I don't think it's that simple, but yes, cutting some conifers and restoring habitat resiliency is a part of it. The great burn created ecological conditions that allowed elk numbers to explode post fire, and the continues logging allowed those conditions to continue. Most of the writings and field notes pre-burn show that elk were not in abundance in those areas pre-market days.
There's a growing body of science that shows habitat conditions relative to forage quality have been going downhill in the panhandle of ID, which is pretty similar to R1. That habitat degradation means elk go into winter in less than optimal condition to survive predation pressures, meaning they are more likely to die by tooth or starvation. That's more than a simple condition of too many trees, but an issue of soil quality and reduced nutritional content within native food sources.
The elk symposium this weekend will have presentations from Idaho Game & Fish researcher Jon Horne & an overview of current research on the habitat issue from Craig Jourdonnais (former FWP bio & current MPG Ranch lead researcher). We'll also have Ken Hamlin who wrote the 2005 EMP to talk about the social aspects of long seasons and what that means for elk selecting unavailable habitats. I think it's going to be a good panel. If you can't make it, you can still watch through the livestream.
