Mule Deer Working Group
By Jim Heffelfinger, Arizona Game & Fish Dept and Brandon Mason, Mule Deer Foundation
History and Status of the Mule Deer Working Group
In 1997, the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (WAFWA) established a Mule Deer Working Group (MDWG) consisting of a representative from each western state and western Canadian province. In 2006, the Mule Deer Foundation (MDF) had the privilege of being a member of WAFWA as well as having a staff member acting as a liaison between the MDWG and the MDF.
Since the time of the MDWG’s inception, it has been successfully addressing mule and black-tailed deer concerns, shared among wildlife agencies in western North America. The purpose for this working group was to: 1) Begin to develop strategies to assist in management of declining mule deer populations throughout the West; 2) Improve communication among mule deer biologists throughout the West; 3) Provide a forum to respond to information needs from agency administration.
Below are a list of accomplishments by the working group and also a list of tasks that the group has been involved in.
Major Accomplishments
- A published paper summarizing predator research and management experience in the West (Ballard et al. 2001. Deer-predator relationships: a review of recent North American studies with emphasis on mule and black-tailed deer. Wildlife Society Bulletin 29:99-115). This publication was timely and scholarly, when agencies throughout the west were struggling with public pressure on both sides of this issue.
- Markedly better communication among mule deer biologists in all western states and provinces. Mule deer issues are now informally discussed among states/provinces to the mutual benefit of all involved.
- Coordination of the biennial Western States Deer/Elk Workshop and a standardization of format and deer population trend data.
- A book summarizing the current knowledge, challenges and opportunities for the important issues identified by leading mule deer experts (Mule Deer Conservation: Issues and Management Strategies. 2003. J. C. deVos, M. R. Conover, and N. E. Headrick, editors, Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies and Jack H. Berryman Institute, Logan, Utah. 240pp.).
- Produced a popularized version of the above book for easy reading by non-biologists printed in glossy newspaper format (Mule Deer: Changing Landscapes, Changing Perspectives). Also available in PDF and interactive Web format.
- Produced and published the North American Mule Deer Conservation Plan to guide the conservation of this important species throughout the continent. An MOU in support of this plan was signed by all federal partners assuring that they will work to incorporate mule deer habitat needs into their everyday activities. Also available in PDF format.
- One desire from the original establishment of the MDWG was to increase communication among member agencies and one potential place for improvement is in standardizing deer population monitoring techniques. The group took part in a workshop in Reno in 2005 to discuss differences and try to find solutions. This resulted in a published paper (Mason et al. 2006. A case for standardized ungulate surveys and data management in the western United States, Wildlife Society Bulletin 34:1238-1242).
- Completed an interactive GIS map of North America to identify important mule deer habitat features to aid in managing mule deer and their habitat on a landscape scale. The group is currently converting this information so it can be used by anyone with Google Earth.
- The MDWG was awarded the Wildlife Management Institute’s “Touchstone Award” in 2006. The Touchstone Award recognizes the achievement of a natural resource management program, professional or group of professionals in the public or private sector.
Current Projects
Mule Deer Habitat Guidelines
One of the current projects has the potential to provide the greatest benefit to mule deer habitat on a landscape scale. The working group is in the process of producing a set of mule deer habitat guidelines for each of the 7 ecological regions (ecoregions) they identified in North America. The habitat guidelines are being produced in a 7-part series and include guidelines for the following ecoregions: Southwest Deserts, California Woodland and Chaparral, Colorado Plateau, Coastal Rainforest, Northern Forest, Intermountain West and the Great Plains. These will have the potential to improve black-tailed and mule deer habitat on a landscape scale by allowing federal, state, local, private, and tribal land managers to fold mule deer habitat requirements into land management plans.
Deer/Elk Workshop Proceedings in PDF
The MDWG has facilitated a complete scanning of all past Deer/Elk Workshop Proceedings into a searchable PDF format. These are now available to anyone free of charge on the website
Wallmo Award Bronzes
The MDWG raised money and facilitated the casting of 10 more bronzes to be used as O. C. “Charlie” Wallmo Awards to the leading black-tailed or mule deer researcher or manager in North America. This award is given out every 2 years at the Deer/Elk Workshop. The MDWG and Mule Deer Foundation raised $5,000 to have 10 more bronzes produced (20 years worth) by Joe B. Wallmo, whose father the award is named after.
North American Mule Deer Conservation Plan Implementation
An implementation matrix for the North American Mule Deer Conservation Plan (NAMDCP) is continually updated by the MDWG to track progress made toward the strategies and goals by member agencies and federal partners.
Large-scale habitat restoration and management–Using products from the MDWG
The MDWG is collaborating with Jim deVos (Southwest Wildlife Advisory Group; www.southwestwildlifegroup.com) on the Kaibab-Paunsagant Habitat Restoration Project. Jim has been funded by the AZ Sportsmen for Wildlife and Conservation to write proposals on the Strip and Kaibab area in what will be at least a 10-year program of habitat restoration. The goal is to have the first treatment of 2,000 acres in the next 24 months. There have been only a few projects of this scale that have been developed by conservation groups (Ducks Unlimited and their Joint Venture is a model). The intent is to build partnerships among the Arizona Sportsmen for Wildlife Conservation, AZ Deer Association, MDWG, MDF, USFS, BLM, AGFD, UDOW, NRCS, Grand Canyon Trust and any other interested party to accomplish this huge, landscape-scale habitat restoration project. This area has been identified as needing habitat restoration because of large-scale wild fires, invasion of cheatgrass, and increased density of pinyon and juniper in an area of great interest among mule deer enthusiasts. The MDWG and the products that it has produced, and continue to produce, are being used as the technical guidance for this project and many related efforts.
Other programs and initiatives that the MDWG has been providing or can provide some technical assistance and guidelines to are:
- Western Landscape Conservation Initiative in Southwest Wyoming is using the information the MDWG produced in their planning.
- Statewide Mule Deer Initiatives in the Idaho, Wyoming, and New Mexico are all based heavily on the documents and information the MDWG has produced.
- Murphy Complex sagebrush restoration in Nevada/Idaho is a great opportunity to use the habitat guidelines and strategies in the North American Mule Deer Conservation Plan.
- All states should strive to inject the mule deer guidelines and NAMDCP strategies into revisions of upcoming RMPs, FMPs, AMPs, etc.
- A budding cooperative effort in Idaho, Utah, & Nevada to manage the wildfire/cheatgrass cycle is another area we will use the tools that the MDWG has produced to help mule deer and their habitat.
- Federal Farm Bill offers opportunities to manage large tracts of habitat optimally for mule deer.
More Standardization in Population Monitoring Guidelines
The MDWG has started to focus on developing mule deer population monitoring guidelines. The group took part in a workshop in Reno in 2005 to discuss population monitoring differences and try to find solutions. This resulted in a published paper (Mason et al. 2006, see above). This has been a very difficult challenge to resolve because of the logistical and fiscal constraints each state/province faces with regard to selecting a specific monitoring approach. The MDWG is in the process of drafting guidelines that agencies can use to guide their monitoring activities. The guidelines will focus on just the basic information an agency needs to monitor a deer population and offer a range of methods and techniques that some agencies have found useful in capturing those data.
This MDWG has been very successful in their efforts to reach the aforementioned goals and is considered one of the most active and productive working groups sponsored by WAFWA. The MDF is very appreciative of all of the tasks that the MDWG has accomplished and is currently working on. The future of deer and our western wildlife populations depends on a cohesive network of wildlife professionals working together with conservation organizations towards a common goal. Great strides have been made but more need to be done to “ensure the conservation of mule deer, black-tailed deer and their habitats.”
