Elk make their way to the feed line on the National Elk Refuge, Feb. 21, 2017, north of Jackson, Wyo. (Ryan Dorgan/Jackson Hole News & Guide via AP, File)
The discovery of chronic wasting disease on the National Elk Refuge adds urgency to a 2021 plan to reexamine the size of the 11,000-strong Jackson Elk Herd, the nation’s largest migratory herd.
The discovery also raises questions about the annual Scouts’ antler collection and auction, other traditions and practices, and even the safety of nearby Jackson’s water supply.
The diagnosis of CWD came after officials killed an ailing cow elk on the refuge just north of Jackson on April 15. Field workers sent biological samples to a Wyoming Game and Fish Department lab, a second lab confirmed the results, and federal and state officials announced the infection Monday.
The lab results document the first case of CWD in an elk on the refuge. Game and Fish tested 50 hunter-harvested elk from the refuge in 2025 and 14 elk that died after the hunt.
