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Elk management in Rocky Mountain National Park (Colorado) is a complex issue that has concerned park managers and the public for many decades. Elk migrate outside the park seasonally, necessitating a regional management approach among various agencies responsible for land and wildlife management, each with its own objectives and management constraints. The issue is complicated by interactions among multiple natural resources and the residual impacts of historical land use and wildlife management practices. It is controversial because of value conflicts among stakeholders regarding desirable elk numbers and the acceptability of the management actions required for ecosystem restoration.
In 2002 the National Park Service and the U.S. Geological Survey completed a large-scale research initiative designed to assess the role of elk and other factors (e.g., hydrology, climate, forage competition, predation) in influencing ecosystem conditions. Numerous investigators conducted 13 interdisciplinary yet integrated studies using both field study and computer modeling approaches.
Results suggest the current elk population is larger and more concentrated than would be expected under natural conditions. The field studies show that willows (Salix spp.) have declined on the core elk winter range because of a variety of factors, including intense foraging by elk and changes in water flow and levels related to large declines in beaver. Model results predict that further shifts from biologically diverse willow and aspen communities to less diverse grasslands will occur if elk browsing is not reduced. The model also predicts that restoring natural conditions will require a combination of long-term, intensive management actions to redistribute and reduce elk numbers, restrict elk access to willow and aspen communities, and restore hydrologic conditions. The research results provide the strong scientific basis that will be critical to making and successfully implementing management decisions in the future. Rocky Mountain is developing an Elk and Vegetation Management Plan/Environmental Impact Statement in cooperation with other agencies responsible for land and wildlife management in the region.
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