RE: Best place to shoot an elk??
You are right at one point manboy,bow and arrows kill by loss of blood but you don't have to hit them in the heart to doit.An arrow kills by causing sever hemriging.The lungs are full of capilaries that supply blood to the lungs to put fresh oxygen to the blood wich in turns supplies the heart and the brain.
The best thing an animal can do when shot thru the lungs is run,this in turn rasise it blood pressue and the brain supplies more blood to the lungs,this in turn make them bleed out faster,but if the animal just stands there it will take longer for that animal to die.
Also if you cut off blood supply instantaineious to the brain the animal will lose consenus(sp) and die from the shock.That why a good neck shot that severs the jugular will kill an animal fast.
I all reality the best place to shoot a elk(bow or gun) is in the vitals,1/4 up and behind the shoulder.This will sometimes drop them in their tracks or they may run.With a bow a slight 1/4 away shot behind the shoulder angle your arrow up and thru the heart and lung.I have taken neck shots on elk and they have all resulted in one shot kills right where they stood but it is not a very high % place to shoot,with what you lose in blood shot in the shoulder is very minimal to losing a WHOLE elk.Straight thru the shoulder are not the best either exspecialy if you are using a lighter caliber rifle,or thin sided bullets,and it would not be advisible to shot a elk with a bow dead on the shoulder either.The scapula on a elk is very thick and hard to penetrate.
Just my opion.
BBJ