National parks may hunt elk to trim growing herds

In three national parks in Colorado and the Dakotas, the elk population is straining the food supply for other foragers and browsers, so officials are considering shooting elk to restore balance, reports Peter Slevin of The Washington Post. Simply put, the elk (in an Associated Press photo by Sara Gettys) are out-eating other animals such as bison, feral horses and deer.

National Park Service "Spokeswoman Kyle Patterson said proposals to curb the elk population at Rocky Mountain have inspired 'strong feelings across the board,'" Slevin writes. "Recommendations ranged from shooting and fencing to contraception and the introduction of wolves, one of elk's few natural predators."

Wildlife conservation groups favor introducing wolves, as was done to lower the elk population in Yellowstone National Park during the 1990s. Park officials, however, "settled on 'lethal reduction,' as shooting is called, as the preferred way to control the herd," Slevin writes. "Sharpshooters with night-vision goggles and silencers would target elk after dark. A formal decision is expected to be released soon, Patterson said, with the program likely to begin next winter and continue for two decades." (Read more)