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Matthew Kauffman

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Mule deer in the Izzenhood herd are part of a larger population known in Nevada as the “Area 6” mule deer population. They primarily reside on winter ranges in the Izzenhood Basin and upper Rock Creek drainages in western Elko County and northern Lander County. From their winter range, mule deer in this sub population migrate approximately 70 miles to summer ranges in the northern Independence Mountains and Bull Run Basin area. Some of the most important stopover areas are located near upper Rock Creek, Toe Jam Mountain, and Chicken Creek Summit. Challenges to this deer herd include past wildfires on winter range, conversion of native shrub habitats to exotic annual grasses, and lower primary production in some...
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Mule deer in the South Tuscarora herd are part of the larger “Area 6” deer population that reside in the southern and eastern portion of this big game Management Area (MA 6). The winter range for this sub population is located along the western slopes of the Tuscarora Mountains and the Dunphy Hills. The spring migration route for this deer herd traverses north along the toe slopes of the Tuscarora Mountains on the east side and narrows to approximately 600 meters at one pinch point near the Carlin -Pete Mine area. The migration route generally spans about 30 miles to the northeast to higher elevations in the northern Tuscarora Mountains. Important stopover areas include Richmond Mountain, Jack and Little Jack Creeks,...
Mule deer within the Dubois herd make several long-distance migrations into the heart of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (fig. 26). These migrations originate from winter range in the warm, protected sagebrush valley surrounding Dubois, Wyoming, and extend to the southeast on the Wind River Reservation. Each spring, an estimated 6,000–7,000 deer leave this valley and the Reservation and migrate northwest. These journeys, averaging 44 mi one way, begin as deer ascend Togwotee Pass (9,658 ft [m 2,944] in elevation). From there, they cross challenging natural terrain with high mountain passes and disperse into the north Wind River Range, Gros Ventre Range, Absaroka Range, Grand Teton National Park, and deep into...
Elk (Cervus elpahus canadensis) within the southern section of the Bighorn Mountains display altitudinal migration. In the spring, most individuals migrate from the western foothills up into the mountains, and in the fall, they head back down to lower elevations (fig. 68). In the southern section where the range curves west, the herd migrates up the northern foothills in the spring and back down in the fall. Additionally, a few individuals will summer on the eastern foothills along the Crazy Woman drainage. These individuals migrate west up the slopes in the spring and back down in the fall. The herd, which numbers around 4,000, primarily winters along the western foothills of the southern Bighorn Mountains just...
The Methow mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) sub-herd is part of the larger West Okanogan herd, the largest migratory mule deer herd in Washington State. Individuals travel as far as 65 miles twice annually between lowland winter range and higher elevation summer range (fig. 27). Mule deer wintering on the shrubsteppe dominated foothills in the lower half of the Methow valley undertake a roughly 3-week trek in mid-spring to the productive subalpine and alpine meadows of the Pasayten and Chelan Sawtooth Wilderness, and surrounding high country, with some animals traveling north into British Columbia. On summer range they mingle with deer moving up from the west side of the Okanogan valley forming an estimated summering...
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