Minnesota DNR Commissioner shares concerns with Red Lake Nation on potential elk overharvest

The Red Lake Nation’s Tribal Council announced this spring that it will issue 30 permits to tribal elk hunters in northwestern Minnesota for this fall. That’s an increase from five permits in 2022. On May 16, Minnesota DNR Commissioner Sarah Strommen sent a letter to Red Lake Nation Chairman Darrell Seki expressing agency concerns with the number of permits. Having been told that Red Lake Nation intended to increase its potential harvest to 10 animals this year, the state adjusted its planned harvest downward overall, Strommen wrote. That included a rebalancing of state permits between the Kittson Central and Caribou-Vita herds and continuing not to harvest from the Grygla herd, which has been below its population target since 2012.