Guest Post: Fighting Animal Overpopulation

Dude, Sustainable! –

One of the most overlooked issues in the environmental world today is animal overpopulation. We spend so much time thinking about endangered species like the stellar sea lion and the bald eagle, but we don’t talk much about the species that have overrun an area and are causing damages to the plants and habitats of other animals. I live near an area that is way over populated with elk. I like watching elk just as much as the next guy – they are big, beautiful animals. They are great to watch but too many of them can cause significant damage to areas.

Some areas lost elk natural predators (like wolves) due to over hunting 100 years ago, and there has been some efforts at reintroduction but have not had a great deal of success. Since growth goes on unchecked, the herds can get unwieldy and start to cause damage.

When there are no natural predators for elk, they will become less migratory and more concentrated than they would under natural conditions. This results in the loss and thinning of trees. When trees and other habitat start to disappear because there are too many elk that are eating it, other species in the area suffer – such as birds, insects and other smaller mammals.

One of the things that can help overpopulation of elk and similar species is hunting. Hunting can reduce herd numbers in areas that are heavily populated with elk, bringing the ecosystem back in balance. Lowering the elk numbers (and keeping them low over time) will help restore the balance to the ecosystem. This is usually done by wildlife departments at the state level, ensuring that the herd levels do not get too low or too high.

There are many different types of hunting to manage the population of elk, and should be considered when looking to manage herd numbers. If there is too high of a population density (such as at Rock Creek Park), hunters can use a rifle or bow to hunt.

There are many different tools that hunters can use to make their hunt more successful, no matter if they are bow hunting or rifle hunting. Hunters can use pack frames to get the game out, and rangefinders for bow hunting to help range in game and make the hunt (and population management) more successful.

This post is by Wesley Levy , who has lived in the western united states all is life and is a lover of all things outdoors, including hiking, kayaking, hunting and more. You can check him out at www.huntinginsight.com
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