Tule Elk were once abundant throughout most of Central California as late as 1850. Early accounts describe the boundaries of native Tule Elk range as Shasta County to the north, Buena Vista and Tulare Lakes in Bakersfield to the south, throughout the Sacramento and San Joaquin Valleys and surrounding foothills and the Pacific Coast to the west (see citations).
Elk were extensively hunted throughout the range for meat, lard and fur. As the population dwindled, the remaining elk shifted from the foothills into the valleys where they inhabited dense stands of tule marshes. Hunting pressures, coupled with the fact that elk occupied prime agricultural and grazing land, soon led to their near extermination.
By the 1870’s, it was thought that tule elk were extinct throughout their native range. A small group of elk numbering fewer than 20 individuals were discovered on the Miller and Lux Ranch located in the southern San Joaquin valley near Buena Vista Lake. These elk were protected and by 1914 the population had grown to more than 400 individuals.
As the Miller and Lux herd grew, attempts were made to reestablish some of the elk into various parks, reserves, zoos, golf courses, and private ranches. Many of these relocated herds gradually died out or had to be relocated to other areas.
Through the early efforts of the California Department of Fish & Game (CDFG) and now California Department of Fish & Wildlife (CDFW), three permanent elk herds were established in California. By 1969, the Tupman State Reserve herd in Bakersfield had 32 elk and the Cache Creek herd in Colusa County consisted of 80 elk. The largest herd, located in the Owens Valley, Inyo County (and not part of the original range to tule elk in California), consisted of 300 elk.
The State legislature enacted the Behr Bill in 1971 which prohibited the hunting of tule elk in California until the state population exceeded 2000 or until it could be determined that suitable elk habitat no longer existed in the state (CDFG, 1980). In 1976, the U.S. Congress passed a resolution which stated that 2000 tule elk is an appropriate national goal and directed federal agencies to make federal lands available for preservation of tule elk (BLM, 1980). The Tule Elk is the only mammal in U.S. history where there was a joint resolution of Congress regarding its protected in history (see research paper from UC Berkeley).
An Interagency Task Force was formed comprised of representatives from the National Park Service (NPS), the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), the United States Forest Service (USFS), the Armed Forces, Bureau of Land Management (BLM), California Department of Parks and Recreation (CDPR), and the CDFG (CDFG, 1978). This task force evaluated and selected potential sites throughout the state for relocation of tule elk. The CDFG was designated as being legally responsible for the transplanting operations.
Reintroduction and introduction became the primary methods utilized to establish new herds and to remove elk from existing herds at or near carrying capacity. The CDFG began efforts to relocate elk into other areas.
A herd was established at the San Luis Wildlife Refuge in 1974 and elk were released at Concord Naval Weapons Station in January 1977 (CDFG, 1979). In 1977, the Owens Valley had a surplus of 92 elk and early in 1978 these elk were used to establish herds at Mt. Hamilton in Santa Clara County, Lake Pillsbury in Lake County and Jawbone Canyon in Kern County. In March 1978, elk were relocated to Point Reyes from the San Luis National Wildlife Refuge. Hunter Liggett Military Reservation and Camp Roberts also received elk in 1978 (CDFG, 1979). As surplus elk were produced in various herd, new areas for relocation were established.
As of January 1983, there were an estimated 960 tule elk distributed among 13 herds in California (See Map Tab). Many of these herds were at or near carrying capacity (BLM, 1983). The primary management policy of government agencies has been to develop a management plan for each herd, determine the carrying capacity, and maintain each herd at that carrying capacity with surplus elk being moved to other areas. This information was incorporated into a state management plan.
Today there is approximately 5,000+ Tule Elk statewide according to the California Department of Fish & Wildlife.
Sources:
Phillips J. & S. A Citizen’s Guide to the Tule Elk of California, Nature Based Teaching, PR 17.
Phillips, J.A. Acclimation of Reintroduced Tule Elk in the Diablo Range, California (A Master’s Thesis, San Jose State University, Depart of Biological Sciences), 1985.
Phillips, J. Reintroduction of Tule Elk in Carrizo Plains, 1988.
McCullough, D. Tule Elk of California. 1969
Evermann, 1915, 1916
Other sources cited under California Natives section
Julie & Stu Phillips, Authors 2011/2012, Copyright 2011
Nature Based Teaching /Tule Elk