A legacy of science and partnerships: For over 35 years, the Starkey Project has conducted policy-shaping research on deer and elk

The 1980s were the era of the “elk wars.” Tensions ran high as cattle (Bos taurus) producers in eastern Oregon pointed fingers at elk (Cervus canadensis) herds decimating crops and haystacks on private lands and competing for limited summer forage on public grazing allotments. Meanwhile, wildlife enthusiasts and game managers decried the cattle taking grasses that could have fed elk. Soon the wars dissolved into occasional skirmishes. A big part of the solution was the birth in 1985 of a long-term research program designed to inform integrated management of deer (Odocoileus spp.), elk and cattle—the Starkey Project (Wisdom 2005).