Managing Human-Wildlife Interactions: Ecological and Financial Assessment of Elk Feedground Closure in Teton County

Teton County in Western Wyoming is home to large working landscapes, a national park, and the nation’s largest elk herd, the Jackson herd. It is also one of the few places in the Western United States that still operates elk feedgrounds, where the artificial feeding of these large mammals has resulted in high density populations over small areas, leading to increased disease transmission and prevalence. A disease of primary concern is brucellosis (Brucella abortus) which can be transmitted from elk to cattle and result in financial burdens for ranchers through quarantine, depopulation, reduced milk production, or calf abortions. This project aimed to better understand the complex social and ecological dynamics of elk feedgrounds in order to assess the feasibility of implementing financial tools that would mitigate the effects of disease transmission and wildlife presence risks of a simulated feedground closure. Our goal is to help improve human-wildlife coexistence on Wyoming’s private and public lands. To accomplish this, we completed a Public Comment Sentiment Analysis, a Jackson Herd Habitat Connectivity Model, a Brucellosis Transmission Risk Model, and an Analysis of Financial Repercussions of Feedground Closure. These methods resulted in the assessment of two financial tools, a brucellosis compensation fund and an elk rent program, which we recommend to be implemented in Teton County. This project will serve to better inform the Property and Environment Research Center on potential methods for improving human-wildlife interactions and coexistence in Teton County through the understanding of where elk move on private lands, transmission of disease from elk to cattle, and the impacts that the cessation of feeding could cause on subsequent stakeholders, specifically the financial implications for ranchers.

Acknowledgements

UC Santa Barbara Bren School: Andrew Macdonald, PhD, Assistant Professor; Chris Costello, PhD, Distinguished Professor and Director of EmLab; Ruth Oliver, PhD, Assistant Professor; Ashley Larsen, PhD, Associate Professor; Bruce Kendall, PhD, Professor and Associate Dean

Property and Environment Research Center: Shawn Regan, Vice President of Research; Ben Foster, Research Fellow; Bryan Leonard, PhD, Fellowship Director and Senior Fellow; Sara Sutherland, PhD, Fellowship Director and Senior Research Fellow

Isaac (Morty) Ortega, PhD, Associate Professor, University of Connecticut

Max Ludington, President, Jackson Hole Land Trust

Legacy Works: Laura Bell, East Yellowstone Regional Director; Amy King, Project Director

Mark Gocke, Public Information Specialist, Wyoming Game and Fish Department

Eric Cole, PhD, Senior Wildlife Biologist, United States Fish and Wildlife Service

Paul Cross, PhD, Research Wildlife Biologist, United States Geological Service

Dr. Hallie Hasel, DVM, State Veterinarian, Wyoming Board of Veterinary Medicine