Fish and Game staff move 34 elk from Big Willow drainage in Southwest Idaho to the Panhandle

From a helicopter, Fish and Game staff sedated elk with a dart gun. The elk were then carried by helicopter to a processing site, where staff fitted the animals with GPS collars, conducted health checks, loaded them into trailers, and then drove them about 8 hours to the release site in the Panhandle. The operation required substantial staff time, contracted work with two helicopters, and risks to both staff and animals.

Crews captured 22 elk on May 4, and another 15 elk on May 5, from private land in the Big Willow Creek area in Unit 32. Three elk died during transport from capture-related causes, a known risk due to the stress of handling and reaction to sedation, which Fish and Game staff worked to minimize.