Fact Sheets - Elk Reintroduction at CFB Suffield

Aim

The reintroduction of elk to Canadian Forces Base (CFB) Suffield's ecosystem demonstrates that the Canadian Forces (CF) can maintain realistic military training while preserving and even enhancing biological diversity.

Introduction

CFB Suffield's immense habitats sustain a variety of flora and wildlife species, many of which are rare or endangered. It is one of the largest remaining undisturbed areas of short grass prairie in North America. CFB Suffield is also home to pronghorn antelope, mule deer and coyote while supporting a population of the endangered burrowing owl (Speotyto cunicularia).

At one time, a large population of feral horses - developed from animals that were released or escaped from their owners - grazed CFB Suffield's open plains. Overgrazing by hundreds of feral horsed had resulted in significant damage to portions of the riverbank habitats, particularly to the more sensitive ecosystems found in the Middle Sand Hills of the National Wildlife Area. To protect the long-term health and integrity of this habitat, it was decided to remove the horses from the training area.

Facts

Removing the feral horses gave military officials an opportunity to reintroduce Manitoban Elk to the area and provided the 2 690 km 2 Base with another component to keep its relatively intact prairie ecosystem in balance.

Plan

The underlying principle for the CFB Suffield elk transplant project stemmed from the 1994 roundup of feral horses and the desire to replace them with a large ungulate grazer to help keep the training area ecosystem in balance. Elk were well suited for the task because they are self-regulating. They were a common sight at the Base decades ago and, unlike feral horses, when the herds get too large for the environment to support, some will move on.

Moreover, Elk Island National Park in Alberta, which was established in 1906 to protect the remaining 24 Manitoban Elk, was nearing the point where it could no longer sustain the herd, which had grown to 1 700 elk. It was decided that any elk in excess of the maximum number that the fenced-in park was able to support would be used to repopulate CFB Suffield training area.

Challenge

A major concern with the reintroduction of elk to the Suffield training area had to do with geography. Elk Island Park is wooded, whereas CFB Suffield has almost no trees. The park receives lots of rainfall to support forests and undergrowth. Suffield, however, is classified as semi-arid. As a result, there was concern about the move from aspen parkland to semi-arid grasslands. The Base offers the necessary components of food, water and space, but there are no trees to provide cover.

As if the geography was not challenging enough for the elk, they would have to come to terms with living in an area used for live-fire training by armoured battle groups. The British Army Training Unit Suffield (BATUS) uses about 60 percent of the training area for armoured training. This large area is required for live-fire safety templates for the British tanks and artillery, which have an engagement range of thousands of metres.

The Suffield training area is shared by visiting British battle groups of up to 1 200 soldiers, and about 180 scientists, technicians and support staff from the Defence Research Establishment. Moreover, there are more than 4 000 producing gas and oil wells, 1 600 archaeological sites, 5 000 head of cattle and hundreds of deer and antelope in this area.

Solution

In cooperation with Alberta's provincial government and the Canadian Wildlife Service, the first release of elk at CFB Suffield in February 1997 was an experiment to see if the project was viable. With all the activity on the training area, many people thought the elk would not remain in the area beyond the summer of 1997. To help ease their introduction to the Suffield training area, it was decided that the first 132 elk would be delivered to the range three months before the first troops arrived. Once there, they were provided with food to tempt them to stay. Some of the elk were fitted with radio collars to monitor their movements.

Despite the change in habitat, it appears that the lack of disturbances and predators allowed the elk to settle in easily, in much the same way that they were allowed to live at Elk Island National Park. The first batch of elk adapted well to their new home. Not long after their release, they were proficient at using the grassland's rolling terrain for cover. They also made heavy use of slough bottoms for calving, hiding and keeping cool during the hot summer months.

The first year went well enough to convince everyone to introduce more elk to the region. In February 1998, a further 90 elk - 50 adults and 40 yearlings - were released. The military felt that this addition to the original herd would boost the chances of success in establishing the elk in the area and would provide genetic diversity. The additional release proceeded smoothly and the newcomers were readily assimilated into the existing herds within several days.

Results

From the original 220 elk introduced to the Suffield training area over the two-year period, the herd has flourished and now numbers over 450. It is believed that about eight of the animals moved away in the first year. The majority remained scattered in herds of between 10 and 40 throughout central and northern portions of the Base.

The elk have calved for two successive springs and it is estimated that at least 200 calves have been born in the training area. Most of them have made the military training area their home. None have returned to the Park, but some of the animals have left the grasslands and made their homes elsewhere. Those that did leave the training area have moved in all directions, with some straying as far away as central Saskatchewan and the Rockies just north of Calgary.

Conclusion

The prospect for setting up a viable elk herd on CFB Suffield continues to be promising. The elk have adapted well to the landscape of the training area. The Base, in collaboration with the Canadian Wildlife Service, will continue to monitor the progress of the herd and its impact on the environment.

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