February 27, 2008...11:54 am
Annual Elk Count Shows Stabilizing Population After Years of Decline
The Northern Yellowstone elk herd population appears to have stabilized, and the animals seem to be gradually moving north of the park, biologists said Tuesday.
State and federal biologists said 6,279 elk in the Northern Yellowstone herd were counted during an annual aerial survey conducted Feb. 14. That number is similar to the counts of 6,588 elk in winter 2006 and 6,738 elk in winter 2007, but substantially lower than the 9,545 counted in the winter of 2005.
While the number of elk inside Yellowstone on the Northern Range is decreasing, there’s an increasing number wintering north of Yellowstone, probably because there’s better forage, less snow, milder conditions and fewer wolves than inside the park.
“Elk may be using several factors, including the presence of wolves, in selecting where they spend the critical winter months,” said Tom Lemke, a biologist with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks.
If the trend continues, the importance of that area as prime elk habitat will only increase, he said.
The Northern Yellowstone herd, the park’s largest, has been the subject of controversy for a long time. There were concerns for years that the animals were overgrazing the landscape; later, it was feared they were being hit too hard by wolves.
Herd numbers have been declining since 1994, when the population reached a record high of about 19,000.
A study that began in 2003 looked at why so many calves weren’t making it to adulthood. In the summer study, bears were responsible for more than half the calves killed by predators. Wolves killed about 12 percent and coyotes got about 11 percent, the study said.
But even the latest elk numbers are above state population targets, which are for 3,000 to 5,000 elk north of Yellowstone with about half wintering on or near the state-owned Dome Mountain Wildlife Management Area in Paradise Valley.
Biologists, though, said reproductive rates in the herd remain “below desired levels.”
“It’s is unlikely that we will see any significant increase in elk numbers until there is a long-term improvement in recruitment rates,” Lemke said.
To help improve recruitment, FWP has dramatically reduced the number of antlerless elk that can be hunted in the area in recent years.
They haven’t yet analyzed the herd’s calf-to-cow ratio this year, an important indicator of the population’s reproductive health. In the past two years, it has improved, going from counts of 12 to 14 calves per 100 cows in previous years to 19 to 24 calves per 100 cows the past two years.
Though the herd has become smaller and recruitment in recent years has been lower, there’s at least one indication that the surviving elk have plenty to eat, even during the drought.
Calf weights recorded by Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks at the check station in Gardiner have been above average in recent years, according to FWP numbers. Most years from 1998 to 2006 were above average from records dating to 1984.
From the Billings Gazette
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