North Carolina Authorizes First Elk Hunts Since Reintroduction

North Carolina is taking a cautious first step back into elk hunting, and that is a big deal for anyone who understands restoration as more than putting animals on a postcard. When a herd grows to the point that limited, legal harvest can help fund management, that is a conservation success story.

A new law signed by Gov. Josh Stein on July 7 authorizes a limited elk hunt during the 2027 hunting season. The first season will include two nontransferable permits. One permit will go to a North Carolina resident through an NCWRC raffle, with tickets priced at $20 each and a maximum of 30 tickets per resident.

The second permit will go to a nonprofit conservation organization selected by NCWRC, which will auction it to the highest bidder. That organization may keep up to 25 percent of the bid, while the rest goes to the Wildlife Resources Fund for elk management and conservation. Raffle proceeds also go to NCWRC and the Wildlife Resources Fund.

The history matters here. Native Eastern elk once lived in North Carolina, but that subspecies was wiped out more than a century ago. In 2001 and 2002, NCWRC and the National Park Service released 52 Manitoban elk into Cataloochee Valley in Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Some people will never accept hunting as part of wildlife management, even when the opportunity is limited and the money goes back into the herd. Hunters know better. Restoration, habitat, funding and carefully managed harvest are all part of the same circle when it is done right.