National Elk Refuge to Stop Feeding Elk Early

JACKSON, Wyo. (AP) — Wildlife managers have decided to stop supplemental feeding on the National Elk Refuge in northwest Wyoming on Saturday.

The Wyoming Game and Fish Department has also begun the process of shutting down its Jackson Hole area feedgrounds for the year. Above-average temperatures have stripped away the snowpack along the valley floor and on sunny slopes, opening more natural forage in the area.

The Jackson Hole News & Guide reports  that feeding began Jan. 19, five days earlier than the 10-year average. But the feeding end date will be almost two weeks earlier than the April 2 average. The last time that feeding ended in the third week of March was 2007, when feeding ended on March 20.