Tule Elk
I visited the Grizzly Island Wildlife Area at the end of February and discovered that it was still closed because of the hunters. When I was talking with one of the rangers, he said that they had a herd of about 300 tule elk here and I knew I had to come back. The numbers of these elk went down to the point that they have been transplanted into wildlife areas like this one in hopes that they will come back.
Apparently they have been very successful here because the herd has grown to a size that is too big for the refuge. Now they offer special hunting permits each year to thin the herd. It is kind of a shame that they have to do this, but all the land outside of the wildlife area isn't protected and they wouldn't last long there. I'm looking forward to sharing this one with my class because we have been studying adaptations and living environments of wildlife in science. This species is a good example of one that has had to adapt because of man.
Tule Elk
I visited the Grizzly Island Wildlife Area at the end of February and discovered that it was still closed because of the hunters. When I was talking with one of the rangers, he said that they had a herd of about 300 tule elk here and I knew I had to come back. The numbers of these elk went down to the point that they have been transplanted into wildlife areas like this one in hopes that they will come back.
Apparently they have been very successful here because the herd has grown to a size that is too big for the refuge. Now they offer special hunting permits each year to thin the herd. It is kind of a shame that they have to do this, but all the land outside of the wildlife area isn't protected and they wouldn't last long there. I'm looking forward to sharing this one with my class because we have been studying adaptations and living environments of wildlife in science. This species is a good example of one that has had to adapt because of man.