National Elk Refuge feeding ends for the season

JACKSON (WNE) — The National Elk Refuge wrapped its feeding operation on Sunday, 34 days after it began.

The late March end date is 10 days earlier than the average annual end date, according to a statement from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which administers the refuge.

Any end date for feeding before April 1 is considered early, Ben Wise, a wildlife biologist for the Game and Fish Department, told the Jackson Hole Daily last month.

This feeding season was the first one in which chronic wasting disease, a degenerative neurological condition, was found on a state-run feedground during active feeding. The condition was detected on the Scab Creek, Dell Creek, Black Butte and Horse Creek feedgrounds, as early as December and as recently as last week.

The closest detection, at Horse Creek, was just 10 miles south of Jackson.

Feedground cases are concerning because elk are in close quarters on feedgrounds, increasing their risk of transmission.

The decision to stop feeding on Sunday was made in coordination with the Wyoming Game and Fish Department and aligns with a “step down” plan implemented in 2019 to minimize CWD risk and reduce congregation on feedgrounds, according to the Fish and Wildlife Service statement. Snowpack was also considered in the decision.

CWD cases on feedgrounds that serve herds adjacent to the Jackson Elk Herd, such as Dell Creek, have raised concerns about an outbreak on the refuge, as there is interchange among the various herds.

This story was published on March 25, 2025.