After years of debate and public input, how, exactly, to continue managing Wyoming’s elk is open to an informal public comment workshop on Feb. 28 in Jackson.
Wyoming is the only state with an extensive elk feeding program. Eventually, with public support, the action plans could lead to weaning elk off feed pellets scattered during winter on the state’s 21 state-run feedgrounds.
The Jackson Elk Herd of approximately 10,000 ungulates spans the Tetons and the Gros Ventre River drainage. While wildlife managers say that the population is within the ideal range, the department is aiming for more.
After starting a first draft in 2023, the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission approved the final elk feedgrounds management plan in March 2024. Now, the state is looking for insight from the public as it implements its “action plan” in light of a fatal ungulate disease spreading in the region.
The state’s draft plans for specific feedgrounds come as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service reviews feeding on the National Elk Refuge, where most of the Jackson Herd winters. The federal plan contemplates phasing out feeding 10 years after implementation.
Jackson-based Wyoming Game and Fish Department spokesperson Raegin Akhtar will be at Jackson’s workshop this weekend after one in Pinedale earlier this week.
“We’re looking to record feedback and information from the attendees and the public so that we can use that to further inform the action plans,” Akhtar said.
The Jackson session takes place at 1 p.m. Saturday at the Teton County Library.
