The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation and its partners have provided a total of nearly $2.6 million to fund research and conservation projects that benefit elk and other wildlife in Colorado.

Research projects will help biologists identify sources of elk calf mortality and learn how elk are affected by human recreational activity. Conservation projects will include forest thinning, prescribed burns and water developments.

Fourteen projects will involve a total of nearly 19,000 acres in Mesa County and 22 other counties across Colorado. Two projects will offer statewide benefits.

“These funds assist three research projects, including one that helps biologists learn more about why elk recruitment is ailing and another focusing on how elk are impacted by human recreational activity,’ said Blake Henning, chief conservation officer for the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation. “Habitat enhancement projects include forest thinning, prescribed burning and repairing water developments, all to help elk, deer and many other species of wildlife.”

The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation has 29 chapters and nearly 17,000 members in Colorado. Since 1987, the organization and its partners have completed Colorado projects worth a total of more than $178.2 million. For more information, visit the website at rmef.org.