s c a lv e s found
i n tim b er w ere from th e open areas-.
I n t h i s c a s e , th e extrem e
d is ta n c e s are 0 and UO y a rd sj th e mean, IOaO y a r d s.
During th e
c a lv in g s e a s o n , th e v a s t open sageb ru sh ty p e s seemed t o be most
p r o d u c tiv e ( y i e l d th e g r e a t e s t number o f c a lv e s ) o n ly in th o se
p o r tio n s i n c l o s e p ro x im ity t o tim b er.
T h is i l l u s t r a t e s th e
im portance o f ^edge e f f e c t * and appears t o em phasize L eo p o ld 's (1933)
''law o f i n t e r s p e r s io n " .
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
D uring th e c a lv in g s e a so n c e r t a in d if f e r e n c e s w ere rec o g n ized
among th e c a lv e s .
A fte r h a n d lin g a r e l a t i v e l y sm a ll number, i t was
r e a d ily s e e n t h a t th e s e were due t o d if f e r e n c e s in a g e s.
In th e
f i e l d a l l p h y s ic a l c h a r a c t e r is t ic s f o r each C a lf were rec o rd ed ,
p a r t ic u la r ly th o s e p e r ta in in g tp th e amount o f m o istu re on th e Iia ip >
d e n t it io n developm en t, c o n d itio n o f n a v a l, hardness o f hoove's arid
dew c la w s > and g e n e r a l s t a t u r e and s t a b i l i t y .
A fte r c a lv in g se a so n ,
a l l s im ila r p h y s ic a l c h a r a c t e r is t ic s w ere grouped.
C e r ta in l i m i t s o f
developm ent w ere im m ed iately ob served from th e d a ta th u s d e lim it in g
ran ges f o r s p e c i f i c age c l a s s e s .
T ab le H c o n ta in s th e f i n a l
A l l Age
C la s s e s (137)
Newborn ( 8 )
CO
<D
cti
U
PO
H
P
k
(D
rQ
I
I XXN
0Edge
F ig . 9.
KXVl
I50
5 i100
101 150
I
I
15 1 200
I
1
1
1
______________ ____________________ I
201 251301 250
300
35o
D is ta n c e s (Y ards)
351Uoo
U o iU5o
U 5l500
I
unk.
Approximate D is ta n c e s 137 E lk C a lv es found in Open Areas w ere From Timber.
22
A ll Age
C la s se s
Newborn
% 3-
O-Edge
1 1 -2 0
21-30
D is ta n c e s (Y ards)
F ig . 10.
Approximate D ista n c es 2h E lk C a lv es Found i n Timber were
from Open A reas.
23
Table I I
C h a r a c t e r is t ic s Used For Age C la s s d e te r m in a tio n
o f E lk C alves
C h a r a c t e r is t ic s
Age
C la ss
M oistu re
on H air
D e n t it io n
N aval
Front I n c is o r s co v ered
by membrane or pro­
tr u d in g through
membrane l / 8 ,f or l e s s .
Upper C anines-not
th rou gh . Cheek T eeth not through o r b a r e ly
so .
B lood y, m o is t, approx.
I" to 3/U" d i a . ; not
scabbed. P o rtio n o f
u m b ilic a l may or maynot be p r e s e n t; i f
p r e s e n t, m o ist.
B
Dry*
(2 through
U d a y s)
Front I ' s - p ro tru d in g
l / 8 " to " ? " . U C s not
through. CT - j u s t
through or p ro tru d in g
approx. 1 / 16 " or l e s s .
B loody or l i g h t l y
scabbed about §" d ia .
P o r tio n o f d r ie d
u m b ilic a l may be
p r e s e n t.
^C
Dry*
(5 through
7 d a y s)
Front I ' s - p ro tru d in g I w t o ij" dry sca b .
5" t o 375"° U C s
b a r e ly th rough. CT through gums ov er l / l 6 ",
D
(8 days
& over)
Front I ' s - p ro tru d in g
W r "t o T / 8 ". UC ' s
j u s t through or pro­
tru d in g approx. l / 8 B
o r m ore. CT - same as
above o n ly more s o .
A
(newborn
& I day)
Wet or dry
& m atted.
Dampness
in s id e ea rs.
Dry*
1/ 8 •» t o
scab or
e n t i r e l y h e a le d .
^M oisture may be p r e se n t on t h e c a l f i f i t has been r e c e n t ly lic k e d by
th e cow.
I f lic k e d d u rin g n u rsin g g e n e r a lly only th e p o s t e r io r
r e g io n s o f th e c a l f w i l l be m o is t.
2k
Table I I (Continued)
C h a r a c t e r i s t i c s Used F o r Age C la ss D e te rm in a tio n
o f E lk C alves
C h a ra c te ris tic s
Age
C la ss
Hooves
Dew
Claws
S ta tu r e &
S ta b ility
A
E n t ir e ly s o f t o r le s s
th a n J hoof h ardened.
W alking s u rfa c e ra g ­
ged w ith s l i g h t t o no
g ra s s s ta i n in g p re s e n t.
E n t ir e ly s o f t
& b r ittle or
only u p p e r
h ard en ed .
Unable t o s ta n d o r
v ery in s e c u re S wobbly
on f e e t . Legs sp re ad
w e ll a p a r t i f sta n d in g .
Somewhat humped
p o s tu re when s ta n d in g .
B
A ll h ard en ed ; w alking
s u rfa c e smooth (n o t
ra g g e d ) & showing
much g ra s s s t a i n in g .
E n t ir e ly h ard
o r j u s t th e
extrem e t i p s
s o ft.
Somewhat wobbly to
v e ry s tu r d y . P o stu re
g e n e r a lly e r e c t .
C
Same as above
E n t ir e ly h ard
Very s tu r d y & e r e c t.
D
Same a s above
Same as above
Same as above
25
c o m p ila tio n o f th e s e d a ta a cco rd in g t o age c l a s s e s s
A, newborn
through I day; B 5 2 through k days; C 5 5 through 7 d ays; and D 5
8 days and o v er.
I t i s b e lie v e d t h a t t h i s t a b le i l l u s t r a t e s th e
p h y s ic a l c h a r a c t e r is t ic s by age c l a s s e s as a c c u r a te ly a s I s p o s s ib le
from th e d a ta a v a ila b le .
W eights and Standard Measurements
Each c a l f was w eigh ed and measured i n th e f i e l d by methods
d e s c r ib e d p r e v io u s ly ;
Means and ran ges o f w e ig h ts arid stan d ard
m easurements ( t o t a l le n g t h , t a i l , h in d f o o t and e a r ) were' determ ined
f o r each age c l a s s and reco rd ed i n T able I I I .
O b v io u sly , w e ig h ts and
measurements a re n ot s u f f i c i e n t f o r d e te r m in a tio n o f a g e o f c a lv e s a s
shown b y th e range o f extrem es f o r t h e v a r io u s age c l a s s e s ( s e e Table
III).
W eights and e s tim a te d d a ily a ges were record ed fo r 22 Eocky
Mountain e lk c a lv e s in th e Sun R iv e r a rea o f Montana by R. F , Cooney
in 1939 (p e r s o n a l com m unication);
A lthough th e means exceed ed th o se
o f G a lla t in c a l v e s , in d iv id u a l w e ig h ts f e l l w e ll w ith in th e range o f
G a lla t in extrem es.
Rush (1 9 3 2 ) rep o rte d th a t H h e average w eigh t o f a c a l f a t b ir th
i s 37 p o u n d s ...." , w ith extrem es o f 23 and ^5 pounds.
w eig h t ex ce ed s th e G a lla t in mean by h.£> pounds.
T h is average
" T y p ica l measure­
ments" fd r' a 3 -5 day o ld R o o se v e lt e lk w ere g iv e n by Schw artz and
M itc h e ll (1 9 h 5) as f o l l o w s i 37 ° 0 - 1 . 5 - l6 .5 - h = 75 in c h e s .
T h is e lk
(Gervus. c . r o o s e v e l t i ) i s rep o rte d b y..th e same w r it e r s a s la r g e r
T able 111
Weicrhts and S ta n d a rd M easum nents o f Rooky M ountain E lk C alv es
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ . . __ ■_ _ _ _ M n
jfl 31'
( 30 . & . . 0 )
A
(Newborn
through I
day)
B
-
M
2 . 0$
( 1 .5 - 2 .7 5 )
A
Tnnhe
1 $.U 6
(1U .O -17.0)
1 < 07
Uo U2
( 36: ° 8 )
to
(3 6 ^
87 5 )
( 1 .7 5 - 3 .0 )
( 1 3 .5 - 1 6 .7 5 )
(U .O -U .75)
1.7
Wwn
to
(36 to.366$ )
(2.o--2^75)
(15-25-17.25) (U.25-5.0)
22
r& 79)
( U 1 .5 - t o 25 )
( 2 .0 -3 ^ 0 )
(2 days
through U
days)
C
(5 days
through 7
days)
22
( 1 5 .2 5 - 1 7 .5 )
(W M ^S)
27
th a n th e Rocky M ountain e lk a lth o u g h c a l f measurem ents f o r b o th a re
v e ry s im ila r (s e e T able I I I ) .
W eights o f m ale c a lv e s exceeded fem ale c a lv e s as fo llo w s :
C la s s A, 4 .
Ul pounds;
B, .22 pounds; C, 2.6 2 pounds; and B,
Age
.3U
pounds.
W eights and s ta n d a rd m easurem ents o f 2 moose c a lv e s and 3 mule
d e e r fawns from th e G a lla t in a re a a re l i s t e d below f o r com parison.
R o b in e tte and O lsen (19UU) re p o rte d t h a t mule d e e r fawn a t b i r t h
av erag ed ( . 2 (3 .0 - 9 ° 9 ) pounds.
T h is would su g g est t h a t th e G a lla tin
fawns l i s t e d below were v e ry young.
S p e c ie s
Wt. ( l b s . ]I S ta n d . Meas. ( i n s . )
D ate
Age
Sex
Moose
6-2-U9
approx. 1-2 days
?
25.0
Moose
D eer
D eer
D eer
6-16-SO
6—U-!?0
ov er 10 days
unk.
unk.
unk.
d"
Cf
U9.0
7.5
6.5
7.5
6-U-50
6-12-50
2 9 .0 ( t o t a l le n g th
o n ly )
Ul.25-1.25-17.0-5.5
25.0 -3.5 - 9.5-3.75
25.0 -3.5 -io.o-U.0
21.75-2.0 - 9.0-3.75
Sex R a tio
Sex r a t i o d a ta w ere se c u re d from 1$$ c a lv e s d u rin g th e stu d y .
T his in fo r m a tio n , combined w ith d a ta o b ta in e d by o th e r a u th o r s , i s
l i s t e d in T able IV.
28
-
Table IV
C a lf S ex R a tio s f o r Three S u b sp e c ie s o f Cervus ca n a d en sis
A u th o r ity
Subspecies
Angstman arid Gaab (1 9 5 0 )
P r e se n t stu d y
R ust (19lj.6)
Schwartz and
M itc h e ll (1 9 1 5 )
B a n fie ld (1 9 li9 )
Clc.
Clcl
C.c.
C.c.
Noi i n sample
r ie lso n i
r ie ls o n i■
r ie lso n i
r o o s e v e lti
S ex R atio
(fcf t 100
U70
155'
unk.
C . c . m a n ito b en sis
9b
97
96
89
6U
* 100
: 100
: 100
i 100
10
25 $ 100
These d a ta do n o t support th e s u g g e s tio n o f B a n fie ld (19U 9) th a t
th e r e i s a h ig h m ale p r e n a ta l m o r t a lit y o
The f in d in g s o f th e p resen t
stu d y s t r o n g ly su g g e st a n ear one t o one s e x r a t io whicfi i s supported
b y th e la r g e sample o f Angstman and 'Saab (19$0)„
C o lo r a tio n
C o lo r a tio n o f th e c a l f p e la g e may v a ry c o n sid e r a b ly from a
uniform r e d d is h -b u ff c o lo r w ith v e iy i n d i s t i n c t s p o t t in g (C a lf No, 9 1 )
t o an e x c e e d in g ly dark brown w ith b r i l l i a n t s p o ts ,
The t y p i c a l c a l f
c o lo r a t io n i s l i g h t brown w ith a dark brown to b la c k s tr e a k approxi­
m a tely Ig in c h e s w id e ,
Xt u s u a lly ex ten d s from about I in ch , beh in d
th e e a r s t o th e edge o f th e b u ff c o lo r e d rump p a tch .
T h is p atch
ex ten d s forw ard a p p roxim ately U in c h e s from th e t a i l r o o t arid covers
th e p o s t e r io r p o r t io n o f b o th t h ig h s .
U s u a lly I row o f w h ite sp o ts
p a r a l l e l th e dark s tr e a k bn e i t h e r s id e o f th e m id lin e .
I r r e g u la r
s p o tt in g occu rs on th e s id e s but n ev er o v erla p p in g in t o t h e rump
p a tch (F ig . 1 1 ) .
O c c a s io n a lly th e d o r s a l s tr e a k may b e i n d i s t i n c t
29
F ig . 11.
C a lf s k in showing s p o ttin g a rran g em en t,
d o r s a l s tr e a k and rump p a tc h .
30
or a b sen t and o n ly ex ten d p a rt way t o th e rump p a tch .
Glands
H am ilton (1 9 3 9 ) d e s c r ib e s fo u r s k in glan d s o f th e d e e r t r i b e .
Two o f th e s e a re prom inant on th e e l k c a l f .
The p r e o r b it a l ^ lan d 5
con tin u ou s a n t e r io r ly and v e n t r a ll y w it h th e o r b it , i s ap p roxim ately
% in c h i n d ia m eter and % in c h deep. . The m e ta ta r s a l g la n d , i s
s it u a t e d a p p roxim ately 5 t o 6 in c h e s below th e f le x e d m eta p o d ia l
j o i n t on th e o u ts id e o f ea ch h ind f o o t ( F ig 4 12) .
I t i s ap p roxi­
m a tely lijr in c h e s lo n g and 3/ i i in ch w id e and c o n s is t s o f a t u f t o f
w h ite h a ir surrounded by lo n g e r h a ir o f th e same c o lo r a s - t h e p e la g e .
From th e o b s e r v a tio n s t h i s g la n d , on th e young c a lv e s , i s o d o r le s s
t o th e human nose,
Odor
A p p aren tly th e newborn c a lv e s are o d o r le s s .
Three days
during t h e 19U9 c a lv in g p e r io d a Geiman S h ort H air P o in te d accompanied
th e ta g g in g crew and f a i l e d to lo c a t e any c a l v e s .
ob served t o p a ss w it h in 5 f e e t o f one.
Once he was
A newborn c a l f w hich was
found e n t i r e l y w et (a p p ro x im a tely U hours o ld ) gave o f f no d e te c ta b le
odor t o th e fie ld m e n .
O lder c a l v e s , co m p le te ly d ry, a ls o f a i l e d t o
have a n o t ic e a b le odor e x c e p t t h a t o f th e sagebrush i n w hich th e y
w e r e 'g e n e r a lly ly i n g .
Rush (1 9 3 2 ) r e p o r ts th a t a h o rse was observed
t o g ra ze w it h in a f o o t o f a h id in g c a l f w ith o u t sm e llin g i t .
31
F ig . 12.
Elk c a l f showing prom inant m e ta ta r s a l g lan d
( a ls o n o te e a r ta g arri m a rk e r).
32
R ea ctio n s
C a lv e s , when approached, are g e n e r a lly found h id in g i n th e sa g e­
brush (F ig . 1 3 ) .
When ob served from a d is t a n c e through b in o c u la r s
th e y are se e n t o move t h e i r heads and o c c a s io n a lly ev en change
p o s it io n s b u t when approached th e y become m o tio n le s s .
T h is b eh avior
i s seem in g ly o f a p r o t e c t iv e nature b eca u se th e y a re d i f f i c u l t t o
s e e i n th e m o tio n le s s p o s it io n .
I t h a s b een observed t h a t th e y o fte n
o b ta in an apparent se n se o f s e c u r i t y when a p ie c e o f sageb ru sh i s
p la c e d o v er t h e i r heads even a f t e r b e in g han dled .
The k een n ess o f th e s e n s e s i s d i f f i c u l t t o e v a lu a te by
o b s e r v a tio n s .
Two newborn c a lv e s were ob served t o w alk o u t o f th e
tim b er t o th e r id e r s .
A fte r b e in g r e le a s e d , i t was n ot uncommon t o
s e e c a lv e s approach and f o llo w h o r s e s ( F ig . l U) .
The c a l v e s on o th er
o c c a s io n s ran t o th e cows' when th e l a t t e r were sta n d in g w it h in s ig h t
or h e a r in g range o f t h e r e le a s e d .c a lv e s .
Y o ic e
As. m entioned p r e v io u s ly , th e v o ic e o f th e c a l f i s n o t u n lik e th e
sound made by b low in g a c r o s s a b la d e o f g r a s s .
I t i s v e r y h igh -
p it c h e d , s h r i l l and e m itte d f o r sh o r t d u r a tio n s a t r a th e r freq u en t
in te r v a ls .
T his sound was heard when t h e anim als w ere b e in g handled
and a ls o when la r g e numbers o f e lk w ere moving or d is tu r b e d .
(1 9 3 2 ) rec o rd ed , “The c a l l o f th e e lk c a l f may be w r it t e n
E -e-e-e-e -u h Ite
Murie
33
F i > 13.
Elk c a l f h id in ' in a sageb ru sh ty p e.
3U
Fif;. IU.
Elk c a ll', a f t e r r e le a s e , follow ing, horse.
35
D evelopm ent
C e r ta in a s p e c ts o f .c a l f developm ent w ere observed i n th e w ild
and from one c a p t iv e .
W eights and measurements were reco rd ed each
C
tim e a ta g g ed w ild c a l f was reca p tu red . ' A pproxim ately ev e r y two
weeks a c a p tiv e c a l f was w eighed a n d /o r measured.
The average d a ily
w eig h t in c r e a s e f o r 16 w ild c a lv e s was 2 ,0 („83 "to 3 «1 2 ) pounds,
w h ile average d a ily measurement in c r e a s e s w eret .6 9 ( 0 ,0 t o 1 ,7 5 ) ,0 1 ( 0 ,0 t o .Oh) - .1 0 ( 0 .0 t o .2 5 ) - .0 3 ( 0 .0 to .0 6 ) in c h e s .
These
in c r e a s e s were b ased on o b s e r v a tio n s ex ten d in g over p e r io d s o f 2 t o
Ih d a y s.
The c a p tiv e c a l f , w hich was re a r e d on d o m estic cow 's m ilk ,
showed sm a lle r in c r e a s e s : w eig h t 1 .0 (.3 7 t o 1 . 62 ) pound; measure­
m ents .2 1 ( .1 9 t o .2 h ) - .0 1 ( 0 .0 t o . 0 2 ) - . 0$ (.Oh t o . 0 6 ) - .0 1
( 0 .0 t o .0 3 ) in c h e s p er day o v er a 31 day p e r io d .
The w eig h t o f
t h i s c a l f on August 10 was 77 bounds, showing an a v erage g a in o f
1 .0 pound p e r day o v er th e 53 day p e r io d .
Over ap p ro x im a tely th e
same p e r io d measurement in c r e a s e s were .2 9 - ° 0 1 - » Oh- . 02 in c h e s p er day.'
F iv e w e ig h ts and 9 measurements w ere secu red from c a lv e s
ap p roxim ately 7 months o ld during December 19h9 in Y ello w sto n e Park
(some o f t h e s e d a ta p r e v io u s ly p u b lis h e d , Quimby and Joh n son , in
p ress).
Average standard, measurements w ere 67.8 (6 1 .2 5 t o 75°75) -
h .7 8 (IwO t o 5 . 5 ) - 2 2.36 (2 0 .2 5 t o 2h.O ) - 7 . Ih (6 .7 5 t o 7 .5 ) in ch es.
T o ta l w e ig h t, 2 5 1 .5 pounds, was secu red f o r one.
For h o th e r s , th e
c a lc u la t e d t o t a l w e ig h ts from v i s c e r a l w e ig h ts were 23h, 291 , 195
and. 2h6 pounds where v i s c e r a l w e ig h t i s l / 3 o f t o t a l w e ig h t ( Quimby
36
and Johnson, i n p r e s s ) .
C a lf s p o t t in g , w hich g e n e r a lly becomes v e r y d i s t i n c t s h o r t ly
a f t e r b i r t h , i s l o s t d u rin g th e f i r s t p e la g e m olt i n August and
Septem ber.
The f i r s t ev id e n c e o f a d u lt sh edding was ob served
August S> w h ile c a l f sh ed d in g was f i r s t ob served August 1 1 .
S p o ttin g
fa d e s g r a d u a lly from t h e d o r s a l p a r ts v e n t r a l l y u n t i l com p lete
d isa p p e a ra n ce.
The f i r s t o b s e r v a tio n o f a co m p le te ly m o lted c a l f
was August 17.
No c a lv e s were ob served w ith sp o ts a f t e r September 7 >
th e p e la g e was g e n e r a lly l i g h t e r c o lo r e d and v e r y s im ila r t o th a t
or th e y e a r lin g .
ACTIVITIES
W alking
:
Nine o f 12 newborn c a lv e s w ere unable t o w alk and 3 o f th e s e
u n ab le t o s ta n d . ' The c a lv e s cap ab le o f w a lk in g were v e r y u n sta b le
and u n ab le t o p r o g r e ss more th a n a few y a r d s .
S ix c a l v e s , approxi­
m a tely I day old', d id not attem pt t o sta n d , w h ile S ran u n s t e a d ily
a f t e r b e in g h a n d led .
S eem in gly th e c a lv e s do l i t t l e m oving u n t i l
about th e t h ir d o r fo u r th day a t w hich tim e th e y are g e n e r a lly good
ru n n ers.
A fte r 6 or 7 days th e c a lv e s must be approached c a u tio u s ly
as th e y are qu ick t o g a in t h e i r f e e t and are v e r y f a s t ru n n ers.
Swimming
On ly I c a l f was ob served swimming.
T h is c a l f , ap p ro x im a tely
I4 days o ld , was hid d en on th e o p p o site s id e o f th e r iv e r from th e
g r a z in g cow.
A fte r i t was ta g g ed and r e le a s e d th e c a l f ran upstream
37
a p p roxim ately IOti y a r d s, jumped in t o th e sw o lle n r i v e r , w hich was
about Ii f e e t deep and 6ti f e e t w id e , and swam a cro ss to th e cow.
Rush (1932) and Schwartz and M itc h e ll ( 19h$ ) b oth rep o rte d c a lv e s
swimming.
N ursing
C a lv e s were f i r s t ob served t o nurse on June 27.
th e stu d y no d e f i n i t e n u rsin g p a tte r n was ap p arent,
Throughout
D u ra tio n o f
n u rsin g ranged from l e s s th an 30 secon d s t o I 3/h m in u te s , e v id e n tly
a t th e cow 's d is c r e t i o n .
On J u ly I , a y e a r lin g was o b serv ed to .
nurse f o r ap p roxim ately 30 s e c o n d s, assum ing a k n e e lin g p o s it io n .
Rush (1 9 3 2 ) rep o rte d a s im ila r o b s e r v a tio n on J u ly 19.
D a r lin g (1 9 3 7 )
r e p o r ts b o th y e a r n u g and c a l f n u rsin g th e same h in d (cow ) as not a t
a l l u n u su al among S c o tla n d 's red d e e r (C ervus e la p h u s ) .
For th e
n u rsin g c a lv e s the. k n e e lin g p o s i t i o n , a s w e ll a s th e sta n d in g p o s it io n ,
was commonly o b serv ed a f t e r August 7 .
A fte r August 2 , " p r a c t ic a lly
a l l o f th e c a lv e s ' ob served n u rsin g" by Young and R o b in e tte (1 9 3 9 ) were
i n k n e e lin g p o s it io n s .
B etw een December 20 and 29,
19)4.9,
I46 fem a le e lk o v e r 2 y e a r s o ld
w ere examined (d a ta secu red in Y ello w sto n e N a tio n a l Park and p u b lish ed
w ith t h e i r p e r m is s io n ).
rem ainder w ere d iy .
'Twenty w ere found to be l a c t a t i n g w h ile th e
From t h e s e few d a ta i t would appear t h a t a h ig h
p erce n ta g e o f th e c a lv e s were s t i l l n u rsin g .
38
Grazing
One c a p t iv e and 2 w ild c a lv e s w ere o b serv ed g ra zin g June 26 and
2 7 , r e s p e c t i v e l y , when ap p ro x im a tely 3 t o U weeks o ld .
I n te n s e
g ra z in g by c a lv e s was n ot commonly ob served much b e fo r e J u ly 10 (6 t o
8 w eeks o f a g e ) .
T his i s s im ila r t o t h e f in d in g s o f Rush (1 9 3 2 ) and
Young and R obinette', (1 9 3 9 ) a lth ou gh somewhat l a t e r th an th o s e rep o rted
by Schwartz and M itc h e ll (19U5>)»
P la y
On fo u r o c c a s io n s G a lla t in e lk c a lv e s were ob served -p layin g a
ty p e o f ta g ; f i r s t one ch ased th e o th e r , th e n v ic e v e r s a .
c a lv e s were se e n t o p la y t h i s game i n sh a llo w p o o ls .
Twice
S im ila r a n tic s
w ere r e p o r te d f o r Idaho e lk c a lv e s by Young and R o b in e tte (1939)«
D a r lin g (1 9 3 7 ) d e sc r ib e d U ty p S s o f p la y o b served among t h e red deer
c a lv e s o f S c o tla n d , one o f them b e in g t h i s game o f t a g .
R e la tio n s h ip t o Gow
A v e r y c l o s e r e la t io n s h ip betw een cow and c a l f was o b serv ed
th rou gh out th e stucfer w ith a few e x c e p t io n s .
Four cows w ere ob served
w ith 13 c a lv e s (no o th e r a d u lt fem a le s i n th e im m ediate a r e a ) .
T h is .
may have b een an example o f c e r t a in cows a c t in g a s "guards” w h ile
o th e r s were g r a z in g (Schw artz and M it c h e ll, 19U5) o r s e r v in g in th e
I
c a p a c ity o f "nursemaids" a s rep o rte d by E in a rsen (19U8) among
a n te lo p e .
Two c a lv e s w ere ob served p la y in g a lo n e on a la k e sh ore
August i 8 a p p ro x im a tely l / 2 m ile from t h e h erd .
q u ic k ly r e j o in e d th e o t h e r s .
When f r ig h t e n e d , th e y
39
Movement's
T h is p o r tio n o f th e stu d y was a id ed by th e u se o f p l a s t i c ea r
markers p r e v io u s ly d e s c r ib e d .
marked.
One hundred t h ir t y - t w o c a lv e s w ere
Ih e n a marked c a l f was ob served o r k i l l e d by a h u n te r , i t s
lo c a t i o n was reco rd ed .
A ir lin e d is ta n c e from th e p la c e o f ta g g in g
was th e n c a lc u la t e d (T a b le V ).
A ir lin e d is t a n c e s co u ld be record ed q u it e a c c u r a te ly when
in d iv id u a l i d e n t i f i c a t i o n s c o u ld be made b u t i n c a se s where th e
d rain age sym bol o n ly was r e c o g n iz a b le t h e y were approxim ate.
T h irty -tw o o b s e r v a tio n s w ere record ed a t d is ta n c e s from 0 t o
19 m ile s from t h e c a lv in g a rea during th e two y e a r s , as f o llo w s : 3
i n Ju n e, 7 i n J u ly , U i n A ugust, 12 i n November, U in December and
2 in January.
For t h e summer months a l l o b s e r v a tio n s w ere a t
g e n e r a lly h ig h e r e l e v a t io n s above th e c a lv in g grounds.
The average
d is ta n c e f o r June was 3 a i r l i n e m il e s , 11 f o r J u ly , and 8 f o r August
O b serv a tio n s f o r November and December w ere below th e c a lv in g a rea ,
3 and 2 a i r l i n e m il e s , r e s p e c t i v e ly .
One o b se r v a tio n i n January was
lt-5 m ile s above th e c a lv in g ground, w h ile th e o th e r was i n another
d rain age 18 m ile s away.
These d a ta s u g g e s t th e g e n e r a l p a tte r n o f
e lk m ig r a tio n f o r t h i s d ra in a g e | i . e . , th e c a lv e s are born on th e
upper w in te r range a f t e r w hich th e y b e g in a movement t o th e
g e n e r a lly h ig h e r e l e v a t io n s o f t h e summer ran ge.
e le v a t io n s are reached i n J u ly .
movement i s r e v e r s e d .
The maximum
D uring August th e d ir e c t io n o f
In November and December th e an im als are on
Uo
Table V
O b serv a tio n s o f Tagged C alves
C a lf No.
2U
29
21
31
unk.
unk.
unk.
7$ *
3
29 **
16?
unk.
127
1U8
83
136
unk.
unk.
unk.
unk.
unk.
unk.
23 *
iUo *
78 *
158 *
126 *
128 *
107 *
163 *
99 *
120 #
D ate Tagged
6-12-U9
6-12-U9
6h U-U9
6- U-U9
unk.
unk.
unk.
6- 6-U9
6- 3-U9
6-12-U9
6- 2-50
unk.
6-11-50
6- 9-50
6- 1-50
6- 3-50
unk.
unk.
unk.
unk.
unk.
unk.
6-12—
U9
6-10—
50
6- 6-U9
5-30-50
6-11-50
6-11-50
6-11-50
6- 3-50
6- 2-50
6-11-50
D ate Observed
Movement ( M ile s )
6-28-U9
6-28-U9
7-26-U9
8- 5-U9
12- 1-U9
12- 1-U9
12- 1-U9
12-21-U9
1-12-50
1-19-50
6-28-50
7- 9-50
7-11-50
7-11-50
7-15-50
7-15-50
7-26-50
8—8—
50
8- 8-5o
8- 8-50
n-io-50
n-io-50
11-13-50
ii-i5-5o
11-17-50
11-21-50
11-23-50
11-2U-50
H-2U-50
H-2U-50
11-2U-50
H-2U-50
2-3
2-3
8
5-6
approx.
approx.
unk.
3-U
U-5
18
2-3
approx.
11-12
10
9
8
approx.
approx.
approx.
approx.
approx.
approx.
18
I
1-2
0
U
3-U
3-U
0
6
3-U
* Hunter k i l l
**Moved ou t o f G a lla t in d rain age
0
I
11
17
8
12
8
2-3
I
Ui
th e w in te r range g e n e r a lly a t e le v a t io n s low er th a n th e p la c e o f
b ir t h .
The above d a ta in d ic a t e a tr u e m ig r a tio n in v o lv in g a movement
away from and retu rn t o an area.
One o b se r v a tio n f o r January i s
a t y p ic a l i n th a t t h i s anim al was trap p ed i n th e Y ello w sto n e d rain age
w hich su p p o sed ly su p p o rts a herd d i s t i n c t from th e G a lla t in h erd .
Other d ata s u g g e s tin g an in te r m in g lin g o f th e two herds a re a v a ila b le
from c a lv e s marked on th e Y ello w sto n e du rin g th e sp rin g o f 1950 by
th e Montana F ish and Game Departm ent.
s t r ip e d p l a s t i c e a r m arkers.
About 60 were marked w ith
Twelve w ere o b served on th e same
summer range (h ig h range betw een th e Y ello w sto n e and G a lla t in
d r a in a g e s ) u sed by a p o r tio n o f th e G a lla t in h erd .
The Y ello w sto n e
c a lv e s had moved about 9 t o 13 a i r l i n e m ile s from th e ta g g in g a rea .
EFFECTIVENESS OF THE MARKER
Hunter k i l l s and o b s e r v a tio n s l a t e in th e se a so n p rovid ed
in fo rm a tio n on th e d u r a b ilit y o f th e markers.
ta g g ed in
19U9 have
To d a te , 8 c a lv e s
b een o b served o r k i l l e d a f t e r th e f i r s t summer.
Three had r e ta in e d th e marker f o r 6 months and I f o r Yz m onths.
On
th e n e g a tiv e s i d e , I c a l f had l o s t th e marker by Yz months a f t e r
ta g g in g .
ta g s.
One ea r was s p l i t .
November
19U9 had l o s t b oth m eta l and p l a s t i c
o th e r 19U
9 c a lv e s k i l l e d d u rin g
A ll markers used du rin g th e 19U
9
One k i l l e d i n December
1950 had
Two
no m arkers.
s e a so n were o f a t h in c e l l u l o i d n a tu re and seem in g ly l e s s d u rab le
th an th e t h ic k e r p l a s t i c markers u sed i n
1950 (H ow itt
P l a s t i c s C o .).
h2
No co m p le te ly n e g a tiv e r e s u l t s have b een found f o r th e 1950 m arkers.
E ig h t had' rem ained 6 months on c a lv e s k i l l e d in November 1950.
w ere i n p e r f e c t shape.
Two sym bols w ere damaged:
S ix
a la r g e t r ia n g l e
had a corn er broken o f f and o n ly l /3 rem ained o f a la r g e c i r c l e .
F ig .
15 shows
3 o f th e undamaged and th e 2 damaged sym bols.
Both
damaged sym bols showed b reak s which were, v ery smooth and c le a n ,
p o s s ib ly in d ic a t in g th e y were broken w h ile in th e hands o f th e h u nters.
Frcm t h e s e few d a ta , i t appears th a t th e p l a s t i c typ e-m ark er showed
c o n s id e r a b le prom ise f o r b ig . game mammal marking a s f a r a s d u r a b ilit y
was concerned.
The maximum range o f v i s i b i l i t y f o r p o s i t i v e i d e n t i f i c a t i o n o f
th e s m a lle r sym bols ( in d iv id u a ls ) was ap p roxim ately 100 y ard s w ith
6 or 8X b in o c u la r s .
Ranges approaching 200 yard s w ere n o t found
e x c e s s iv e u s in g a 20X s p o t t in g scop e i f c a u tio n was e x e r c is e d .
These
ran ges can be a lt e r e d a p p r e c ia b ly due t o t h e e x te n t o f tim b er c o v e r ,
d a y lig h t b r ig h tn e s s and anim al movements.
T able VI i l l u s t r a t e s th e s e
ran ges ,and c o n d itio n s' o f o b s e r v a tio n s made o f lU G a lla t in and 12
Y ello w sto n e marked c a l v e s .
I t w i l l be n o ted th a t i d e n t i f i c a t i o n o f
o u te r symbols' (d ra in a g es), has been made a t 250 t o 350 y a rd s w ith 2QX
and a t 150 t o 200 yard s w ith 6X, b oth under r a th e r poor l i g h t
c o n d it io n s .
T rip p en see ( 1914.1 ) record ed a t a b le o f ran ges o f
v i s i b i l i t y fo r c o lo r e d markers o f g e n e r a lly sm a lle r s i z e u sed on sm a ll
game.
Some w ere e a s i l y d is t in g u is h a b le a t
e y e , BX o r 10X g l a s s e s .
5 to
300 f e e t w ith naked
F ig . 1$.
P la s t ic ear Tarkers which had remained
attached approxim ately 6 months (returned
on hunter k i l l s ) .
Table VI
C o n d itio n s o f O b servation s o f Marked C alves
Magni­
D ista n c e
No.
Obsen fic a tio n Obser. (Yd)
D a y lig h t B r ig h tn e ss
Time
Symbol Obser.
Outer Inner
G a lla t in Marked C alves
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
8X
8X
8X
20X
6X
6X
20X
20X
6X & 7X
6X & 7X
2 OX
6X
20X
20X
100 - 150
150 - 200
100
100
30
150 - 200
80 - 100
80 - 100
20
Uo
250 - 350
150
100 - 200
100 - 200
B r ig h t
B r ig h t
B righ t
D u ll (c lo u d y )
D u ll ( r a in )
D u ll (d usk)
B rig h t
B rig h t
B rig h t
B rig h t
D u ll ( r a in )
B rig h t
D u ll (tim b e r )
D u ll (tim b e r )
12:00
2:00
3 :0 0
2:3 0
11:30
7 :0 0
11:30
3:0 0
1 2:00
12:00
2 :0 0
1 0:00
3 :0 0
3 :0 0
M
PM
PM
PM
AM
PM
AM
PM
M
M
PM
AM
PM
PM
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
I
X
X
X
Y ello w sto n e Marked C a lv es
6
6X & BX
150 - 200
D u ll (c lo u d y )
2
20X
2 OX
20X
6X
250
150 - 200
100
200
D u ll (rain;)
D u ll ( c lo u d y )
B rig h t
D u ll (tim b e r )
I
2
I
^ E stim ated
2 :0 0 PM Only o u ter
symbol u sed
tf M M
12:00 M
M
«
»
ft M
1 2:00
1
1 1:00 AM ” ” 1 Il
1 :0 0 PM »
»
(
MORTALITY AHD NUISANCE FACTORS
A l l su sp e c te d p r e d a tio n or a c c id e n t o b se r v a tio n s en cou n tered
during t h i s stu d y are reco rd ed i n Table Y II w ith th r e e o b se r v a tio n s
made by Montana F is h and Game D epartm ent p erso n n el i n I 9I4.8 „
Two
/
c a s e s o f b la c k b ea r p r e d a tio n were a c t u a ll y observed (C ases I and
2 ) , b oth in 19ll8.
C ases U and 9 appear t o f i t M a rie's (191*8)
d e s c r ip t io n s o f b ea r i n f l i c t e d wounds on c a t t l e i n which he found
' '
r*'
-
■
■
i n j u r i e s in th e lumbar r e g io n o f th e back and in th e f a c i a l r e g io n . ■
The lumbar pu nctures, i n Case I* on one s id e were 3 in c h e s ap art
and 2§ in c h e s on th e o th e r s id e .
T hese measurements are s im ila r t o
t h o s e found on a y e a r lin g dom estic cow by Murie 9 which s t r o n g ly
s u g g e s ts th a t th e G a lla t in c a s e was an u n s u c c e s s fu l a t t a c k b y a
b ea r.
C ases -5 and 6 showed no e v id e n c e o f in j u r ie s . ■ Sqtiwartz an$
M itc h e ll (191*5) found a few dead young ea ch c a lv in g s e a s o n , t h e cause
o f w hich th e y a t t r ib u t e d t o g e n e r a l w eakness or pneumonia.
Although
rough f i e l d a n a ly s e s o f b ear s c a t s were f r e q u e n tly made, no c a l f
rem ains w ere i d e n t i f i e d .
E ig h t per c e n t o f more th a n 100 b ea r s c a t s
exam ined b y Schw artz and M itc h e ll (191*5) co n ta in ed e v id e n c e o f fawns
i n th e d i e t .
No e v id e n c e o f co y o te p r e d a tio n was en co u n tered in th e
G a lla t in a lth o u g h an u n s u c c e s s fu l a tte m p t, due t o th e a g g r e s s iv e n e s s
o f th e cow, was o b serv ed .
One a c c id e n t re c o r d was su sp e c te d (C ase 1 0 ) when a c ^ l f was
found dead i n a s t e e p - s id e d creek but no e v id e n c e o f i n j u r i e s were
found on i t s body.
Table VlT
M o r ta lity Records
■Case
No,
D ate
Cause o f
D eath
I
6— —14.8
B lack B ea r
2
3
6-12-U 8
6—IO- Ij-S
B lack Bear
Unknown
k
6-13-1*9
B ear ( ? )
S
6 -1 1 -5 0
Unknown
6
6 -1 1 -5 0
Unknown
7
6 -1 3 -5 0
Unknown
8
6 -liH J o
Unknown
9
6- 16-50
Unknown
10
6- 25-50
Drowned ( ? )
Remarks
Observed k i l l i n g c a l f . Tooth punctures
on e i t h e r s id e o f sp in e i n lumbar r eg io n .
Two lo n g wounds l e f t fr o n t sh o u ld e r (by
J . E, Gaab).
Observed k i l l i n g c a l f (by Gb H. Sherman).
B lack b ear ob served e a tin g on c a l f
c a r c a ss (by J . E. Gaab).
C a lf, found a l i v e - d ied d u rin g day.
Deep wound, 3 W lo n g , p e n e tr a tin g l e f t
t h ig h . . ,Two pu nctures on e i t h e r s id e o f
sp in e i n lumbar r e g io n p e n e tr a tin g body
c a v it y .
No e x t e r n a l s ig n s o f i n j u r i e s . C arcass
in ta c t.
No e x t e r n a l s ig n s o f i n j u r i e s . C arcass
in ta c t.
C a lf dead s e v e r a l days - c a r c a s s approx.
l / 3 devoured. I n j u r i e s , i f any, not
determ ined.
C arcass s c a t t e r e d and b a d ly d e t e r io r a t e d .
I n j u r i e s , i f an y, not d eterm in ed .
Head b a d ly la c e r a t e d , rostrum crushed.
D en tary b ro k en , tongue sev ere d approx.
Ijin from t i p e x ce p t f o r s m a ll p o r tio n
'^lt .w id e . No body in j u r ie s ob served .
Found dead i n creek approx. 2* w ide and
3 ' deep . No in j u r ie s o b serv ed .
Itf
Between 1939 and 19^9 th e average- annual c a l f h a r v e s t b y hu nters
was 91 an im als f o r t h e G a lla t in (Angstman and Gaab5 1 9 5 0 ).
Qf th e
132 c a lv e s marked 11 are known t o have b een k i l l e d du rin g t h e reg u la r
h u n tin g s e a so n s ( I d u rin g th e 19k9 s e a s o n , 10 during th e 1950 s e a s o n ).
Both sea so n s w ere c o n t r o lle d w ith k i l l s s e t a t
700 head
each y e a r .
I n te n s e i n s e c t i n f e s t a t i o n s - appear t o be a m ajor n u isa n c e f a c t o r
i n J u ly and A ugust.
During t h i s tim e th e h ig h windy r id g e s are
seem in g ly d e s ir e d by th e e l k .
I f such a r e a s are u n a v a ila b le some
p r o t e c t io n from t h e in s e c t a tta c k s i s e v id e n t ly o b ta in ed by bedding
down i n t a l l sed g e meadows.
SMMAEI
1.
A stu d y o f e lk c a lv e s was conducted du rin g \9h9 and 195>0 in
so u th er n G a lla t in C ounty, Montana and t h e north w estern p o r tio n
o f Y ello w sto n e N a tio n a l Park.
2.
A d e s c r ip t io n o f t h e c a lv in g ground i s g iv e n w ith r e fe r e n c e t o
l o c a t i o n , v e g e t a t io n , top ograp h y, c lim a te and a s s o c ia t e d mammals.
3»
C a lv in g a rea s were co v ered on h orseb ack t o f in d th e c a lv e s ;
w e ig h ts , sta n d a rd m easurements and o th e r b i o l o g i c a l d a ta were
o b ta in e d .
l±.
One hundred t h ir t y - t w o c a lv e s were ta g g e d w ith numbered m etal
sto c k ea r ta g s and c o lo r e d p l a s t i c markers composed o f a la r g e
o u te r symbol a lo n e or combined w ith a sm a lle r in n er symbol o f
c o n tr a s t in g c o lo r .
C om binations o f sh a p e s, c o lo r s , s i z e s and
ea r t o w hich i t was a tta c h e d i d e n t i f i e d th e in d iv id u a l and
d rain age where ta g g e d .
O b servation s w ere made a f t e r th e c a lv in g
se a so n p a r t ic u l a r ly on t h e marked c a lv e s .
5.
The range and peak o f t h e c a lv in g p e r io d was found t o be May 21
t o June 12 and June I , r e s p e c t i v e ly .
6.
A few s p e c i f i c v e g e t a t io n t y p e s were found t o c o n ta in most o f
th e
c a lv e s : sageb ru sh ty p e s ; 77 p e r c e n t; tim b er, 11 per-:cent;
and **edge * ,
p er c e n t.
The: a v erage d is ta n c e c a lv e s found in
open area s w ere from tim b er was 73*7 y a r d s , w h ile th o s e in
tim b er averaged 1 0 .0 yard s from open a r e a s , i l l u s t r a t i n g th e
im portance o f "edge e f f e c t ”.
h9
7«
A ccord in g t o age c l a s s e s , determ ined by p h y s ic a l c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s ,
th e average w e ig h ts o f calvfes were't newborn-1 day,
36.08; S-7, UUo71;
and 8 -o v e r ,
53.18 pounds.
32.£5
2-k days,
Average standard
38.31-2.05-l5.U6U.38; 39*98-2.23-15.7-U..U2; U2.36-2.2U-l6.2-U.7j and UU.32-2.29l6.61-U.77 in c h e s .
m easurem ents f o r th e same age c l a s s e s w ere:
8 . ; W eights o f male c a lv e s w ere found t o s l i g h t l y ex ceed t h a t o f
fem a le s f o r t h e above age c l a s s e s a s f o llo w s :
«3Upounds,
9.
10.
U.Ul, .22, 2.62,
and
r e s p e c t i v e ly .
For 155 c a lv e s exam ined, th e s e x r a t io was 96 m ales : 100 fe m a le s .
D e s c r ip t io n s o f c o lo r a t io n , g la n d s , o d o r, r e a c tio n s and v o ic e are
d is c u s s e d w ith some i l l u s t r a t i o n s .
11.
Average d a ily w eig h t and measurement in c r e a s e s f o r 16 w ild c a lv e s
f o r th e f i r s t two weeks w ere 2 .0 pounds and . 6 9 - .0 1 - .1 0 - .0 3
in c h e s , r e s p e c t i v e ly .
One c a p tiv e c a l f g a in ed , on t h e a v era g e,
1 .0 pound d a ily and in c r e a se d . 2 1 - . 0 1 - . 0 5 - . 0 1 in c h e s p er day over
a 31 day p e r io d .
12.
C e r ta in a c t i v i t i e s such as w a lk in g , swimming, n u r s in g , g r a z in g ,
e t c . are d is c u s s e d .
13.
The average m onthly d is ta n c e t h a t marked c a lv e s were o b served
from th e c a lv in g grounds i l l u s t r a t e d th e g en era l p a tte r n o f e lk
m ig r a tio n i n th e G a lla t in d ra in a g e.
50
lU .
O b serva tio n s o f 19h9 markers ( c e l l u l o i d ) showed k n e g a tiv e
r e s u l t s i n 8 l a t e o b s e r v a tio n s , w h ile t h e ' 1950 marker ( p l a s t i c )
showed no c o m p le te ly n e g a tiv e r e s u lt s f o r th e same number o f
o b s e r v a tio n s , a lth o u g h 2 markers w ere damaged.
15.
O b serva tio n s o f p r e d a tio n w ere lim it e d t o 2 su sp e c te d b ea r
a tta c k s on c a lv e s during th e stu d y , but 2 19 I48 b ear k i l l s are
rec o rd ed .
th e summer.
I n s e c t s appeared t o be a m ajor n u isa n ce f a c t o r in
Hunter k i l l s p r e se n te d th e g r e a t e s t m o r t a lit y
f a c t o r du rin g th e f a l l .
The average annual c a l f h a r v e s t f o t th e
l a s t 10 y e a r s was 91 a n im a ls.
LITERATURE CITED
Angstman, J . B ., and J . E. Gaab» 19^0. West G a lla t in w in te r e lk
stu d y , 19lt9-195>Q. Mont. F ish and Game Comm. W ild lif e
R e s to r a tio n D iv is io n , Q u a rterly R ep o rt, 1 0 ( 2 ) 0 3 As d e l l , S . A. I 9 I46. P a tte r n s o f mammalian rep ro d u ctio n .
P u b lish in g Co. I n c . , Ithaca> N. Y.
Comstock
B an fi e I d , A. W>. F. 19l+9« An ir r u p t io n o f e l k in R iding Mountain
N a tio n a l Park, M anitoba. Jour. W ildl'. ■Mgt, , 13(l)? 1 2 7 -1 3 U »
Cheatum, E. L . , and Glenn H. Morton. 19U6. B reeding s e a s o n o f
w h i t e - t a i l e d d e e r i n New York. Jou r. W ild l. Mgt.., 1 0 (3 )?
2U9-263.
D a r lin g , F . F r a s e r . 1937»
P r e s s ., London.
A herd o f red d e e r .
Oxford U n iv e r s ity
E in a r sen , Arthur S . 191+8. The pronghorn a n te lo p e and i t s management,
The W il d l if e Management I n s t i t u t e , W ashington, D. C.
H am ilton , W. J . J r . 1939* American mammals.
Company, I n c . , New York and London.
McGraw-Hill Book
H o s le y , N. W» 191+2. . The c o t t o n t a i l r a b b its i n C o n n e c tic u t.
Conn. S t . G eol. and N at. H i s t . S u r v ., 6$t l - 9 7 .
L eop old , A ld o. 1933» Game management.
New York and London.
B u ll.
C h a r les S c r ib n e r ’ s S o n s,
M a n v ille , R ichard H. 191+9» T echniques f o r ca p tu re and marking o f
mammals. Jour. Mamm., 3 0 (l)s.2 7 -3 3 »
Murie-, Adolph. 191+8. C a t t le on g r i z z l y b e a r range.
M g t., 1 2 ( l) s 5 7 - 7 2 .
M urie, Olaus J .
1932.
E lk c a l l s .
Jou r. W ild l.,
Jour. Mamm., 13(1+)?331-336.
Quimby, Don C ., and D onald E. Johnson. ____ W eights and m easure­
m ents o f Rocky M ountain e lk . ( I n p r e s s ) .
R o b in e tte , W. L e s l i e , and Orange A. O lsen . 191+1+» S tu d ie s o f th e
p r o d u c t iv it y o f mule d eer i n c e n t r a l Utah. T rans. No. Am.
W ild l. C o n f ., ,9? 15 6 -1 6 1 .
MONTANA STATE UNIVERSITY
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