Do Elk Like Berries? 🫐 - The Body Training

Fact checked by Steven Lines, lifelong Hunter and Outdoorsman.

Elk, also known as wapiti, are large herbivores that live in the mountains of western North America. They love to live in a large variety of habitats and can consume various plant materials to keep them alive. While they primarily eat things such as twigs, leaves, and grass, many people wonder: do elk like berries?

Elk love to eat wild berries whenever they can find them. Because berries are only ripe for a small window of time every year, elk do not rely on them as a major food source but will seek them out during the times of the year when they are available.

Knowing where there are berries growing in your hunting areas and when they are in season can be very valuable knowledge if you happen to have an elk tag in your pocket. Continue reading to learn more about elk, berries, and how the two relate to each other during a hunt to help you fill your next elk tag.

In this post, we'll cover:

What Do Elk Normally Eat?

Elk are herbivores, which means their diet consists primarily of things such as grasses, forbs, and other types of vegetation. In addition to plants, elk will also eat various twigs, leaves, and bark from different trees and shrubs. Aspen trees, in particular, are a very important food source for elk, especially during the cold winter months when few other food sources are available.

Elk are able to extract nutrients from a wide range of plants, and their digestive systems have adapted to a diet of high fiber. In addition to the many plants that they consume directly, elk will also obtain nutrients from the different microbes in their gut, which helps to break down plant materials. They have a diverse diet and are able to garage for food in different habitats, but their specific diet may vary depending on the plants that are available in their habitat and the time of year.

This is why elk, although they love to eat berries when given a chance, will rarely eat on them for long periods of time. Berries will only be ripe during specific times of the year, so elk are not able to eat them whenever they please. When they are ripe, however, elk will travel long distances to seek out these tasty and nutritious meals.

What Kind of Berries Do Elk Eat?

Elk have been observed eating a wide variety of different types of berries in the wild. Some examples of different berries that elk have been known to eat on regular occasions include:

Wild raspberries, blackberries, and huckleberries
Wild stone fruits, cherries, and plums
Apples and other types of cultivated berries

It is important to remember that the availability of the different types of berries will vary depending on the location of the elk and the time of the year that the berries are growing. Some elk may have a preference for certain types of berries over others depending on the various nutritional content and their personal preference for taste.

While berries can be a very important food source for elk during certain times of the year, they are not a major component of their diet and are typically consumed in smaller quantities when compared to other foods such as grass, forbs, and leaves. It is also important to remember that cultivated berries and fruits such as apples or cherries that are found in orchards can negatively affect the health of an elk if they are consumed in large quantities.

Can You Use Berries to Hunt Elk?

One of the best ways to hunt any animal, especially elk, is to find their favorite food source. Once you have identified a major food source that they are consistently using, you can use it to your advantage to help you get closer to the animals and find them more frequently. By finding an animal’s favorite food source, you can sit and wait in order to ambush them when they return to eat some more.

The same can be done with patches of wild berries that you come across in the elk woods. If you find some berries that the elk are eating on, you can use this to set up an ideal ambush location to wait for the elk to return. Try to place yourself within range of the berries but not too close so that the elk will not see, hear, or smell you before they can get to the berries and start eating.

It is best to identify various trails and pinch points that lead to and from the berries that you are going to be using to hunt over. This generally provides a better area to ambush the elk and can provide you with better coverage to hide while you sit and wait for the elk to arrive.

Checkout: Can Elk Eat Bananas?

Is Hunting Near Berries Considered Baiting?

Hunting near berries is not illegal or considered baiting due to them being a naturally occurring resource. You cannot bring your own berries to place out on the ground in an attempt to attract elk, but you can hunt near or around natural berries that are growing in your elk-hunting areas.

It is similar to hunting near or around water which is also perfectly legal and not considered baiting. Of course, you will want to consult the state laws in which you are hunting to ensure that you are ok and not breaking any rules. Every state is different, and laws are constantly changing every year, so it is vital to stay up-to-date on the current regulations regarding baiting and where you can and cannot hunt.

Final Thoughts

Elk eat a wide variety of different foods, so it is not uncommon for them to nibble on berries when they can find them. And if you can find a big patch of wild berries growing in your elk hunting area, you might even be able to use them to your advantage and ambush the elk as they come and go from the food source.

Steven Lines is a hunter and outdoorsman from Safford, Arizona, USA. Since he was a child, he has been hunting and fishing and has over 20 years of outdoor experience. Steven works as a hunting guide in Arizona during his spare time and runs a Youtube channel dedicated to sharing his outdoor adventures with others.

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