National Elk Refuge
The National Elk Refuge is situated just to the northeast of the nearby town of Jackson Hole, Wyoming. It is one stop on any travelers itinery that should not be missed, having been set up to focus on the elk herds that wander through the area, their conservation, their survival, their habitat, their activities and everything that anyone could care to know about elks. In fact, it is one of the few spots where native elk can go for a sort of food bank equivalent for wild animals.
When one thinks of animal studies, rare species, wildlife and the conservation of natural habitats, it is not difficult to think of the world famous National Elk Refuge near Jackson Hole in Wyoming. In fact, this amazing stop is something that is great for families, an educational experience that will surely enlighten many on the native world of the elk, its needs, its battles, its fight to survive against an ever encroaching human world and what conservationists and animal lovers are doing to ensure the survival of local herds.
The National Elk Refuge is open throughout the year, every weekday from 8am to 4:30pm. It is located in north-eastern Jackson Hole at 675 East Broadway.
The refuge was established in 1912 because of public concern over the local elk herd survival. It is now the winter shelter for about seven thousand and five hundred elk of all ages, one of the United States' largest winter elk concentrations. In fact, it is the only one of its kind in the country and is run primarily by the US Fish and Wildlife Service.
It covers some twenty five thousand acres of untouched land. This includes rock outcrops in the foothills, sagebrushes, marshes, meadows, gentle valleys, native and local grasses and other foods that elks love to eat. The shelter in fact has an extremely diverse range of shelter and food possibilities for many wildlife species that are found in and around the refuge.
The elk herds are generally in refuge from about November to April every year, almost six months of winter. When the weather becomes too severe for normal foraging, staff supplements the elk for at least three months by putting alfalfa hay in the form of pellets on top of the deep and crusted snow. As a result of this only about one and a half percent of the herd die, a lot less than would occur in the natural world.
The elk herds migrate from location to location, including two national parks and one national forest. They spend fifty percent of their time in the Grand Teton National Park, twenty five percent of the time in the Bridger-Teton National Forest to the east of Grand Teton and another twenty five percent of the time in the southern region of Yellowstone National Park.
Visitors to the refuge learn a great deal about the local elk that visit there. They discover that these hooved creatures are related to deer. They are distinguished from other large animals of their kind by their dark legs, necks and heads with creamy rumps and light brown bodies, though the females are somewhat darker in colour than the male elks. As the males mature they develop branch type antlers which start of as spikes when they are yearlings. Interestingly enough the size of an elk's antlers denotes their genetic abilities and strengths, their state of nutrition and level of dominance. They shed them during March/April, though the youngest bulls generally shed them in late spring. The new antlers grow just weeks after and progress in the latter part of August when they reach their full size. In fact, the antlers a can grow up to one inch daily.
Adults weigh a fair bit. The males can reach up to eight hundred pounds and the females can reach about five hundred and fifty pounds. Breeding is called 'the rut' and takes place from September to October each year. Births of new elks happen in the latter part of May and in the beginning of June with only one calf being born per female, though twins can be rarely seen.
The elk graze in the lush meadows and foothills of the parks, forest and the refuge, eating wildflowers and grasses, though during scarce times they will eat up local saplings and shrubs. Generally they will feed at dusk and dawn, chewing cud in the cool shaded forests when the summer heat becomes too much.
The majority of elk range from ages three to ten. The oldest male was recorded at eighteen years and the oldest female at thirty years.
Males elks become exceedingly active and aggressive in the fall when they round up viable females to put into their harems. They will mate with all of the females and guard them with extreme zeal. They indicate their readiness to mate by letting out a bugle type sound and then a series of grunts. The bugle sound is the domination side of the males' control over the females, attracting them and also denoting the rank of each individual male elk. In fact, it is a competition between the elk males as all of them will bugle and try to draw away females from other males. Quite often bulls will spar with their opponents, showing threatening postures and thrashing antlers hard onto the ground. As a result the lines are drawn and the harems established with the majority of the female elks becoming pregnant annually.
'The rut' is a fierce time for most elk bulls as the more dominant they are the more energy they use up. The resulting price can be considerable loss of weight and reduced physical health in the wintertime.
As the first snowfall dusts the ground higher up, the elk head down the mountain sides into the foothills, leaving behind their summer grazing grounds for lower levels where grass is easier to find. They paw at the snow to dig out the grasses, but deep ice and snow can make this impossible. As the fall time approaches, the elk migrate starting at the end of October and finding their wintering locations in the middle of December.
When spring melt offs come, the elk leave the refuge and go back to the high meadows for the summer. Pregnant females are evident everywhere and they will give birth in their new summer homes. In fact, they will wander far off to forage, even leaving behind their calves temporarily. Though as the calves mature, they will follow their mothers and learn to forage for themselves.
The National Elk Refuge came about as the result of the dramatic depletion of the elk population in the centralized and westernized areas of North America. Increased settlement by humans encroached on elk territory and in the area around Jackson Hole; the elk were believed to have numbered about twenty five thousand. However, farms and ranches were built on their winter foraging areas, forcing the elk into virtual starvation. Ironically, despite all the efforts, the current refuge only offers a quarter of the size of the elk's original winter area, but gives support to half of the current population.
The refuge also offers a wealth of other activities for all age groups and budgets. Sleigh rides in the winter run from the start of December to April. They leave Jackson Hole and head from the Greater Yellowstone Visitor Center across open terrain. Guests are bussed to the starting point and rides take place from 9am to 5pm daily, though they cease operations on Christmas Day. Advance bookings are expected and it is good to book at least a few weeks in advance.
National Elk Refuge
PO Box 510
Jackson, Wyoming 83002
307.733.9212
Fax 307.733.9729 (Fax)
Email: nationalelkrefuge@fws.gov
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