Idaho Fish and Game Continue Efforts to Keep Game Away from Farms

TWIN FALLS, Idaho (KLIX)-Idaho wildlife managers continue work to keep large game animals like elk away from farm fields in the Magic Valley region. The Idaho Department of Fish and Game said conservation officers have been working through the summer on depredation operations in Elmore, Jerome, Blaine and Lincoln counties to keep animals like elk and deer from damaging crops. Most of the damage has been to corn crops this year, "As in years past, the most common request for assistance from landowners involves elk moving onto their cultivated fields at night, which limits Fish and Game’s options to reduce damages. Elk in standing corn are an extremely challenging situation for wildlife managers given elk rarely leave standing corn and only during nighttime hours," said the agency." Other efforts to keep deer from grape crops have been scaled back because of the success of hazing and selective herd removal. The agency said it continues to use lethal methods when necessary and have issued a very limited number of kill permits to some landowners. Biologists expect to see crop depredation continue for several more weeks until harvest begins.