A brucellosis infection can be costly to cattle herds, and that's why Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP) each winter tests elk, which can carry the disease.
FWP spends a part of the winter tracking down elk and testing them for burcellosis.
It's been going on for years and this winter, it was done in the Crazy Mountains where 52 elk were captured and tested.
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"We're glad to say that all of those elk that were tested, [they] tested negative for burcellosis exposure," said FWP spokesman Morgan Jacobsen.
Brucellosis can cause cattle to abort their calves if in cattle herds, so the testing is important for more than just FWP.
"The goal is to help us better understand the presence of brucellosis in elk and how those elk co-mingle with cattle in different places," Jacobsen said.
The study of the elk didn;t end with the blood test as some of those captured will provide information to FWP for the next year.
"We also put out a number of GPS collars which helps us monitor elk movements throughout the year," Jacobsen said. "You know, helps us better understand what their summer and winter ranges look like and how that sometimes may overlap with livestock or other things on the landscape.
Elk in the Tobacco Roots, Pioneers, Highlands and the area around Ashland have all been part of FWP's yearly brucellosis testing program over the past several years.
