Minnesota Seasons

Conservation • Description • Habitat • Ecology • Distribution • Taxonomy

Conservation Status

No Image Available

IUCN Red List

LC - Least Concern

NatureServe

N5 - Secure

S3 - Vulnerable

Minnesota

Special Concern

Species in Greatest Conservation Need

Description

Size

Total length: 5¾′ to 8¾′

Mass: 147 lb to 110 lb

Sign

Similar Species

Habitat

Open brushlands and grasslands with nearby woodlands or forested areas

Ecology

Behavior

Lifespan

20 years or more

Life Cycle

Food

Distribution
		Sources 6, 7, 24, 29, 30. Biodiversity occurrence data published by: Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas (accessed through the Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas Portal, bellatlas.umn.edu, 12/12/2025). Timm, R. M. 1975. Distribution, natural history, and parasites of mammals of Cook County, Minnesota. Occasional Papers, Bell Museum of Natural History, University of Minnesota 14:1–56. Hazard, Evan B. 1982. The Mammals of Minnesota. University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis, Minnesota. 280 pp. The counties in light green lack modern records but have historic county or township specimens or records. The observation in Rice County is an elk shot in Whitewater Wildlife Management Area on 11/8/2020. The identification was confirmed by a Minnesota DNR Conservation Officer. It was probably an escapee form a nearby game farm.
12/12/2025








Occurrence
Rare in Minnesota

Taxonomy

Class

Mammalia (Mammals)

Subclass

Theria

Infraclass

Placentalia (Placental Mammals)

Magnorder

Boreoeutheria

Superorder

Laurasiatheria (Ungulates, Carnivorans, and Allies)

Order

Artiodactyla (Even-toed Ungulates and Cetaceans)

Suborder

Ruminantia (Ruminants)

Infraorder

Pecora

Superfamily

Cervoidea

Family

Cervidae (Deer)

Subfamily

Cervinae (Old World Deer)

Tribe

Cervini (Traditional Old World Deer and Elk)

Genus

Cervus (Typical Old World Deer and Elk)

Subgenus

Cervus

Species

Elk was formerly named Cervus elaphus canadensis, one of numerous subspecies of red deer (Cervus elaphus). A mitochondrial study published in 2004 indicated that it should be recognized as a separate species.

Subordinate Taxa

Under the new classification, there is disagreement about the number of subspecies. Fourteen subspecies of C. canadensis have been described. Recent DNA studies suggest that there are only three or four subspecies, that all North American elk belong to the subspecies C. c. canadensis, and that regional differences are local adaptations and should be considered ecotypes or races.

Minnesota lies within the historical range of Eastern elk (C. c. canadensis) and Manitoban elk (C. c. manitobensis). The former is now extinct and the latter is extirpated due to hunting and the gradual disappearance of suitable habitat. Rocky Mountain elk (C. c. nelsoni) have been widely transplanted in the United States. Today, most elk in North America, including Minnesota’s two populations, are Rocky Mountain elk.

Northern and American group

Altai wapiti (Cervus canadensis sibiricus)

Eastern elk (Cervus canadensis canadensis) extinct

Manitoban elk (Cervus canadensis manitobensis)

Merriam’s elk (Cervus canadensis merriami) extinct

Rocky Mountain elk (Cervus canadensis nelsoni)

Roosevelt elk (Cervus canadensis roosevelti)

Tian Shan wapiti (Cervus canadensis songaricus)

Tule elk (Cervus canadensis nannodes)

Eastern group

Alashan wapiti (Cervus canadensis alashanicus)

Manchurian wapiti (Cervus canadensis xanthopygus)

Southern group (Central Asian red deer)

Kansu red deer (Cervus canadensis kansuensis)

Kashmir stag (Cervus canadensis hanglu)

MacNeill’s deer (Cervus canadensis macneilli)

Tibetan red deer (Cervus canadensis wallichii)

Synonyms

Cervus elaphus ssp. canadensis

Common Names

elk

red deer

wapiti

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