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MyspaceRoughly a century since they were introduced as trophy hunt animals on Santa Rosa Island, the elk and deer that remain on this grassy slice of Channel Islands National Park will soon be hunted to extinction. Though a hard number is not known, there are expected to be a little more than 100 individual animals still alive, and Park Service officials believe that the upcoming August 28 to October 11 commercial hunt will rid the island of the mule deer and elk, which are a genetic mix of Roosevelt and tule elk. If that doesn’t do the trick, the Park Service and a hired hunting firm will complete the job. As such, the island will be off-limits to the public from October 11 to November 1, and then only open on weekends until the end of the year.
“We expect [the hunters] to remove a great majority of the animals,” said park spokesperson Yvonne Menard on Tuesday. “Following the commercial hunt, the Park Service is going to remove any remnant animals at that point with a co-operator.”
Paul Wellman (file)
Santa Rosa Island mule deer
The complete removal of the nonnative species — which biologists say harm at least eight endangered plant species, foul the watersheds, destroy archaeological sites, and threaten the rare island fox by attracting golden eagles during the ungulates’ birthing months — was outlined in a 1997 court deal between the park and Vail & Vickers, the family cattle ranching company that brought the deer and elk to the island in the early 1900s. The family sold the island to the park in 1986 for $29.5 million and removed their cattle in 1998, but retained the right to run commercial elk and deer hunts as well as stay in the island’s buildings until the end of 2011. That era comes to an end this year, and the hunts have intensified since 2008 in order to gradually draw down the elk and deer populations, which Menard noted are the private property of the family.
“The former owners are working together with the National Park Service to meet requirements to eliminate the deer and elk by the end of December 31, 2011,” said Menard. “They are committed to removing as many of the remaining deer and elk as is feasible.”
Perhaps more significantly than the ecological impacts, however, is that the presence of deer and elk and the annual hunts effectively shut off 90 percent of Santa Rosa Island for visitors for five months out of the every year. And that’s a big reason as to why the park always wanted them removed. “Hunting is not authorized in national parks,” said Menard. “National parks are set aside to preserve the natural environment. The impacts of nonnative deer and elk are known to have impacts on visitors as well as on natural and cultural resources.”
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"the annual hunts effectively shut off 90 percent of Santa Rosa Island for visitors for five months out of the every year"
I did not know that the public had access to Santa Rosa Island anyway???
GandG (anonymous profile)
August 17, 2011 at 10:26 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Yes. Santa Rosa Island is one of five Channel Islands in Channel Islands National Park. As in all National Parks, the public is welcome. Santa Rosa Island is the only island in the National Park that you can visit by boat and airplane.
You can spend the afternoon hiking, or plan a camping trip. Each of the island in the National Park has at least one campground.
For more info about Santa Rosa Island and to find out how to schedule your island trip, visit www.Discover-Santa-Barbara.com/santa-....
DiscoverSB (anonymous profile)
August 17, 2011 at 10:50 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I could understand killing the rats on Anacapa; I could understand killing the pigs on Santa Cruz; I have _a lot_ of difficulty understanding killing the elk on Santa Rosa. Rather killing them, why not have tried neutering, chemically or otherwise. That way, there would not have been the annual hunts and the closing of the island for five months. What a shame that so much money and energy has gone into killing.......
“Hunting is not authorized in national parks,” said Menard, except if the park service employees or contractees do it.
citti (anonymous profile)
August 17, 2011 at 12:28 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Sounds like a good idea....kill all non-Native species that have been introduced to the islands,the main-land,the front-country,back-country....might as well do Montecito too.
And if one thinks Ungulates do damage to the islands,what do "visitors" do?...
The whole world is backwards...
PeterPeli (anonymous profile)
August 17, 2011 at 3:08 p.m. (Suggest removal)
What is so different about exterminating the elk and mule deer? Just because they're larger than a rat or a pig? Or maybe more majestic?
The only reason the elk & deer exist on Santa Rosa Island in the first place is to be hunted and killed for fun. For more than 80 years a PRIVATE business has charged wealthy hunters TENS OF THOUSANDS of dollars for the privilege of killing elk on PUBLIC land.
The US paid Vail & Vickers handsomely for Santa Rosa Island in 1986. In addition to the $29.5 million in cash, they were allowed to continue earning millions of dollars over the last 25 years, to the detriment of Santa Rosa Island's ecosystem. I, for one, am glad the lease is finally over.
I hate the idea of extermination, too. But I hate the idea of a private business profiting from public land even more. Especially a trophy hunting operation! How sick is it to kill a creature not for food, but to display his head on your wall!?
For all the reasons mentioned in the article:
1) endangering native plant species,
2) fouling the watersheds,
3) destroying archaeological sites, and
4) threatening the rare island fox by attracting golden eagles
...it's time to return Santa Rosa Island to it's native state.
DiscoverSB (anonymous profile)
August 17, 2011 at 5:14 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Elk were taken to Santa Rosa Island by the Mores at least as early as 1879 (prior to Vail & Vickers). The 1980 congressional act which created Channel Islands National Park calls for the protection of Cultural Resources on the Channel Islands. Are not the magnificent elk a part of that cultural history! What a shame. What a travesty. The magnificence of their beauty radiates to the soul of anyone fortunate enough to have seen one!
HistoryBuff (anonymous profile)
August 17, 2011 at 5:22 p.m. (Suggest removal)
It's the Yankee Way, kill everything that does not fit into your concept of Manifest Destiny. Need a Railroad or more Land, kill off the Buffalo, place the Native Peoples on a Reservation.
The slaughter of animals that has taken place on the Channel Islands, so a group of self appointed forked tongued Eastern City Sissy Naturalists can create their concept of Eden is truly Criminal.
I assume they would be killing the mini-Mammoth if it had survived in the name of the Island Fox etc.
The question will California survive the Yankee, not looking good so far. More CI Marine Species have been destroyed in my life time, especially since 1980, on their watch.
Not to mention that the Island Elk do not have "chronic wasting disease" like the mainland herds. I would have thought it might have been a opportunity to genetically study the two herds and see if something could be done to help the mainland herds.
howgreenwasmyvalley (anonymous profile)
August 17, 2011 at 6:36 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Does anyone know how to get a hunting permit for the island? I have a new hunting rifle I've been itching to try out. It has a 5 shot magazine, so it's really humane -- I can quickly follow up with a second shot if the first shot just blows a leg off or something.
Tambora (anonymous profile)
August 18, 2011 at 12:42 p.m. (Suggest removal)
It seems like relocation could have been an option rather than just killing them. They are native to parts of the mainland afterall.
And just a note to howgreenwasmyvalley - I agree with you mostly on the studying them rather than killing them issue, but I would argue that the elk and deer being there in the first place was the result of manifest destiny rather than the other way around. I am pretty sure people were hunting long before manifest destiny took hold.
Num1UofAn (anonymous profile)
August 18, 2011 at 4:26 p.m. (Suggest removal)
No problem with Hunting, it is the NPS and their Slaughter Policy that I find offensive.
The Santa Catalina Island Conservancy (Private vs Government) has found that a herd of 150 Buffalo can exist on the west end of the island without negative impacts. The balance of the buffalo were relocated to the mainland, not Slaughtered.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catalina...
The NPS Slaughter Policy of any animal that does fit into their Model of Eden is just sick. The Catalina Island Conservancy Model respects the history and culture that has evolved and become part of these Islands.
The Vaqueros that ran the cattle on Santa Rosa represented an historical snap shot of Rancho Era California and that skill level is now gone for ever.
Common Sense management of what was there when the NPS took over and its historical significance makes more sense than trying to return the Island to a primitive state.
I wish they had turned their attention to Manhattan Island and stayed the hell out of the West.
howgreenwasmyvalley (anonymous profile)
August 19, 2011 at 10:29 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Venison sausage is delicious. They serve venison up at the Coldsprings Tavern.
I heard a theory recently that nature institutes a mechanism by which animals which are more difficult to catch like buffalo, deer, elk, birds and fish are much healthier than animals that are slow and easy to catch like cows and pigs.
Seems like an island would be a great place for a deer farm, I don't know if Santa Rosa is the right place for that, though.
According to the map posted above, there's only a small portion of coastline on the southeast end that is open to the public. Hopefully they will open that up more, I'd like to be able to explore more of that island without having to buy my own boat and view it from a distance.
loonpt (anonymous profile)
August 19, 2011 at 10:53 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Does anyone know how to get a hunting permit for the island? I have a new hunting rifle I've been itching to try out. It has a 5 shot magazine, so it's really humane -- I can quickly follow up with a second shot if the first shot just blows a leg off or something.
-Tambora-
You can reinvent yourself as "Anacapa", since (as another blogger pointed out on the "S.B. volcano" story) Anacapa is a volcanic island. Once you become "Anacapa" you can erupt and kill everything on Santa Rosa island and make a fortune by charging admission to see you.
billclausen (anonymous profile)
August 20, 2011 at 2:28 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Discover the facts DiscoverSB:
1) endangering native plant species? Undocumented allegation. No species of "endangered plant has gone extinct or come closer to extinction due to elk. Simply not true.
2) fouling the watersheds? Ludicrous allegation. Do foxes foul the watersheds? Do bears fowl Los Padres National Forest?
3) destroying archaeological sites? Again. Pie in the sky allegation. Undocumented.
4) threatening the rare island fox by attracting golden eagles? Hardly! Golden eagles were attracted to the island by the slaughter of 30,000 sheep on Santa Cruz Island by The Nature Conservancy in the 1980s. Slaughter of pigs provided even more food. And now elk slaughter will too!
HistoryBuff (anonymous profile)
August 20, 2011 at 8:09 a.m. (Suggest removal)
hasta la vista, Bambi !
deerjohn (anonymous profile)
September 11, 2012 at 6:02 p.m. (Suggest removal)