Download or read book Survival of Mule Deer Odocoileus Hemionus Fawns in Eastern Washington written by Tamara Lee Johnstone-Yellin and published by . This book was released on 2004 with total page 146 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book The Influence of Summer and Autumn Forage Quality on Body Condition and Reproduction of Lactating Mule Deer and Their Fawns Odocoileus Hemionus written by Troy Neil Tollefson and published by . This book was released on 2007 with total page 86 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Mule deer populations have been declining in the western United States for several decades, but until now most studies have focused on either predation or over-winter survival without considering the importance of summer and autumn nutrition. A decrease in the quantity and/or quality of forage in the months proceeding the breeding season has been linked to decreased fertility in several ungulate species and domestic livestock. We simulated the decline in the digestible energy content of forages during summer and fall under a range of habitat conditions, and measured intake, nursing behavior, milk quality, body condition, blood hormones, estrus and pregnancy in captive mule deer and examined how these factors influenced fawn production, growth, and survival. Both lactating does and their fawns increased their dry matter intake (DMI) to try and compensate for a decrease in digestible energy (DE) content of the diet, but did not consume as much DE per day as those feeding on higher quality feed. Probability of pregnancy and twinning increased when does ingested more DE and had more body fat. Measures of the blood hormones insulin growth factor 1 and leptin taken at the beginning of November provided a weak index of pregnancy, twinning and DEI intake. Fawns on the lower DE diet nursed more often, which corresponded with a decline in body condition, and their nursing attempts were rejected more often by their mothers. They also had poorer survival until weaning. Mule deer may fail to become pregnant when forage quality in summer and autumn is especially poor, but our data suggest that food quality has a more drastic effect on fawn growth and survival, therefore, potentially reducing recruitment into the adult population.

Download or read book MULE DEER ODOCOILEUS HEMIONUS REPRODUCTION FAWN SURVIVAL AND EXPOSURE OF FAWNS TO INFECTIOUS AGENTS IN A CHRONIC WASTING DISEASE ENDEMIC AREA OF SOUTHERN SASKATCHEWAN written by Asha Perera and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Ecology and Management of Black tailed and Mule Deer of North America written by James R. Heffelfinger and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 2023-04-27 with total page 537 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Black-tailed and mule deer represent one of the largest distributions of mammals in North America and are symbols of the wide-open American West. Each chapter in this book was authored by the world’s leading experts on that topic. Both editors, James R. Heffelfinger and Paul R. Krausman, are widely published in the popular and scientific press and recipients of the O. C. Wallmo Award, given every two years to a leading black-tailed and mule deer expert who has made significant contributions to the conservation of this species. In addition, Heffelfinger has chaired the Mule Deer Working Group sponsored by the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies for more than 15 years. This working group consists of the leading black-tailed and mule deer experts from each of 24 states, provinces, and territories in western North America, putting them at the forefront of all conservation and much of the research on this species. The book represents all current knowledge available on these deer, including how changing conditions such as fires, habitat alteration and loss, disease, climate change, socio-economic forces, energy development, and other aspects are influencing their distribution and abundance now and into the future. It takes a completely fresh look at all chapter topics. The revisions of distribution, taxonomy, evolution, behavior, and new and exciting work being done in deer nutrition, migration and movements, diseases, predation, and human dimensions are all assembled in this volume. This book will instantly become the foundation for the latest information and management strategies to be implemented on the ground by practitioners and to inform the public. Although this book is about deer, the topics discussed influence most terrestrial wildlife worldwide, and the basic concepts in many of the chapters are applicable to other species.

Download or read book Fawn Survival Cause specific Mortality and Bed site Selection of White tailed Deer and Mule Deer in Western Kansas written by Mitchell J. Kern and published by . This book was released on 2019 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) and white-tailed deer (O. virginianus) are common sympatric deer species in the Great Plains and western United States that have exhibited divergent population trends temporally and spatially. Mule deer populations are declining and contracting to the west while white-tailed deer populations are expanding. Species-specific differences in fawn recruitment is one proposed explanation for these observed trends, although the underlying causes remain unknown. To determine if landscape or other habitat changes are affecting the two deer species in different ways, we studied bed-site selection of mule deer and white-tailed deer fawns in western Kansas at microhabitat and landscape scales. We also assessed how fawn intrinsic factors, doe maternal condition, and bed-site habitat characteristics influenced survival of mule deer and white-tailed deer fawns. In February 2018 and 2019, we captured 120 adult does (60 mule deer, 60 white-tailed deer) using helicopter net-gun techniques and deployed 120 vaginal implant transmitters (VITs) synchronized with GPS collars deployed on does. Upon VIT expulsion, a birthing event notification was triggered, which narrowed search efforts for fawns. We captured and radio-collared 100 fawns (53 mule deer, 47 white-tailed deer) during 12 May- 23 June in 2018 and 2019. Fawns were visually located daily using ground-based radio-telemetry and we assessed bed-site selection, cause-specific mortality, and survival rates until fawns reached 10 weeks of age. Overall, fawn survival was low (0.32 ± 0.06) and did not differ between species (mule deer: 0.25 ± 0.08; white-tailed deer: 0.41 ± 0.08). Adult chest girth was positively associated with 70-day white-tailed deer fawn survival, longer fawn body length increased 7-day white-tailed deer fawn survival, and fawn sex best predicted 7-day mule deer fawn survival. Model uncertainty indicated fawn intrinsic factors and maternal conditions may be poor predictors of fawn survival. White-tailed deer survival was lower for fawns with more woodland in their home ranges and mule deer fawn survival exhibited a positive quadratic relationship with the amount of grassland within the home range. Mule deer fawn survival increased with the amount of edge and disaggregation within a home range, but landscape configuration did not explain survival of white-tailed deer fawns. We analyzed microhabitat characteristics at 2689 fawn bed-sites and 2689 paired random points. Bed-site selection differed by species; however, vegetative structure was the most influential microhabitat characteristic for both deer species. Mule deer fawns selected for 75% visual obstruction 8.4 dm tall, less grass cover, more succulent cover, and 56% shrub cover at bed-sites. White-tailed deer fawns selected for 25% visual obstruction 9.2 dm tall, 71% forest canopy cover, and less grass cover and bare-ground at bed-sites. The two species also showed differences in landscape selection. The odds of a white-tailed deer fawn bed-site increased 5.88 times in woodlands, whereas odds of a mule deer fawn bed-site increased 2.85 times in CRP. Our research suggests white-tailed deer fawns and mule deer fawns selected different characteristics for bed-sites at the microhabitat and landscape scale. Bed-site selection likely influences fawn survival, which could affect fawn recruitment. Managers should focus on maintaining heterogeneous landscapes composed mainly of native and Conservation Reserve Program grasslands with abundant cover to enhance mule deer fawn survival and bolster adult populations.

Download or read book Mule Deer Odocoileus Hemionus written by and published by . This book was released on 1985 with total page 4 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Assessment of Mule Deer Fawn Survival and Birth Site Habitat Attributes in South central Oregon written by David Speten and published by . This book was released on 2014 with total page 70 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) populations in south-central Oregon are near their lowest levels since census efforts began in 1961. I investigated fawn survival, cause-specific mortality, and factors contributing to mortality from 2010 - 2012 to identify potential causes for the decline. I also explored pre-parturition and parturition site characteristics. I studied fawn survival among two different population segments in south-central Oregon. Adult females (n = 126;> 1 year old) were captured on winter ranges to collect biological samples and attach transmitters. Vaginal implant transmitters facilitated the capture of fawns (n = 127). Fawns (birth to

Download or read book A Comparison of the Fundamental Nutritional Niche and Realized Habitat Niche of Sympatric Mule and White tailed Deer in Eastern Washington written by Anna R. Staudenmaier and published by . This book was released on 2020 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Mule (Odocoileus hemionus) and white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) are similar species, distributed across North America in both areas of sympatry and allopatry. Potential differences in their fundamental and realized niches that might be responsible for their distribution patterns remain largely unknown. Therefore, to directly compare the fundamental nutritional niche of mule and white-tailed deer we conducted in vivo digestion and intake tolerance trials using 7 tractable mule and 6 white-tailed deer, raised under similar conditions in captivity, across 6 diets ranging in fiber, protein, and plant secondary metabolite (PSM) content. We found that compared to white-tailed deer, mule deer had higher fiber, energy, and dry matter digestibility, produced glucuronic acid (a byproduct of PSM detoxification) at a slower rate when consuming the monoterpene [alpha]-pinene, and required 50% less digestible protein intake and 20% less digestible energy intake to maintain body mass and nitrogen balance. These differences might provide an advantage to mule deer when sharing landscapes with white-tailed deer containing forages of lower nutritional quality (i.e., higher fiber and PSM content). To compare their realized habitat niches, we determined presence and absence of both species at 312 cameras traps during the summers of 2018-2019 across a range of elevations, habitats, and overstory thinning treatments in the Colville National Forest (CNF) in northeastern Washington. We compared their habitat use with single species occupancy models and found that topography was the strongest indicator of differing habitat use; mule deer were more likely to occupy steep slopes and higher elevations and white-tailed deer the opposite. Using conditional, two species occupancy modeling, we found that mule and white-tailed deer occurred independently of one another (i.e., no dominance) in the CNF in summer. The absence of spatial and temporal segregation between the two species was supported by ~ 90% overlap in daily activity patterns and similar elapsed time between subsequent intra- or interspecies detections at camera sites with both species detected. Our research suggests that mule and white-tailed deer likely minimize potential competitive interactions in part by evolving different abilities to cope with low quality forage and by segregating topographically, thus are largely syntopic.

Download or read book Mule Deer Habitat Guides written by Richard M. Kerr and published by . This book was released on 1979 with total page 70 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Survival Rates and Cause Specific Mortality of Mule Deer in South Central Oregon written by Elizabeth M. Mulligan and published by . This book was released on 2015 with total page 87 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: It is critical for wildlife managers to understand the population dynamics of a harvested species, particularly for ungulates, which are a valuable wildlife resource. Due to concerns that mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) populations in Oregon were declining, more comprehensive data on population vital rates and the factors potentially affecting them were needed by resource managers. To meet this research need, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife implemented a seven year study to investigate habitat use and survival of mule deer in eastern Oregon. From 2005-2012, the agency radiocollared 621 mule deer in south-central Oregon in order to gain more comprehensive information about seasonal movement, seasonal and annual survival, and changes in habitat use for the population. I used the radio-telemetry data from this larger study to investigate mule deer survival rates and cause-specific mortality and the effects of deer seasonal distributions, movement behavior, and environmental factors such as annual and climatic variation. I used known-fate data for 408 adult female radio-collared mule deer to estimate monthly survival rates and to investigate a variety of factors that might affect these rates including seasonal distribution, temporal effects (seasonal, annual, and trends across season and year), movement behavior, and climatic covariates on differing scales. Variation in survival rates for this population of female mule deer in eastern Oregon was best explained by an additive effect of migration behavior, fall migration period, and precipitation levels on individual winter ranges. Survival was significantly higher for migratory deer than residents. Both groups had lower survival during the fall migration period (Oct-Nov) and a positive linear relationship between survival and winter precipitation in individual winter ranges. Annual survival estimates for migrants ranged from 0.81-0.82, which is similar to other findings, but survival rates for residents (0.76- 0.77) were low in comparison to survival rates for adult female mule deer in other parts of their range. I used a nonparametric cumulative incidence function estimator (NPCIFE) to generate annual cumulative incidence functions separately for males and females due to differing risks associated with each sex. The four competing sources of mortality I included in this analysis for males were legal harvest, illegal harvest, predation, and starvation, disease, vehicle or fence-collision combined as one category (i.e., other). For females in investigated predation, human-associated mortality (vehicle or fence), illegal harvest, and natural causes (starvation and disease). Annual risk functions were pooled across all years of the study to maximize sample size. For males, the cumulative risk was highest for legal harvest (0.249, 95%CI=0.172-0.326), with predation the next highest cause of mortality for this sex (0.104, 95%CI=0.042-0.611). For females, the cumulative risk was highest for predation, (0.044, 95%CI=0.028-0.065) with anthropogenic causes (0.038, 95%CI=0.021-0.054) and illegal harvest (0.031, 95%CI=0.17-0.054) also important sources of mortality. Higher monthly survival rates of migrants compared to residents (across all months of the biological cycle) suggested that leaving for potentially higher quality summer foraging grounds outweighed the cost of traveling through unfamiliar habitats and energy expenditure from migration. Conversely, it may also imply that the summer ranges for residents had a negative effect on survival due to habitat quality or human disturbance. Both migrants and residents had lower monthly survival during the fall migration period (Oct - Nov). Female mule deer were excluded from the state-managed bow and rifle hunting season during this study, but females may experience the negative effects of human disturbance associated with fall hunting activities. This time of year is also energetically costly for females, being that some may still be nursing, which could have an additive effect to the energy used to migrate or avoid human disturbance. Winter precipitation also had positive effect on survival for both groups, possibly because increased average winter precipitation resulted in increased winter forage quantity and quality. My results suggest that female survival rates observed during my study are on the low end of the range reported for this species and may be contributing to population declines of mule deer in Oregon. Annual estimates of male survival were also low, but it is unclear how that might contribute to overall population declines without more information on annual and seasonal variation in male survival. Surprisingly, I observed high levels of illegal harvest on female deer and evidence that female survival during the fall migration period, which overlaps Oregon's legal harvest season, was lower than other times of the year. It is unclear why the fall migration period negatively affects both migrants and resident deer similarly, but future research should attempt to determine the specific factors that are negatively impacting mule deer survival during this time period in south-central Oregon. In addition, as human development in the area continues to grow, it is important to consider migration paths and the habitat quality of both summer and winter ranges. My results suggested that conditions may differ between summer ranges in particular, for residents vs. migrants, and understanding these differences may be the key to increasing survival of female mule deer in Oregon. Sharing information from this study with law enforcement and the general public may be the first step towards increasing awareness of, and thereby reducing, the relatively high levels of illegal harvest I documented for the female population. Future research should focus on investigating the differences in habitat quality for residents versus migrants, the factors that decrease survival during fall migration for both groups, and the social and economic factors that contribute to the illegal harvest of female mule deer in eastern Oregon.

Download or read book A Comparison of Nutritional and Foraging Ecology of Sympatric Mule and White tailed Deer in Northeastern Washington written by Stephanie Lynn Berry and published by . This book was released on 2017 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Post 1900 Mule Deer Irruptions in the Intermountain West written by George E. Gruell and published by . This book was released on 1986 with total page 44 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Provides information on use of prescribed fire to enhance productivity of bunchgrass ranges that have been invaded by Douglas-fir. Six vegetative "situations" representative of treatment opportunities most commonly encountered in Montana are discussed. Included are fire prescription considerations and identification of the resource objective, fire objective, kind of fire needed, and fuels."

Download or read book Mortality of Mule Deer Fawns in South central Washington written by William Dean Steigers and published by . This book was released on 1978 with total page 66 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Effects of Predation and Forage Availability on the Survival of Black tailed Deer Odocoileus Hemionus Columbianus in the Mendocino National Forest California written by Tavis Donahue Forrester and published by . This book was released on 2014 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Mule (Odocoileus hemionus) and black-tailed deer (O. h. columbianus) have exhibited marked population fluctuations throughout their range over the past century. The relative contributions of predation, forage availability, and weather to observed population changes remain unclear and controversial. I evaluated the effects of both predation and forage on the survival of mule and black-tailed deer though a literature review and extensive field research in the Mendocino National Forest from 2009-2013. I reviewed 48 studies on mule deer survival and predation from the past 30 years and quantified age-specific vital rates, population growth rates (lamda) and causes of mortality. I also evaluated the effect of environmental variables on variation in vital rates and the contribution of age-specific survival to population growth. Age-specific survival (Phi) was the most frequently studied population parameter. Mule deer have lower and more variable fawn survival than other ungulate species (Phi(summer)=0.44, CV=0.42; Phi(annual)=0.29, CV=0.67). Adult female survival conversely appeared to be high and stable throughout the geographical range of the species (Phi(annual)=0.84, CV=0.06). Observed low fawn survival appears to be compensated for by high fecundity rates. Predation was the primary proximate cause of mortality for all age classes, and was an important source of summer fawn mortality and of mortality in multi-prey, multi-predator systems. However, predator removal studies suggest that predation is compensatory, particularly at high deer densities, and that nutrition and weather shape population dynamics. I propose three models to explain local population dynamics of mule deer: a) populations are limited by forage availability and weather; b) adult females are limited by forage availability, fawns are limited by forage availability and predation, and population growth is constrained by fecundity and fawn predation; and c) large changes in the abundance of predators or alternative prey change predation risk and destabilize population dynamics. From 2009 to 2013, I led field crews that captured and monitored 135 black-tailed deer fawns in coastal California to study possible interactions between forage and predation on survival. I estimated seasonal and annual survival rates, assessed the cause of all mortalities (n=95), measured available forage, estimated relative abundances of predators on summer range (i.e., fawning areas) each year, and used remote sensing to quantify habitat on winter range. I then used cumulative incidence and proportional hazards functions to evaluate how environmental covariates were related to fawn survival. Summer survival rates averaged 0.40 across all years (SE=0.05) and the mean annual survival rate was 0.25 (SE=0.04). I found that most fawn mortality resulted from predation during summer, mainly by black bears (Ursus americanus) and coyotes (Canis latrans), and spatial differences in summer survival persisted until recruitment. Black bear predation, the single largest cause of mortality, was unrelated to forage availability. Observed spatial variation in mortality risk due to other causes was linked to the availability of oak forage but not predator abundance. Additionally, characteristics of deer including adult female condition and fawn birthweight, did not provide evidence for purely bottom-up limitation. Rather my results provided evidence that both bottom-up and top-down effects were influencing fawn survival in this declining population, and that predator identity and the timing of mortality affected these interactions. I also tracked 57 adult female black-tailed deer using GPS collars and radio-telemetry to determine seasonal movements and home ranges and monitor survival and cause of mortality. I used the seasonal home range as a measure of site familiarity and modeled how mortality risk varied with use of familiar areas, forage availability, age class, and elevational overlap with simultaneously collared pumas using Cox proportional hazards models. Adult female survival was low in our study area (0.70 vs. 0.84 species average), and predation was the largest cause of mortality. The use of familiar areas was the best predictor of mortality risk, and deer that had a 40% chance of leaving the home range in a given week were 4 times more likely to die. Puma predation was the largest cause of mortality and deer whose average weekly elevation was farther from the average elevation of pumas were less likely to die. While forage availability was not related to mortality risk, adult females with lower forage availability were more likely to leave their home range in both summer and winter. I found fitness benefits of using familiar areas and bottom-up effects on the use of familiar areas as a refuge from predation. The benefits of site familiarity are likely widespread in ungulates, especially when there are stable home ranges, complex habitats, and unclear cues of predation risk. My results provide evidence that both bottom-up and top-down effects were influencing black-tailed deer survival in this declining population, and that predator identity, the timing of mortality, and individual behavior affected these interactions.

Download or read book Wheat Vs Wild written by Rebekah A. Hellesto and published by . This book was released on 2023 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Converting wildlife habitat to agricultural monoculture is one of the greatest drivers of habitat loss and can be a severe threat to many wildlife species. However, because mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) typically live in rugged, less arable landscapes, little is known about how they use habitat fragmented by agriculture. Using Global Positioning System (GPS) data from a partially migratory herd of 62 adult female mule deer from 2018-2022, we examined migration strategies and modeled habitat selection at three spatial scales in southeastern Washington, which is a mosaic of mostly privately owned cereal grain agriculture, shrubland, grassland, and restored cropland in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP). A minority of the mule deer population was migratory (30%), with relatively short and fast migrations. During migration, they primarily selected for shrubland and grassland in both fall and spring. Mule deer used various components of the landscape throughout the year but selected grassland as their highest-ranked habitat year-round when selecting for home ranges within the study area (second order) and in winter when selecting habitat within their home ranges (third order). During summer, mule deer focused on shrubland and forested habitats within their home range, likely because it provided increased security and thermal cover for fawn-rearing. In the winter, they selected agricultural habitats to a greater degree, which might reflect the growing winter wheat (Triticum aestivum) providing more nutrition during that time. Survival from birth to recruitment into the adult population can greatly influence population dynamics of wild ungulates like mule deer and is affected by both nutrition and cover found in high-quality habitats. We used the GPS data from our population to create resource selection function models during parturition and early fawn-rearing and for fawn bed site characteristics (fourth order). We searched for fawns and fawn bed sites in 2021 and 2022 and used a parturition model to predict birthing events of collared females for which we were unable to find fawns in 2018-2022. For parturition, fawn-rearing habitat, and fawn bed sites, vegetation types that provided more vertical structure, including shrubs and trees, were consistently selected and agriculture avoided. Both intact (i.e., never plowed) shrubland and CRP shrubland were equally selected. These vegetation types provided vertical and horizontal concealment cover for fawns that were also important characteristics of fawn bed site selection. Our research suggests that to promote sustainable populations of mule deer in a landscape dominated by agriculture, managers and landowners could increase the prevalence of quality shrubs and trees where possible to improve habitat and continue support for the CRP program that provides economic incentive to restore croplands for the benefit of wildlife like mule deer.

Download or read book Mule and Black tailed Deer of North America written by Olof C. Wallmo and published by . This book was released on 1981 with total page 632 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Developed in co-operation with U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service.

Download or read book Factors Affecting Survival of Mule Deer Fawns written by Ronald Henry Smith and published by . This book was released on 1976 with total page 15 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: