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Elk rutting in full swing at the Grand Canyon
Wildlife biologist warns of dangers during elk mating season

A male bull elk grazes inside the Grand Canyon National Park. This month, mature bull elks are “rutting,” or seeking out female mates. Show caution around this time of elevated dominance among male elk. Submitted Photo

A male bull elk grazes inside the Grand Canyon National Park. This month, mature bull elks are “rutting,” or seeking out female mates. Show caution around this time of elevated dominance among male elk. Submitted Photo

GRAND CANYON, Ariz. - This time of year is known for several things; leaves changing colors, temperatures dropping, and daylight hours getting shorter, just to name a few. But it really could also be known as elk rutting season.

According to Greg Holm, wildlife program manager for Grand Canyon National Park, basic elk biology causes elk this time of year to be aggressive, loud, and rather outgoing. Holm has been a wildlife biologist for 13 years in the park service, and now in his first year at Grand Canyon National Park he is in charge of integrating the wildlife program into all other parts of the park.

"To be somewhat broad, September and October is when the rut happens and we're seeing that right now obviously," said Holm. "The females are coming into heat, like a cat, the pheromones they're releasing are attracting the bulls and at the same time the bulls' hormones are on overdrive."

Holm said the rut is essentially a display of the dominance of the male bull elk. Each bull thinks they are going to be able to mate with the most females, or cows. Every mature bull tries to mate with as many females as he can.

"The reason that they're squawking and rolling in the mud or urinating on themselves and beating up trees is to basically show the other bulls that they're in charge of the cows that are around them," Holm said, adding that when the bulls do come together and there actually is a challenge or confrontation, there are a lot of ritualized displays. "They'll size each other up by walking by each other, turning broadside or beating up a tree, doing all these things before they actually contact each other."

Much of this activity occurs at night, according to Holm, and with a full moon it's easy to get around, see other males, and attempt to display their dominance. Holm said this activity will still be seen in the middle of the day too however, especially from animals that have been there for a while. They feel this is their land, or their territory, and they want to prove it.

Holm warns all people to stay away from elk at all times, especially during certain times of the year as the danger to humans increases even more. The average size of a male elk is four to five feet tall, antlers can add up to an additional four feet though, and can weigh anywhere from 325 to 1,100 pounds.

"This time of year the females are not as aggressive as they could be in May or June when they first have a calf," he said. "I would always recommend keeping your distance."

Holm said a female elk is just as capable as injuring someone though. They might be aggravated right now because of the males always pestering them, but they typically won't be as aggressive as they might have been a few months ago when their calves were still very young.

"What's interesting about this mating, the rut, is that these bulls just come out of the woodwork, for lack of a better term. These big six, seven, or eight-point bulls just show up all of a sudden," said Holm. "They tend to do a pretty good job of separating during the rest of the year, they'll either go off on their own or they'll go off with other mature bulls for the next 10 months."

The females then tend to do all the work with the males not spending much time around the herd.

Holm said it has been interesting to manage the wildlife in Grand Canyon compared to other parks he has worked, especially with the amount of visitors that the Canyon attracts. In addition, the elk population has grown quite immensely in northwestern Arizona and around Grand Canyon since the animal was first really introduced to this area approximately 100 years ago.

"The elk are more confrontational this time of year. It's almost as if they're not thinking straight, to put a human personification on it," Holm said, summarizing the basic thought process of the large animals during this time period.


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