week of 4/3/02
 
 
 


Elk release date delayed by parasites
SMN
The 27 elk from Elk Island, Canada, which were released into the holding pen in Cataloochee Valley in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park on Jan. 26, were scheduled to be released into the wild this week.

However, according to park spokesman Bob Miller the release may be delayed. Upon examining the elk Monday, Apr. 1, biologists discovered ticks. Miller said park personnel want to be sure the ticks were native to the Smokies and not a parasite from Canada.

When researchers open the gates to the holding pen the upper gate along the road into the valley will be closed to give the elk a chance to acclimate without having to deal with throngs of onlookers.

These animals were the second installment of three releases scheduled for the Great Smoky Mountains National Park’s five-year experimental elk project. Biologists and researchers have speculated about the behavior of this new group of elk. They are wilder than the first release, which came from Land Between the Lakes in Kentucky, and they are not as accustomed to humans.

Biologists have many questions that will only be answered after the release:

° Will they disperse?

° Will they assimilate into the current herd?

° Will they roam outside the park boundaries?

Jennifer Murrow, lead field researcher for the GSMNP elk project, said the actions of this group of Elk Island animals would help determine the protocol for the remaining three-and-a-half years of the five-year experimental release.

“We are slotted for a third release, but we have had less mortality in the valley than we expected. If these elk don’t disperse, we may not do a third release, or we may, if we feel that release would trigger dispersal,” Murrow said.

Murrow said the experiment has been a rousing success to date. The elk from LBL have found Cataloochee quite accommodating.

“Bull number one is massive. He must have gained 200 pounds since he’s been here,” said Murrow.

Seven of the females from Elk Island are pregnant and many of the cows from the first release are believed pregnant. Calving was during June last year.