Park service to cull elk herd

Colorado’s crown jewel is about to have fewer residents.

With an eye to the future of aspen and willow trees, as well as that of many feathered and furry creatures, next year the National Park Service will start thinning the elk herds that roam Rocky Mountain National Park, officials announced Tuesday.

“It’s very important to understand that this is not a hunting activity. This is not people out in the woods in orange vests, as we envision hunting going on in Colorado’s wilderness,” said Therese Johnson, a biologist with the National Park Service. “It will be very organized and a very controlled setting.”

Under the plan, an average of 100 elk would be killed each year, and 600 total acres of aspen and willow groves would be fenced in so the elk couldn’t eat them. Some animals would receive contraceptive treatments to prevent pregnancy, and some would be participants in a research project to test for Chronic Wasting Disease. Elk would also be redistributed throughout the park, using herding techniques including loud noises, horseback riders and possibly even trained herding dogs. The goal is to reach a population of between 1,600 and 2,100 elk, closer to the natural numbers.

Over 20 years, the project would cost about $6 million, far less than an earlier proposal which called for culling many more elk each year.

Tuesday’s news capped almost seven years of research on an elk and vegetation management plan for the park, where elk are as ubiquitious as the camera-wielding sport-utility vehicle drivers who seek Kodak moments with them.

The animals are so ubiquitous, in fact, that they are causing harm to their surroundings, lazily feasting on vegetation that would otherwise provide food and critical shelter to many other park inhabitants.

Baker said as the plan is implemented, the possibility of volunteer cullers — not exactly hunters, but likely qualified sportsmen — could be used. He even noted the possibility of reintroducing wolves into the park.

<b> For more on the elk management plan, see Saturday’s edition of Fort Collins Now. </b>