The Merriam's Elk is an extinct subspecies of elk

Elk

The Elk is the large deer, also called Cervus canadensis or wapiti, of North America and eastern Asia.Elk may also refer to:Other antlered mammals:...

 once found in the arid lands of the southwestern United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. Since the arrival of the European

Europe

Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

s uncontrolled hunting

Hunting

Hunting is the practice of pursuing any living thing, usually wildlife, for food, recreation, or trade. In present-day use, the term refers to lawful hunting, as distinguished from poaching, which is the killing, trapping or capture of the hunted species contrary to applicable law...

 and cattle grazing had driven the subspecies into extinction over a century ago, with the exact presumed date being 1906. Not much else is known about this subspecies as it became extinct before studies could be done. Elk from Yellowstone National Park

Yellowstone National Park

Yellowstone National Park, established by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1872, is a national park located primarily in the U.S. state of Wyoming, although it also extends into Montana and Idaho...

 were introduced to this area in 1913, and are reasonably common in the area today.

See also

• Roosevelt elk
  Roosevelt elk
  The Roosevelt elk , also known as Olympic elk, is the largest of the four surviving subspecies of elk in North America...
  
  
• Tule Elk
  Tule Elk
  The tule elk is a subspecies of elk found only in California, ranging from the grasslands and marshlands of the Central Valley to the grassy hills on the coast. The subspecies name derives from the tule that it feeds off of, which grows in the marshlands...
  
  
• Rocky Mountain Elk
  Rocky Mountain Elk
  The Rocky Mountain Elk is a subspecies of elk found in the Rocky Mountains and adjacent ranges of Western North America. The winter ranges are most common in open forests and floodplain marshes in the lower elevations. In the summer it migrates to the subalpine forests and alpine basins...
  
  
• Eastern Elk
  Eastern elk
  The Eastern elk is one of six subspecies of elk that inhabited northern and eastern United States, and southern Canada. The last Eastern elk was shot in Pennsylvania on September 1, 1877. The subspecies was declared as extinct by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service in 1880...