| Should
Human Disturbance Be Regulated on Winter Range?
By Jeff Bernatowicz, District Wildlife Biologist
| The
importance of winter range to viability of
deer and elk populations has long been recognized.
Many of the State Wildlife Areas in eastern
Washington were originally purchased specifically
to protect wintering wildlife. In fact, over
75% of the critical winter range for the Yakima
and Colockum elk herds are in a WDFW wildlife
area. |
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The
importance of winter range to viability of deer and elk populations
has long been recognized. Many of the State Wildlife Areas
in eastern Washington were originally purchased specifically
to protect wintering wildlife. In fact, over 75% of the critical
winter range for the Yakima and Colockum elk herds are in
a WDFW wildlife area.
While
much of the winter range is protected from development, it
is not free from disturbance. Washington currently has few
restrictions that limit human use on big game winter range.
The impact of people on the winter range to health of individual
animals and the productivity of the herds are difficult to
measure. An animal in good physical condition may not be measurably
impacted while one with little remaining fat may struggle
to survive from burning precious energy while avoiding disturbance.
One thing that is obvious, human disturbance changes distribution
of elk on winter range. As human activity increases in the
late winter and early spring, elk start seeking refuge in
low disturbance areas. Some of these “refuges”
are private lands, where elk may not be welcome.
Some
other Western states are more restrictive than Washington
in protecting wintering animals. Wyoming, Montana, Oregon
and Idaho have all limit access to critical state owned winter
range. Wyoming and Montana are the most restrictive and generally
prohibit all public entry to state owned winter range. Wyoming
and Idaho also unsuccessfully attempted to restrict shed antler
hunting as a means of protecting wintering wildlife and instead
completely closed access on portions of these state managed
areas.
WDFW
in cooperation with state, federal and private landowners
have implemented a limited number of motorized vehicle road
closures that are designed to protect wintering deer and elk.
So why does Washington seem so tolerant of public use on winter
range? Thirty years ago, there probably wasn’t much
of an issue. Human populations were lower, snow and mud made
access difficult, and there was no compelling reason for people
to be out on the winter range.
Washington’s
population has increased by over 2.6 million and ATV’s
have made access easier. However, the biggest reason has probably
been the recent changes in hunting regulations that have resulted
in increased numbers of mature male deer and elk with antlers
Hunting for shed antlers has become an increasingly popular
pastime. Shed antlers, especially matched pairs, have an economic
value that is also rapidly escalating.
As
Washington’s human population continues to expand and
more people seek shed antlers, it has become obvious that
wintering wildlife needs greater protection. There is probably
no one regulation for all winter ranges. Motorized vehicle
restrictions may only be needed in some areas while complete
closures required in others. Potential closures will be discussed
more in the coming months. If you have an interest in this
issue, you are encouraged to voice your opinion.
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