Jackson Elk Refuge Feedlot

[highfastflyer]

LAST EDITED ON Sep-20-18 AT 05:05AM (MST)[p]The liberal Federal Judge has placed 10,000 elk, 2000 Buffalo and numerous other mule deer, antelope, Big Horn sheep and other wildlife in danger this winter by withdrawing the Federal feeding permit on US Federal lands in the Jackson Hole feedlot due to her concern about CWD. Animals that have been conditioned to winter feeding and staying in the Jackson Hole Valley during harsh winter conditions for over 100+ years will now do what, starve to death, run around the valley being chased by wolves until they die of wolf kills or starvation or even worse migrate 150 miles south to the Pinedale anticline where there are now 100,000 Gas wells and more drilling actively being pursued and an already overcrowded and ever shrinking Winter range full of antelope and Mule deer? More pressure now on the remaining state feed lots. More gas wells are coming in the near future in Pinedale all the while being elk will be pursued by wolves and traffic through the trappers point bottleneck crossing the highway multiple times. The Governor needs to get involved and the Wyoming Senators and force legislation to mandate the feeding. Jackson Hole residents will likely see starving elk as commonplace if not fixed. Historically, the Jackson Elk Herd wintered in and migrated through the land where the town of Jackson now lies. Concern for wintering elk began early in Jackson Hole. The severe winter of 1908-9 brought the concern to a head; thousands of elk were starving in the valley. The townspeople, with the help of the state of Wyoming, bought hay to help the animals through the winter, but the following winter was no better. The feedlot was then established and today feeds over 10,000 elk every winter providing big tourist dollars to Wyoming. Starving elk and wolves chasing elk without winter supplemental feed will surely take away from the tourists interest and cause undue burden and stress on already winter stressed animals. This bears considerable watching While the current ruling only affects the Kelley feedlot other Federal feedlots are up for future consideration and this crazy liberal mindset is spreading

https://www.wyofile.com/judge-rejects-elk-feedground-permit-on-cwd-worry/

 

[OchocoKid]

I agree with you I don't like it, but in this case it's really not a big deal.

I go up and feed with Jay every year and some years there aren't many if any elk at Alkali. Fish lake and the cabin feed grounds are still open. so the elk will either stay there or fall down to the main Jackson grounds.

In my opinion, these feed grounds are mainly intended to feed wolves. it keeps the elk away from the main refuge and out of sight. it costs the state way more per elk to feed here than down below so I see no other purpose. which does make sense , sacrifice a few for the good of the majority.


As I said it's a bad deal and I'm all for fighting it however possible. but don't panic it won't have much impact because the elk will still get fed it will just either be a few miles up or down stream.

As far as CWD spreading this changes absolutely nothing whatsoever. killing wolves on the other hand would help the elk tremendously.



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[highfastflyer]

Ocho, This is a scenario of give them an inch and they'll take a mile.n You have to seriously look at the overriding agenda of these people who brought the complaint forward. It is no secret they want all of the feedlots closed period. This would all be fine if there were ample winter ranges and plenty of feed they could migrate towards. Having these already stressed animals make another trek 150 miles farther south to compete with the Wyoming and Wind River mountains winter ranges is a horrible proposition. The townspeople of Jackson will witness one of the most cruel and horrific aspects nature has to offer, that of starvation and exhaustion and emaciation. These anti-hunting groups don't truly care about these animals or they would look at the facts here of 100+ years of conditioning to winter supplemental feeding. If CWD was truly their agenda how come they don't focus upon the core areas where it all started in Colorado and stopping the spread. Nearly all of the 22 state-operated feedgrounds were established to prevent elk damage to stored hay crops and prevent co-mingling with livestock on private lands. Eliminating these feedlots now will just stress the animals more and place higher concentrations of elk on private lands and private haystacks where even more elk and cattle interactions will greatly increase the spread of CWD. This needs to be nipped in the bud early and dealt with carefully.

 

[OchocoKid]

LAST EDITED ON Sep-20-18 AT 09:15PM (MST)[p]I agree with you totally, I'll even go one further and say the wolves are actually intended more as an anti-hunting tool than an anything else. the anti's would rather the wolves eat the elk alive than we kill them.


But, in this case it's a matter of land ownership and the reason Alkali was closed and not the others . she couldn't close the others or she would have. now it falls on the state of WY and I expect a much different approach.


So in the end I still don't see this as a major blow. unless CWD really does take off and then all bets are off, but it will be biology not politics at that point.








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[tracker12]

Between the bears, wolves and hunters not sure the elk heard in that area has much of a chance to increase there numbers. If CDW is a legit concern I have no problem with the ruling. Not sure maintaining a feed lot all these years was a good idea anyway. Nature has a way of regulating numbers on there own. It usually gets messed up when people get involved.

 

[OchocoKid]

Somewhat true, but nature has a way of wiping things out too.

There would be a fraction of the elk in the area without the feeding programs. it could also be argued it's not as unnatural as it appears. because if the humans and their livestock were removed nature would truly be in charge.

If you're going to mess with mother nature sometimes you have to compensate her. the feeding is the compensation.











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[dz]

I think most of the Elk would have went to Idaho if there were no feed lots to start with. Now that they are there and the elk depend on them it is crazy to just stop them.

2 cents DZ

 

[jm77]

>
>The liberal Federal Judge has placed
>10,000 elk, 2000 Buffalo and
>numerous other mule deer, antelope,
>Big Horn sheep and other
>wildlife in danger this winter
>by withdrawing the Federal feeding
>permit on US Federal lands
>in the Jackson Hole feedlot
>due to her concern about
>CWD.

The ruling pertains ONLY to the Alkali Creek feed ground. The National Elk Refuge is not included so your statement is false.

I'm not saying the future is bright for feed grounds, but closing the refuge will be a much bigger battle if it's ever tried.

 

[highfastflyer]

Erik Molvar is a wildlife biologist and serves as executive director for Western Watersheds Project, a nonprofit environmental conservation group working to protect and restore western watersheds and wildlife. WWP is currently challenging the legality of the Alkali state elk feedground. This is there agenda, you have to stay informed. Historical accounts record elk migrations in the tens of thousands, following a migration corridor that took them past Pinedale and down the base of the Wind River Range to winter in the Red Desert. By the turn of the 20th century ranch development in surrounding valleys and overharvest of elk outside Yellowstone and Jackson Hole had eliminated these migrations to ancestral winter ranges. As a result, thousands of elk wintered in Jackson Hole. This human-caused disruption of the ecosystem resulted in the establishment of the National Elk Refuge. The 22 state-run elk feedgrounds scattered around the periphery of Jackson Hole were established to benefit ranchers, not elk. The idea is to lure elk away from private ranches where ranchers raised and stored hay for cows and horses. When elk get into stored hay, ranchers call it ?depredation,? but what it really amounts to is a native wildlife species adapting to a new food source and stopping short instead of migrating to the native bunchgrasses on their traditional winter ranges.

We?d like to see the elk return to their original winter ranges, dispersing themselves across the landscape. Thus, as chronic wasting disease penetrates the Yellowstone ecosystem, its spread would be slowed, and predators would have a chance to pick off infected animals. In other words they want wolves to slaughter the feed conditioned elk and ##### down any hunting on the wolves. You need to know your enemy these guys want all the feedlots shut down Period. https://www.jhnewsandguide.com/opinion/guest_shot/article_b7c6d4ad-0753-5008-b1ba-4650f1cab656.html

 

[OchocoKid]

Of course they want to shut them all down, and I want all the wolves killed. but neither of us are going to get our way.

Anyone who doesn't think the wolves kill any animal they desire on the feed grounds hasn't seen all the dead animals on the feed grounds. that's a dumb excuse for closing them.









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