Natural regulation in Yellowstone National Park's northern range

Although the debate over natural regulation as practiced in Yellowstone Nat ional Park has been underway since the initiation of the natural process ma nagement policy in 1969, controversy over the management of Yellowstone's n orthern range dates back to the beginning of the 20th century. The debate o ver natural regulation combines elements of scientific disagreement with co ntrasting social values. Some scientists and range managers critical of nat ural regulation management have viewed the northern range as seriously erod ed and overgrazed due to an overpopulation of elk. Data, and the interpreta tions thereof, have been published supporting this viewpoint. Other scienti sts have challenged this opinion with the results of longer term studies an d disparate interpretations of data gathered by the critics. Contrasting so cial values range from support for the "hands-off" management policy for un gulates in Yellowstone National Park to limiting ungulate populations to pr event eminent deterioration of the range. It is the opinion of the authors that extensive published data support the position that current elk populations and sympatric herbivores do not excee d the ecological carrying capacity of the northern range; therefore, the ra nge is not overgrazed by ecological standards. The discourse over science-d riven and value-driven opinion will, and should, continue: neither scientif ic thinking nor social values are immutable.