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150 Tule Elk Died in Confinement Due to Lack of Food and Water - National Humane Education Society

Paws Down! To the National Park Service for neglecting basic needs of elk confined on the Point Reyes National Seashore in California.

June 30, 2021

Because ranchers were having trouble finding enough pasturage for their free-grazing cattle due to the tule elk population in the area, the National Park Service confined the tule elk of Point Reyes, California, to a 2,200-acre lot inside the 70,000+ acre national park. Due to the terrible drought conditions over the past year, 150 tule elk have died from lack of water and food sources in their enclosure.

Even though concerned wildlife advocates went so far as to install their own water troughs in the area, the National Park Service repeatedly removed them from the property. Now, wildlife organizations are suing the National Park Service and the Secretary of the Interior for their irresponsible and neglectful actions that led to the deaths of 150 wild animals, helpless due to the fence that separated them from vegetation and fresh water.

The National Park Service describes the tule elk as an important species that “shape the landscape around them…They symbolize the conservation of native species and ecosystem processes, one of the primary missions of the National Park Service.” Sadly, their importance to the landscape, conservation, and ecosystems of the Point Reyes area is second to the ranchers’ cattle that graze there.

Take Action: Let your voice be heard. Contact the Department of the Interior and demand that they conduct a full investigation into the mismanagement of the tule elk population at Point Reyes National Park so they will prevent herds from suffering terrible deaths in the future.

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2 responses to “150 Tule Elk Died in Confinement Due to Lack of Food and Water”

  1. Karen says:

    This needs to be investigated and criminal charges need to be issued to the people responsible. This is sickening!!!

  2. Kim says:

    I can’t imagine what the persons involved were thinking. There should have been a way to compensate ranchers for there loss, in leu of restricting the elk in their rightful habitat.
    This should be investigated and persons responsible held accountable. This is not acceptable!

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