The Honorable Stewart Udall
Secretary of the Interior
Washington 25, D.C.
Dear Mr. Secretary:
Your Advisory Board on Wildlife Management transmits
herewith a report entitled "Wildlife Management in the National Parks."
In formulating the conclusions presented in this
report, the Board made a major effort to familiarize itself with actual
conditions in the parks and monuments. The full Board visited
Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks where the elk situation has
been acute. Individual Board members inspected a number of other parks
which in the judgment of the National Park Service have current wildlife
problems. Between us in the last few years we have seen nearly all of
the major parks and monuments, including those in Hawaii and Alaska. Our
recommendations are based principally upon our own knowledge of the
parks and their problems.
Additionally, we have endeavored to understand and to
evaluate the full specimen of opinions and viewpoints on park
management. In September at Jackson Hole the Board met with five
directors of state game departments. In December in Washington we met
with five executive officers of conservation organizations. Many other
individuals and groups have offered advice and information. All of this
was informative and helpful, but we want to make clear to you that our
conclusions were not reached by weighing opinions and counter-opinions.
The conclusions represent our own collective thinking.
The report as here presented is conceptual rather
than statistical in approach. We read thousands of pages of reports,
documents, and statistical tables, but used these data only sparingly to
illustrate specific points. Emphasis is placed on the philosophy of park
management and the ecologic principles involved. Our suggestions are
intended to enhance the esthetic, historical, and scientific values of
the parks to the American public, vis a vis the mass recreational
values. We sincerely hope that you will find it feasible and appropriate
to accept this concept of park values.
Respectfully submitted,
Stanley A. Cain
Clarence M. Cottam
Ira A. Gabrielson
Thomas L. Kimball
A. Starker Leopold, Chairman
