more at http://scitech.quickfound.net "In and near Yellowstone National Park, a noble American animal, the elk, is making his last stand. When heavy snows drive the elk from their Summer range in the Park, they must go outside to lower elevations or starve. Advance of settlement has so restricted Winter elk range that this splendid game animal is in danger of extinction through starvation and at the hands of ruthless poachers." Intro is followed by a dramatization of Park Rangers acting to stop poachers. Silent. Public domain film from the Prelinger Archives, slightly cropped to remove uneven edges, with the aspect ratio corrected, and mild video noise reduction applied. http://www.nps.gov/yell/learn/nature/elkinfo.htm Elk are the most abundant large mammal found in Yellowstone. European American settlers used the word "elk" to describe the animal, which is the word used in Europe for moose (causing great confusion for European visitors). The Shawnee word "wapiti," which means "white deer" or "white-rumped deer," is another name for elk. The North American elk is considered the same species as the red deer of Europe. Bull elk are one of the most photographed animals in Yellowstone, due to their huge antlers. Bull elk begin growing their first set of antlers when they are about one year old. Antler growth is triggered in spring by a combination of two factors: a depression of testosterone levels and lengthening daylight. The first result of this change is the casting or shedding of the previous year's "rack." Most bulls drop their antlers in March and April. New growth begins soon after... Population Climate is an important factor affecting the size and distribution of elk herds here. While nearly the entire park provides summer habitat for 10,000–20,000 elk, winter snowfalls force elk and other ungulates to leave most of the high elevation grasslands of the park. Less than 5,000 elk winter in the park. Elk on the northern range Yellowstone's largest elk herd winters along and north of the park's winter boundary... Elk on the northern range Yellowstone's largest elk herd winters along and north of the park's winter boundary. With more moderate temperatures and less snowfall than the park interior, this area can support large numbers of wintering elk. The herd winters in the area of the Lamar and Yellowstone river valleys from Soda Butte to Gardiner, Montana. It also migrates outside of the park into the Gallatin National Forest and onto private lands. After decades of debate over whether this range was overgrazed by too many elk, public concern has shifted to the herd's small size. The winter count, which was approximately 17,000 when wolf reintroduction began in 1995, fell below 10,000 in 2003. It fluctuated between 6,000 and 7,000 as the wolf population on the park's northern range declined from 94 in 2007 to 38 in 2010. The elk count dropped to 3,915 in early 2013, the lowest since culling ended in the park in the 1960s. The decrease has been attributed to predation by reintroduced wolves and a large bear population, hunter harvest, and droughtrelated effects on pregnancy and survival. The State of Montana has reduced the permits issued for this herd so that hunting of females now has little impact on population size. There are some indications that elk–wolf interactions are contributing to a release of willows and other woody vegetation from the effects of herbivory on the northern range... Elk in the interior Only one herd lives both winter and summer inside the park. The Madison–Firehole elk herd (less than 100 animals) has been the focus of a research study since November 1991. Researchers are examining how environmental variability effects ungulate reproduction and survival. Prior to wolf restoration, the population was naturally regulated by severe winter conditions to a degree not found in other, human-hunted elk herds. The elk are also affected by high fluoride and silica levels in the water and plants they eat, which affect enamel formation and wear out teeth quickly—thus shortening their lives. The average life span is 13 years; elk on the northern range live approximately 18 years. Information gained in this study will be useful in comparing unhunted and hunted elk populations. Elk in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem The Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem is home to approximately 30,000–40,000 elk. For most of the last two decades, the Jackson herd, which currently numbers about 12,000, has been larger than the northern Yellowstone herd...

• published: 27 Feb 2015
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