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Movements and habitat use of rocky mountain elk and mule deer.

Informally Refereed

Abstract

Understanding how ungulates use large landscapes to meet their daily needs for food, security and other resources is critical to wildlife management and conservation practices (Johnson et al. 2002). For ungulates like Rocky Mountain elk (Gems elaphui) and mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus), landscapes are a mosaic of different resources that are exploited in well-defined seasonal and daily cycles (e.g., Green and Bear 1990). Complex movement patterns emerge when the cyclical behaviors are realized on landscapes that are heterogeneous in space and time (Gross et al. 1995, Etzenhouser et al. 1998). Both the juxtaposition and the grain of habitat patches within a home range are strong determinants of movement patterns, and the overall habitat suitability as well (Etzenhouser et al. 1998). The influence of patch arrangement on habitat quality was recognized in early elk habitat models (Leckenby 1984); although, the linkage between movement patterns and habitat arrangements had yet to be studied.

Citation

Ager, Alan A.; Preisler, Haiganoush K.; Johnson, Bruce K.; Kie, John G. 2004. Movements and habitat use of rocky mountain elk and mule deer. In: Transactions of the 69th North American Wildlife and Natural Resources Conference: 641-655
https://www.fs.usda.gov/research/treesearch/24654