Oregon Mule Deer Northeast Annual Ranges

Most of the Northeast mule deer herd is nonmigratory and annual ranges are dispersed throughout the northeastern Blue Mountains. Only 23 percent of mule deer tracked for >100 days exhibit clear migratory behavior between summer and winter ranges, and when migrations do occur, they are often elevational with timing dependent on snow depth. In general, migratory Northeast mule deer travel east or south in spring. On the western slopes of the Blue Mountains, mule deer reside near the Umatilla River, South Fork Walla Walla River, and Meacham Creek with some traveling to summer ranges near Oregon Route 204 and Mount Emily. Annual ranges primarily contain mixed-conifer forest, ponderosa pine, and grassland. Some of the mule deer south of Oregon Route 82 and Oregon Route 350 summer on the Wallowa Mountains. These mule deer use herbaceous grassland and mixed-conifer forest with more montane-foothill shrubland and ponderosa pine at lower elevations, and more riparian habitat and conifer forest at higher elevations. Other mule deer reside along Joseph Creek, Crow Creek, Chesnimnus Creek, and the Grande Ronde River in ranges characterized by grasslands, mixed-conifer forest, and ponderosa pine; in spring, some of these mule deer migrate to grassland-dominated habitat near Greenwood Butte, Findley Buttes, and Flora, Oregon. This herd faces several challenges, including mortalities from busy roads and habitat degradation from wildfires. Many annual ranges border agricultural crops and fields along Oregon Route 82 and Oregon Route 350. From 2010 to 2022, Oregon Route 82 experienced an average 132 DVCs annually; the majority were located near Enterprise, Oregon (ODOT, 2023). Oregon Route 204 contributed an additional 24 DVCs annually on average during the same time span. Interstate 84 creates an effective barrier to the south, preventing successful crossings for this herd. The Northeast mule deer herd also experiences frequent summer wildfires, such as the Double Creek fire, which burned 171,312 acres (69,328 ha) of forest and grassland east of Imnaha River in 2022. Large wildfires like the Double Creek fire allow invasive grasses to proliferate in areas without sufficient perennial plant coverage. These mapping layers show the location of the annual ranges for mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) in the Northeast population in Oregon. They were developed from 211 annual sequences collected from a sample size of 116 animals comprising GPS locations collected every 0.6-13 hours.

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