In late November, conservation agents received an image of a dead elk lying in a field in Carter County’s Peck Ranch Conservation Area. Initial investigation revealed a gunshot wound in the animal’s shoulder, which ruptured its heart, and a set of tire tracks through the grass.
Now, the department wants to find the poacher responsible for the elk’s death, and they’re offering $15,000 for information leading to a conviction.
Brad Hadley is the agent who performed the elk’s autopsy. He said the high reward for information is a sign of just how valuable the animals are to Missouri’s wildlife populations.
“We want to do everything we can to enhance the likelihood of the prosecution,” he said. “We're going to offer a higher reward for a report that leads to the conviction of whoever's responsible for this.”
Elk poaching can carry a fine of up to $15,000, a maximum established by a 2019 state law intended to crack down on illegal trophy hunting.
That, Hadley said, is a reflection of the public’s commitment to preserving wildlife. He said these animal populations are an integral part of local economies, which benefit from the hunters, campers, hikers and sightseers who come to rural Missouri to see species like elk in their natural habitat.
“That kind of shows you the value — that the representatives in our legislature have heard from people that they represent — that they want to put on those animals,” he said. “Somebody kills one intentionally, they need to be held accountable.”
But poaching can be difficult to prosecute.
According to a 2025 study by hunting advocacy group Boone & Crockett Club, the rate of detection for wildlife crimes like poaching is as low as 4%. Other crimes, like aggravated assault, have detection rates closer to 60%.
The Department of Conservation operates Operation Game Thief, a hotline where citizens can report wildlife crimes and share information about poaching events. Hadley said that the majority of poaching incidents investigated through the Department of Conservation begin with a member of the public giving them a call.
“The value that people place on the wildlife to be able to see it, experience it where it is supposed to be,” he said, “it's just immense.”
The species’ native range reaches across North America, but was significantly reduced across the Midwest as settlers moved across the prairies. Modern efforts to reestablish Missouri’s elk population brought animals from established populations in Eastern states.
Hadley said the population has been steadily growing over the past several years, but is still being carefully managed.
"The elk are extremely valuable at the individual level,” Hadley said. “Now, we think we probably have, maybe, 400 elk. So each one's important."
Since 2015, Hadley said there have been eight elk poaching events in Missouri.
