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USGS scientists evaluated the utility of hidden Markov movement models to characterize seasonal movements of mule deer (Odecoileus hemionus) and pronghorn (Antilocapra americana) that were tracked with GPS collars in Wyoming, USA, during 2014-2021. Data include step lengths and turning angles for individual animals at daily time-steps throughout the tracking period. Models demonstrated distinct seasonal movements between species indicative of migratory behavior and enable analyses to identify influential factors that affect decisions to migrate by animals.
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Migratory ungulates are susceptible to effects of development along their migration corridors. For example, impermeable barriers such as tall fences preclude movements of migratory populations. Most forms of development in the West, however, represent semipermeable barriers, and their influences on migration remain unclear. This study entails using fine-scale mule deer movement data to evaluate the influence of anthropogenic barriers on the animals’ migratory behaviors. Our efforts include evaluating the rate of travel, duration of stopovers, and route fidelity of deer migrating across a gradient of development in Southwest Wyoming. In FY2014, we analyzed mule deer movement metrics and use of migration stopover...
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Wind energy represents an important alternative to oil and gas extraction to meet increasing energy demands, but it has the potential to disrupt wildlife populations. Because behavioral adjustments, such as altered habitat selection, are a primary way that long-lived species respond to novel disturbances, USGS scientists evaluated effects of wind energy development on pronghorn (Antilocapra americana) space use and habitat selection. Using data from GPS-collared female pronghorn in the Shirley Basin of south-central Wyoming, USA, we tested four potential effects of wind turbines on pronghorn space use during the summer and winter: 1) displacement away from wind turbines, 2) increase in size of home ranges, 3) short-term...
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USGS scientists evaluated movement and resource selection during seasonal migrations by pronghorn (Antilocapra americana) that were tracked with GPS collars near wind-energy facilities in the Shirley Basin, Wyoming, USA, in 2010-2012 and 2018-2020. Data include values of environmental variables and proximity to wind turbines at used and available locations for analyses of pronghorn selection of routes and resources within routes during spring, fall, and winter migrations. Data also include metrics of fidelity to migration routes and speed of migratory movements and environmental variables at each step of the migratory movement.
This is the data archive for the publication Ungulate Migrations of the Western United States, Volume 2 (Kauffman et al. 2022) and includes the collection of GIS map files that are mapped and described in the report. These map files are meant to provide a common spatial representation of the mapped migrations. This data release provides the means for ungulate migrations to be mapped and planned for across a wide variety of landscapes where they occur. Due to data sharing constraints of participating agencies, not all the files that underlie the mapped migrations included in the report have been released. Data can be viewed at: https://westernmigrations.net. Data in this archive can be downloaded two ways. To download...
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Many ungulate populations in the Rocky Mountains are predicted to respond to declining snow levels and increased drought, though in ways that remain uncertain. This project investigated how climate change may affect the abundance of Rocky Mountain ungulates, their migration patterns, the degree to which they transmit diseases to livestock, and their herbivory impact on aspen. To complete this work we brought together a team of USGS and University scientists with experience, data, and strong agency collaboration that enabled us to quantify climate impacts and deliver products useful for wildlife managers.
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This is the data archive for the publication Ungulate Migrations of the Western United States, Volume 4 and includes the collection of GIS map files that are mapped and described in the report. These map files are meant to provide a common spatial representation of the mapped migrations and seasonal ranges. This data release provides the means for ungulate migrations to be mapped and planned for across a wide variety of landscapes where they occur. Due to data sharing constraints of participating agencies, not all the files that underlie the mapped migrations included in the report have been released. Data in this archive can be downloaded two ways. To download by individual herd/range, clicking on child item pages...
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This is the data archive for the publication Ungulate Migrations of the Western United States, Volume 1 (Kauffman et al. 2020) and includes the collection of GIS map files that are mapped and described in the report. These map files are meant to provide a common spatial representation of the mapped migrations. This data release provides the means for ungulate migrations to be mapped and planned for across a wide variety of landscapes where they occur. Due to data sharing constraints of participating agencies, not all the files that underlie the mapped migrations included in the report have been released. Data can be viewed at: https://westernmigrations.net. Data in this archive can be downloaded two ways. To download...
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This is the seventh report produced by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) for the Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative (WLCI) to detail annual activities conducted by the USGS for addressing specific management needs identified by WLCI partners. In FY2014, there were 26 projects, including a new one that was completed, two others that were also completed, and several that entered new phases or directions. The 26 projects fall into several categories: (1) synthesizing and analyzing existing data to identify current conditions on the landscape and using the data to develop models for projecting past and future landscape conditions; (2) monitoring indicators of ecosystem conditions and the effectiveness of on-the-ground...
There are an estimated 28,000 mule deer in the upper Green River Basin (i.e., Sublette Herd, Wyoming Game and Fish Department [WGFD] 2006), most of which annually migrate 40 to 100 miles to summer in portions of 5 mountain ranges (Sawyer et al. 2005). Accordingly, successful management of this deer herd will require that functional migration routes remain intact. Given the increased levels of both energy (Bureau of Land Management [BLM] 2005) and housing (Taylor and Lieske 2002) development in Sublette County, identifying and conserving migration routes has become increasingly important. Currently, migration routes are depicted by simply connecting the dots between locations of marked animals (e.g., Sawyer et...
Categories: Publication; Tags: WLCI, WLCI Agency Report
Given that 95% of the mule deer that winter in the Atlantic Rim Project Area (ARPA) are migratory (Sawyer 2007), sustaining current mule deer populations will require functional migration routes remain intact. Prior to 2000, conserving migration routes had not been a top management concern for agencies because there had been no large‐scale habitat alterations in the ARPA or Baggs Herd Unit, (e.g., Bureau of Land Management [BLM] 2000a, BLM 2000b) and the landscape had remained relatively unchanged. However, the recent approval to develop 2,000 gas wells at a spacing of 8 per section and improve or construct approximately 1,000 miles of road and pipeline (BLM 2006) will result in large‐scale habitat changes that...
Categories: Publication; Tags: WLCI, WLCI Agency Report
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Weather and climate influence plant productivity, which in turn influences wildlife habitats and behaviors (Monteith and others, 2011). Monitoring plant phenology (such as the timing of green-up, flowering, or senescence) reveals patterns that can serve as indicators of habitat condition and quality. Climate change may alter phenology patterns and plant species composition, which could affect the availability and quality of forage and cover for WLCI species of concern, such as elk, mule deer, pronghorn, greater sage-grouse, and livestock. This project entails monitoring plant phenology to address the WLCI management need for monitoring and evaluating the effectiveness of habitat-management activities. Our work also...
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Sagebrush ecosystems and wildlife that depend on them are under pressure from development, changing climate, as well as natural and human-caused disturbance. Mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) are of particular concern due to population declines across many western states. We initiated a study to evaluate landscape-level changes ( disturbances, habitat treatments, development, and climate change) in Wyoming. This dataset contains age ratios (the number of juveniles to adult female mule deer) for 36 herd units in Wyoming, USA from 1985-2019. Age ratios provide a consistent metric of population demographics, including an index of recruitment (survival rate of young), which can be a sensitive metric of population change....
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This is the data archive for the publication Ungulate Migrations of the Western United States, Volume 3 (Kauffman et al. 2022) and includes the collection of GIS map files that are mapped and described in the report. These map files are meant to provide a common spatial representation of the mapped migrations. This data release provides the means for ungulate migrations to be mapped and planned for across a wide variety of landscapes where they occur. Due to data sharing constraints of participating agencies, not all the files that underlie the mapped migrations included in the report have been released. Data can be viewed at: https://westernmigrations.net. Data in this archive can be downloaded two ways. To download...
The Wyoming Migration Initiative advances the understanding, appreciation, and conservation of Wyoming's migratory ungulates by conducting innovative research and sharing scientific information through public outreach.
Abstract (from http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/ele.12772/full): The Green Wave Hypothesis posits that herbivore migration manifests in response to waves of spring green-up (i.e. green-wave surfing). Nonetheless, empirical support for the Green Wave Hypothesis is mixed, and a framework for understanding variation in surfing is lacking. In a population of migratory mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus), 31% surfed plant phenology in spring as well as a theoretically perfect surfer, and 98% surfed better than random. Green-wave surfing varied among individuals and was unrelated to age or energetic state. Instead, the greenscape, which we define as the order, rate and duration of green-up along migratory routes,...
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As extensive energy development continues throughout Wyoming, extraction of natural gas and development of wind turbine farms are increasing the footprint of energy development on the native landscape. This development has the potential to impact numerous species designated as Wyoming’s SGCN (Wyoming Game and Fish Department, 2010). This study, completed in FY2012, was established to help prioritize the management, monitoring, and research of Wyoming’s SGCN relative to energy development across the WLCI landscape. The primary goal of this work is to focus conservation attention on SGCN that are most likely to be impacted before the species actually become imperiled. This was accomplished by first making geospatial...
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Using data from 288 adult and yearling female elk that were captured on 22 winter supplemental elk feedgrounds in Wyoming and monitored with GPS collars from 2007 - 2015, we fit Step Selection Functions (SSFs) during the spring abortion season and then implemented a master equation approach to translate SSFs into predictions of daily elk distribution for five plausible winter weather scenarios (from a heavy snow, to an extreme winter drought year). We predicted elk abortion events by combining elk distributions with empirical estimates of daily abortion rates, spatially varying elk seroprevalence, and elk population counts. Here we provide 1) the adult and yearling female elk GPS collar data used to fit SSFs, 2)...
The green wave hypothesis (GWH) states that migrating animals should track or ‘surf’ high-quality forage at the leading edge of spring green-up. To index such high-quality forage, recent work proposed the instantaneous rate of green-up (IRG), i.e. rate of change in the normalized difference vegetation index over time. Despite this important advancement, no study has tested the assumption that herbivores select habitat patches at peak IRG. We evaluated this assumption using step selection functions parametrized with movement data during the green-up period from two populations each of bighorn sheep, mule deer, elk, moose and bison, totalling 463 individuals monitored 1–3 years from 2004 to 2014. Accounting for variables...


    map background search result map search result map Quantifying the Influence of Climate Change on Rocky Mountain Ungulates U.S. Geological Survey Science for the Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative: 2014 annual report Elk movement and predicted number of brucellosis-induced abortion events in the southern Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (1993-2015) Ungulate Migrations of the Western United States, Volume 1 Seasonal Resource Selection by Pronghorn near Wind Energy Facilities in Wyoming, 2010-2012 and 2018-2020 Pronghorn Migration and Resource Selection Near Wind Energy Facilities in Wyoming, 2010-2012 and 2018-2020 Ungulate Migrations of the Western United States, Volume 3 Age ratios and landscape change covariates for mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) herd units in Wyoming, USA, 1985-2019 Seasonal movements of mule deer and pronghorn in Wyoming, 2014-2021 Ungulate Migrations of the Western United States, Volume 4 Quantifying the Influence of Climate Change on Rocky Mountain Ungulates Elk movement and predicted number of brucellosis-induced abortion events in the southern Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (1993-2015) Seasonal Resource Selection by Pronghorn near Wind Energy Facilities in Wyoming, 2010-2012 and 2018-2020 Pronghorn Migration and Resource Selection Near Wind Energy Facilities in Wyoming, 2010-2012 and 2018-2020 Seasonal movements of mule deer and pronghorn in Wyoming, 2014-2021 Age ratios and landscape change covariates for mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) herd units in Wyoming, USA, 1985-2019 U.S. Geological Survey Science for the Wyoming Landscape Conservation Initiative: 2014 annual report Ungulate Migrations of the Western United States, Volume 1 Ungulate Migrations of the Western United States, Volume 4 Ungulate Migrations of the Western United States, Volume 3