Missouri’s only wild elk herd traces to a reintroduction that began in 2011, when the state released elk onto Ozark public land around Peck Ranch Conservation Area, more than a century after the native herd was hunted out. The 38 records mapped here, though, cluster at Mingo National Wildlife Refuge, Big Oak Tree State Park, and Swan Lake National Wildlife Refuge, bottomland and wetland refuges well outside that core restoration zone, more likely reflecting wide-ranging bulls than an established local population.
Sightings peak in May, when calving season and warmer weather put more elk, and more observers, outdoors. With only 38 total records and a percentile rank of 30, this remains one of the sparser record sets in the state, matching a species still confined to a small, actively managed herd rather than roaming freely statewide. NatureServe leaves the state population unranked (SNR), a fair reflection of how recently and narrowly elk have returned to Missouri.
Full species profile
