Wildlife Management. Teton bison management plan completed

Authors(s): S. Cain

Publication: Natural Resource Year in Review--1997

Publisher: National Park Service, US Department of the Interior

Publication Date: 0000-00-00

Type:

Location:

Abstract: Numbering nearly 400, bison in Grand Teton National Park (Wyoming) will be managed according to a bison management plan, completed during 1997. Herd size will be held to 350-400 members through a combination of a managed public hunt and donation of animals. Working closely with the public, conservation groups, and other government agencies, Grand Teton National Park (Wyoming) produced a long-term bison management plan that promises to satisfy most concerned parties. Exhaustive public input and reviews proved to be one key to success in this planning process. In 1948, 20 bison were reintroduced into Jackson Hole from Yellowstone National Park. These bison were confined in the Jackson Hole Wildlife Park, a 1,500-acre enclosure for displaying prominent indigenous wildlife that was supported by Wyoming, the New York Zoological Society, and a private land corporation. In 1950 the expansion of Grand Teton National Park encompassed this holding and management of the area began shifting to the National Park Service. In 1968, the 16 bison in the herd at that time were allowed to roam free. The herd grew slowly until 1980; after the animals discovered supplemental winter elk feed on the National Elk Refuge, which borders the park to the south, the herd's number grew from about 35 individuals to its current size of nearly 400. In 1991, the park and the refuge, in cooperation with the Wyoming Game and Fish Department and Bridger-Teton National Forest, released a scoping statement for the preparation of a long-term management plan and environmental assessment for the Jackson bison herd. Each of the four primary management issues to be addressed in the plan?herd size, herd reduction methods, winter distribution, and disease?was contentious. A draft environmental assessment was released in 1994, a final environmental assessment was released in 1996, and a ?finding of no significant impact? (FONSI) was released in 1997. The FONSI contained several major changes from the final plan due to new scientific information and public comment. Major provisions of the FONSI and final plan include: (1) controlling herd size through both a managed public hunt on the refuge and surrounding national forest lands, and through donation of animals to Native American tribal governments and low income groups; (2) maintaining a post-hunt herd size of 350 to 400 animals; and (3) minimizing overlap of bison and cattle, and vaccinating bison against brucellosis when a demonstrated safe and effective vaccine is available. Compared to the Yellowstone bison herd, the Jackson herd and the local situation differ in ways that were key to the successful completion of the plan. While herds in both areas have brucellosis, the Jackson herd roams primarily on Department of the Interior lands year-round. This avoids the need for agricultural agencies to kill large numbers of disease-exposed bison as they leave park lands, such as has occurred on Yellowstone's borders. In addition, having grazed livestock in the vicinity of free-roaming bison for nearly 30 years, local cattle producers are more accepting of the herds than some of their Montana counterparts. These factors, as well as dedication and good cooperation among the federal and state agencies, responsiveness to public interests, and support of the final plan by key environmental organizations that included the Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance, Greater Yellowstone Coalition, and Wyoming Wildlife Federation, were all critical components of this successful planning process. In celebration, the local conservation community held an unprecedented ?plan completion party? for government and conservation organization participants alike. Congress has enacted two new laws that will encourage open space conservation surrounding national parks. P.L. 105-81 authorized a study of the significance of pastoral lands within and adjacent to Grand Teton National Park (Wyoming). Since 1977, the price of land in the Jackson Hole area has increased an average of 600%, which has tempted large landowners (such as ranchers) to sell their land for subdivision. The subdivision of large tracts of land has reduced the amount of open space in the valley and has resulted in loss of wildlife habitat and the fragmentation of migration routes. In a more far-reaching effort, Congress also enacted P.L. 105-34, which provides for tax incentives for landowners, in or within 25 miles of a national park or wilderness area, who preserve open space through conservation easements.

Keywords: Grand Teton National Park, Jackson Hole, Teton County , animal, mammal, ungulate, bison , Bison bison, management, population, mortality, hunting, human activity, Yellowstone National Park, Jackson Hole Wildlife Park, National Park Service, winter food supplementation, elk, wapiti, Cervus elaphus, Cervidae, Wyoming Game and Fish Department, Bridger-Teton National Forest, National Elk Refuge, migration, habitat, disease, brucellosis, livestock, US Department of the Interior, forage, food, feeding, Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance, Greater Yellowstone Coalitiion, Wyoming Wildlife Federation, suburban area