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Jeff Gagnon

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South of Interstate 40 elk reside primarily in Arizona’s Game Management Unit (GMU) 8. Upon completing population surveys in 2021, approximately 4,000 elk were estimated to inhabit GMU 8. Their summer range is primarily characterized by high-elevation ponderosa pine forests and grasslands. The elk radiate out from various origin points within their summer range to their winter range, comprised of rims of canyons in the area, including Sycamore Canyon, Tule Canyon, and Government Canyon. This series of canyons creates an impermeable southern boundary for this herd. Their winter range along the rim country is primarily characterized by pinyon-juniper, manzanita, and scrub oak. Interstate 40 is the primary threat to...
Mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) of the Kaibab Plateau in Arizona had a population estimate of 10,200 individuals in 2019. The herd is relatively isolated; limited in range to the east, south, and west sides by the Grand Canyon. Annually the Kaibab herd migrates an average of 27 mi (43 km) between summer and winter range. Winter range is along the west, east, and northern extents of the plateau; consisting of pinyon-juniper woodlands mixed with sagebrush, cliffrose, bitterbrush, and various grasses. Some of the Kaibab herd winters in Utah, sharing winter range with Utah’s Paunsaugunt Plateau herd. During migration mule deer pass through mid-elevation transitional range containing Gambel oak, pinyon pine, and Utah...
The San Francisco Peaks mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) herd makes one of Arizona’s most extraordinary annual migrations between Flagstaff, AZ and the Grand Canyon. The migration begins on summer range in GMU 7, where an estimated 5,300 mule deer reside. Their summer habitat contains alpine, subalpine, and ponderosa pine forests mixed with open grasslands and meadows. Beginning in October, a portion of the herd migrates north to GMU 9 to winter range along the South Rim containing pinyon-juniper, ponderosa pines, sagebrush, and cliffrose habitat. Through funding from Secretarial Order 3362, the Arizona Game and Fish Department (AZGFD) began a GPS collar study beginning in June of 2019. A total of 46 mule deer have...
The South of Interstate 40 (I-40) pronghorn (Antilocapra americana) herd make one of Arizona’s most remarkable migrations. This herd resides primarily in GMU 8, which had a population estimate of 450 individuals in 2019. Unlike traditional summer-winter range dynamics, this pronghorn herd relies on a complex of several important seasonal ranges connected by narrow corridors. Migration between ranges appear to be driven by winter conditions, thus, the timing of the movements is highly variable. The herd has high fidelity to these corridors, which elevates the importance of research and management efforts to conserve them. During the summer, these pronghorn inhabit large grasslands in and around Garland Prairie. During...
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South of Interstate 40 mule deer reside in Game Management Units (GMU) 8 and 6B in Arizona. The herd summers in high-elevation open meadows and ponderosa pine habitat southwest of Flagstaff, Arizona. In late October, the herd migrates west to lower elevation pinyon-juniper and shrub habitats near the junction of Interstate 40 and U.S. Highway 89. With funding support by the U.S. Department of the Interior (USDI) through Secretarial Order 3362, research on this herd’s migration began in February 2020. Additional GPS collars were deployed in January 2022 with support from the U.S. Forest Service, Mule Deer Foundation, and other partners. Primary threats to the herd’s migration involve high volume roads including Interstate...
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