In contrast with other Odocoileus species, Columbian black-tailed deer (Odocoileus hemionus columbianus) population dynamics are not well understood throughout the species’ range. Concerns over apparent long-term population declines have prompted efforts to fill basic knowledge gaps including estimates of vital rates (fecundity, recruitment and survival) and cause-specific mortality. The Oregon...
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...
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...
Little is known about Columbian black-tailed deer (Odocoileus hemionus columbianus) because of their elusive nature and the logistical difficulty of studying them in densely forested and mountainous terrain. The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife has identified fawn survival as an important gap in the current knowledge of demography and...
A wildfire burned over 40,000 ha of conifer and mixed conifer-hardwood forest in
the Silver Creek drainage of southwestern Oregon in the fall of 1987 allowing me to
assess big game use of a large natural burn. I used fecal pellet group counts to estimate
habitat use and effects of...
The potential for Rocky Mountain mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus hemionus)
to host exotic chewing lice (Damalinia (Cervicola) sp.) believed to cause deer hair
loss syndrome in Columbian black-tailed deer (Odocoileus hemionus columbianus),
was investigated in captive deer held in pens at E.E. Wilson Wildlife Area, Corvallis,
Oregon from March 2004...
Intensive forest management (IFM, dense conifer plantings and herbicide applications) may alter the characteristics of early seral plant communities that function as major habitat resources for a host of wildlife species, including cervid herbivores such as Cervus elaphus and Odocoileus hemionus. Such large herbivores can also substantially affect plant community...
I examined ecological relationships and mechanisms of coexistence for sympatric populations of Columbian white-tailed (Odocoileus virginianus leucurus) and black-tailed deer (Odocoileus hemionus columbianus) in Douglas County, Oregon, from September 1997 to August 1998. Horseback transects were used to describe spatial distributions, population overlap, and habitat use for both species. Behavioral...