Elk...

Please Note:   Elk calving alert: Park biologists have noted elk calving and nursing in the areas on the attached maps. If you plan to land at Avalis Beach, camp or use the beach at the north end or south end but you may not climb up to the ridge through the central valley noted on the map. If there is a beach at Whites Gulch to land on, again, do not climb up onto the ridge where you may affect the elk population.

Tule elk are a familiar site on the northern tip of Tomales Point on the west side of Tomales Bay. Once huge herds, estimated at 500,000 animals, roamed California but their numbers were decimated in the 19th century by overhunting and habitat loss. Elk hides were referred to as rawhide dollars and exported in large numbers. Fashion of the time also called for gentleman to wear a pair of elk teeth on their watch chain. Today they are recovering slowly but surely, protected in state and national parks in California.

Tule elk are a smaller cousin of the Roosevelt elk found in the Pacific northwest so named because they were seen feeding in the tule marshes of the Central Valley. A small remnant herd was discovered near Los Banos in 1874 on private property, landowner Henry Miller enjoyed seeing the animals and protected them. As their numbers grew, he began a process in cooperation with the California Department of Fish and Game to reintroduce the animals throughout their historic range in California.

At Point Reyes, ten tule elk were returned to Tomales Point in 1978. The former Pierce Ranch was fenced to accommodate the herd and you see the fence dipping down towards the bay just north of Tomales Beach on the bay. Their numbers have increased to almost 600 animals and the park is in the process of moving small numbers of elk into southern parts of the park.

Elk generally do not come down onto the Tomales Bay beaches but may be seen from the water. Always keep your distance. If you encounter an animal, do not come between a cow and a calf, a bull and a group of cows, or between two bulls challenging each other. The rut season, when males are jockeying for position and attempting to gather females for breeding, occurs from late August through September. The elk are most active during that period.

For more information about tule elk at Point Reyes

http://www.nps.gov/pore

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