Beware of elk

The mainstream media gets it right again in this Associated Press story about the elk problem at the Grand Canyon. Some highlights:

Elk, once a rare sight at the national park, now regularly jam up the park's roads, graze on hotel lawns and aren't too shy about displaying their power, provoked or not. They've broken bones and caused eye injuries in the most serious circumstances, and give chase to the unsuspecting.

Roads and campsites become clogged with elk and cars, through the animals' stubborn nature or camera-toting tourists marveling at them. A volunteer crew responded to 115 "elk jams" over 53 days last year, taking anywhere from one minute to 2 hours to clear up.

Kim Crumbo was jogging at the Grand Canyon in 2006 when he saw a bull elk rubbing its antlers against a tree. He said he screamed "like a banshee" when it knocked him over, breaking his leg in three places.

But the saddest part? It's all our own fault:

Elk brought in by train from Yellowstone National Park helped re-establish the Arizona populations after the state's native elk became extinct around 1900.

When will we learn?


Fearless elk eating hotel shrubbery by Flickr user atrphoto.