. Then the little area left uncovered becomes covered with more snow and trampled making it very difficult for an elk to forage. Little isolated meadows that elk relied on for winter feed have been totally grazed out very early in the winter.[/QUOTE]
This is the part a lot of people don't understand, once its trampled it is froze hard. Elk cant get to it. Don't shovel your walk after a few snow storms walk on it daily, after a couple Chinooks then try to shovel it. Its a bit of work to get it cleared. Its about competition for food. Some years with a mild winter its not much of a problem, hard winters its a problem. The quality of forage feed also plays a major role in this. Horses can and will founder (spelling) on grass. Have you ever seen an elk founder on the feed in question, or a feral horse? No, the reason is because there is very little food quality in the feed. It takes more feed to keep there calorie count up.
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CAVEAT EMPTOR!
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