Bison & Elk Management
Key Points
Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) has been detected on the National Elk Refuge.
The Refuge is currently updating the Bison & Elk Management Plan (BEMP), which outlines long-term strategies for managing elk, bison and habitat, as well as promoting public access and wildlife dependent recreation at the refuge.
Learn more about the plan
Written in 2007, the Bison and Elk Management Plan (BEMP) is a joint management strategy created by federal and state agencies to govern the Jackson elk and bison herds across the National Elk Refuge, Grand Teton National Park, and the Bridger-Teton National Forest.
On August 28, 2026, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service released a draft environmental impact statement for an updated bison and elk management plan (Appendix A) on the National Elk Refuge. It outlines long-term strategies for managing elk, bison and habitat, as well as promoting public access and wildlife dependent recreation at the refuge.
The proposed updates reflect new scientific research and changing conditions and establish conservation goals and management strategies to guide future management of bison and elk on the refuge. Wildlife conservation is at the heart of what makes the National Elk Refuge unique and unparalleled in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Through conservation efforts, the refuge serves to benefit the people of today and future generations.
The Service worked with the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service, tribes and other partners to develop the updated plan and draft EIS. Local stakeholders also played a key role in shaping the proposed alternatives, including providing information during the 2024 public scoping.
The draft EIS presents four alternative management strategies for the updated plan to improve wildlife health, reduce disease risk and restore natural habitat. These alternatives consider the long-term sustainability of the bison and elk herds; conservation of other wildlife and habitat on the refuge and in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem; the cultural, spiritual, and economic importance of bison and elk to the community and tribes; wildlife-dependent recreational opportunities on the refuge; and minimizing human-wildlife conflict.
Additional resources
Please visit our disease dashboard for updated information on CWD findings on the Refuge.
Additional resources
Members of the public are invited to review the draft EIS and submit comments by Tuesday, October 13, 2026. Comments can be submitted by:
- Email: nerbemp@fws.gov
- Mail: National Elk Refuge, PO Box 510, Jackson, WY 83001
Chronic Wasting Disease FAQ
Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) has been detected on the National Elk Refuge. Chronic wasting disease is a highly transmissible prion disease that affects cervids, including deer, elk, caribou and moose. In spring 2026, two elk on the National Elk Refuge tested positive for CWD.
Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a disease of the nervous system that affects cervids, including deer, elk, caribou and moose. Caused by a prion, or abnormal protein, CWD results in nervous system degeneration. As the disease progresses, the infected animal begins to display abnormal behavior, weight loss and loss of control of normal bodily functions. Animals may show no visible signs of illness for a year or more after infection, as a result infected animals can spread CWD even if they look healthy. CWD is contagious, with infectious prions passed between animals and from contaminated environments, including plants and soil. Prions may remain in the environment and be infectious for many years. There is no known treatment or cure.
Yes.
The elk had observable symptoms of CWD such as extreme thinness, decreased social interaction and loss of awareness and altered posture. Refuge protocol is to euthanize all elk exhibiting CWD symptoms to prevent the spread of the highly contagious disease. After the animal was humanely euthanized, refuge biologists collected and sent a sample for testing to a laboratory specializing in wildlife disease, managed by Wyoming Game and Fish Department. After the initial positive test, an additional sample was sent to a third-party laboratory for final confirmation per state and refuge testing protocols.
Yes, the presence of CWD on the refuge will require the refuge to increase monitoring and surveillance of elk and bison herds for CWD and implement additional bio-security protocols to keep people and wildlife safe. Any changes will be shared with visitors and the public. The National Elk Refuge Chronic Wasting Disease Mitigation Strategy contains the details for next steps.
Hunting will continue on the refuge in accordance with existing state and refuge hunting regulations. Sampling for CWD is already mandatory for all elk harvested on the refuge and will continue. The refuge will continue working with Wyoming Game and Fish Department to manage the refuge elk hunt, including potentially extending the hunting season to facilitate increased elk harvest and timing of harvest.
According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC) there is no strong evidence that CWD infects humans, but research is ongoing. The CDC does not recommend consuming CWD- positive animals. The Wyoming Health Department has information on human health from diseases like CWD. The Wyoming Game and Fish Department has information on their website about hunting in areas with CWD, including handling precautions.
Per the National Elk Refuge Chronic Wasting Disease Mitigation Strategy, the carcass of any elk that exhibits CWD symptoms is removed from the landscape as soon as possible and disposed of in the refuge’s incinerator.
All 50 hunter‑harvested elk and both harvested deer tested negative for CWD. During the same period, 16 of 41 elk mortalities were suitable for testing; 15 tested negative and 1 tested positive. In addition, one elk that was humanely killed also tested positive for CWD.
Since 2003, the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, National Elk Refuge, and Grand Teton National Park have sampled the Jackson Elk Herd for Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD), primarily utilizing elk harvested by hunters. CWD was only recently detected in the herd, and its prevalence remains low.
National Elk Refuge Chronic Wasting Disease Dashboard
The table below is the latest published data for CWD sampling in hunter harvested elk. It will be updated when 2025 information is published by WGFD.
Galloway, N.L., R.J. Monello, D. Brimeyer, E.K. Cole and N.T. Hobbs. 2021. "Supporting Adaptive Management with Ecological Forecasting: Chronic Wasting Disease in the Jackson Elk Herd". Ecosphere 12(10). The model provides a framework examining the impacts of CWD on the Jackson elk herd, for monitoring the effects of CWD over time, and adaptively managing for disease effects. Initial forecasts suggest CWD may reach a mean prevalence in the Jackson elk herd of 12%, but uncertainty of this forecast is large, and we cannot rule out a prevalence as high as 20% within 5 years of introduction of the disease. The model predicts that a CWD prevalence of 7% will cause the Jackson elk herd to decline, but this assumes a complete absence of cow harvest in the population. Currently there is significant cow elk harvest in the Jackson Elk Herd, and therefore future implications of the recent CWD infection in the Jackson Elk Herd are significant and negative for both future elk population growth rate and hunter opportunity. Click here to read the full article.