The Mule Deer
Presented by:
Chelsey Faller
Introduction
• The Mule Deer is also called the
Black-tailed Deer
Classification / Taxonomy
• Odocoileus hemionus
• Class: Mammalia
– Order: Artiodactyla
• Family: Cervidae
– Genus: Odocoileus
Populations / Sub-populations I
• Two groups of sub-populations: the blacktailed deer and the mule deer
• Many sub-population
identifications are being
challenged due to lack
of genetic differences.
Populations / Sub-populations II
• Mule Deer sub-populations
– Rocky mountain Odocoileus hemionus hemionus
– California Odocoileus hemionus californicus
– Desert Odocoileus hemionus eremicus
– Southern Odocoileus hemionus fuliginatus
– Peninsula Odocoileus hemionus peninsulae
– Cedros Island Odocoileus hemionus cerrosensis
– Tiburon Island Odocoileus hemionus sheldoni
Populations / Sub-populations III
• Black-tailed Deer sub-populations
– Columbian Odocoileus hemionus columbianus
– Sitka Odocoileus hemionus sitkensis
Identification I
The Oregon Department of Fish
and Wildlife recommends the
following guide to determine if
an animal is a black-tailed deer,
a mule deer, or a white-tailed
deer.
Identification II
• Antlers
Identification III
• Those ears
Identification IV
• Top of the tail is dark brown to black
Distribution
• 18 States
• Introduced to Hawaii
• South to the end of the Mexican Plateau
• Black-tails along the Pacific coast from
northern CA to AK, mule deer elsewhere.
Distribution II
General Population Trends
• Experienced a decline from European arrival
through 1900
• Population expansion in 1910-1950
– Predators eradicated
• 1960s-70s population declined range-wide
– Over populated
• Many populations increased in 1980s-90s,
now declining again
Conservation Status & Legal Status
• Mule deer are in no danger given their vast
range and adaptability
• The Cedros Island Mule Deer is listed as
endangered, though its taxonomic status may
soon change
Economic Value
• Hunting
– In 2001 there were 4 million hunters in 4 of the
western states
– Spent $7 billion
• Average of $1,581
• Wildlife tourism
– 2001 22.5 million people in 18 states reported $14
billion in wildlife viewing expenditures (not just mule
deer)
• Mule deer are prey for other mega fauna that
people pay to see
Habitat
• “the resources
and conditions
present in an area
that produce
occupancy,
including survival
and reproduction,
by a given
organism” – Hall et al
1997
Natural History I
• Largest mule deer found in the Rockies,
smallest are black-tails along the Pacific coast.
• Males larger than females
– Females growth stops at
3 – 8 yrs of age
– Sexually mature as yearlings
Natural History II - Reproduction
• Breeding season is
September through
March
• In any location actual
breeding season is less
than a month.
• Can be polygamous or
polygynous
Natural History III - Reproduction
• 183 – 218 day gestation
• In any given location most fawns will be born
during a 1 month period
• 1-3 offspring, 99% of pregnancies will have 1-2
Behavior I
• Family groups – females with offspring
– Bucks forced out as yearlings
• Herd size determined by
cover and forage
• Small all-male herds
• Winter herds 100+
• Oldest/largest animals
are dominant
Behavior II
• Usually crepuscular
• Can be migratory
• In one population not all
will migrate
• Dispersal distance varies
greatly depending upon region and patchiness
of habitat
– 7 to 150 miles
Behavior III
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•
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Home range depends upon habitat.
Rough terrain = smaller home range
Males have larger home
In some populations deer are highly
dependent upon home range
will die rather than travel to
a new one
Columbian Black-tailed Deer Home
Range Fidelity
• Dasmann and Taber 1956
• Herds were a doe and young from previous
2 years
• Non-migratory
Columbian Black-tailed Deer Home
Range Fidelity
• Adult home ranges 700 -1400 yards
Columbian Black-tailed Deer Home
Range Fidelity
• Regrowth after fire provided excellent forage
• Deer stayed home and died of malnutrition
rather than journey 1000-2000 yards
– Didn’t know better forage was available, possibly
unable to realize they were malnourished?
Diet I
• Small rumens and gut lengths compared to
other ruminants
– Need higher-quality food
• Grazers/browsers
– Usually grasses and
forbs but also shrubs
and some trees
– Flowers, fruits, seeds,
buds, and leaves
Diet II
• Very opportunistic
• In growing season forbs and
grasses are primary foods
• In dormant season mostly
feeding on browse
• Highly location dependent
Diet III
Vancouver Island Mule Deer
Annual Diet
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67% browse
15% lichens
11% forbs
5% fungi
2% gramminoids
Cowen 1945
92% of available species
64% of available species
56% of available species
Diet IV
Rocky Mountain Mule Deer
• Rocky Mountain mule deer (Yukon to Texas)
• Across range they will eat
– 202 species of trees and shrubs
– 484 species of forbs
– 84 species of gramminoids (sedges, grasses, etc.)
Kufeld, Roland C.; Wallmo, O. C.; Feddema, Charles. 1973. Foods of the Rocky Mountain mule deer. Res.
Pap. RM-111. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Forest and
Range Experiment Station. 31 p
Predators I
• Coyotes, Mountain Lions, Wolves, Bobcats,
Bears, Humans.
• Eagles will take young
John Rogers
Predators II
• Mule deer can sprint at 58km/hr over short
distances
• Best at avoiding predators in rocky, rugged
terrain
– Special gait (bouncing and leaping) – 6-7m
• Excellent sense of smell
Predators III – Value to Mule Deer of
Being Prey
• Colorado
– Mule deer one of primary prey species for cougar
– Cougars selectively targeted mule deer infected
with CWD
– Cougars more likely to
kill an infected animal
then hunters
Malnutrition
• Malnutrition significant cause of death
• In desert/chaparral areas heat and aridity can
cause die-offs
• Snow coverage can be a major killer
• Weather dependent
Disease & Parasites
• Hoof-and-mouth disease, anthrax, tularemia,
rabbit fever, brucellosis, tuberculosis
– All can be transmitted to livestock
• Bluetongue virus and epizootic hemorrhagic
disease in the west
• CWD in Colorado, Wyoming, Nebraska
• Ticks
Competitors I
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Share range, often food species and shelter
Elk
Livestock
White –tailed deer
Competitors II
• White-tailed deer
– Slow vegetation changes favor white-tailed deer
– Expansion may not be a novel occurrence
– Habitat preferences overlap in many locations, but
not everywhere
Competitors III
• Elk
– Mule deer have a disease advantage (brain worm)
– When using same food as mule deer elk have an
advantage
– Mule deer need more digestible plants
– Development may favor elk
Interactions with Humans
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Oil, gas and mineral exploration
Urban growth
Highways, railroads and fences
Altered vegetation communities
– Not always bad
• Invasive plants
• Wildlife feeding
– malnutrition
Tucson Citizen - 2007
Population Dynamics I
• Population density changes with the seasons.
– In the mountains in winter, can reach 130/km2
– Lower density in prairies and deserts
• Oldest wild male 8, oldest wild female 14
• Populations will undergo large swings – cause
depends upon region
– Often depends on local vegetation succession
patterns
Population Dynamics II Sitka Black-tails
• Sitka black-tailed deer
population swings
• Causes for declines
– Harsh winter
– Illegal harvests
– Large logged areas re-grow and the canopy closes
• In some areas current expected decline of 60% by 2054
• Causes for increases
– Logging with small cuts
– Several years of low snowfall
Alaska Department of Fish and Game
Management of Populations I
• Condition of habitat impacts
populations
– Include thermal cover in winter,
security cover, shade, and food
• Habitat loss due to development
• Idaho – large mule deer declines
– Third fastest growing human population
– Growth hotspots are areas mule deer need in
winter
Management of Populations II
• Many populations declining
– Usually due to habitat quality/quantity declining
• Wildfire pattern severely diverging from historic patterns
• Humans
– Hunters seek higher density populations + large bucks
– Non-hunters seek less hunting as population declines
• Hoping less hunting will mean more deer for viewing
– Need to address the underlying problem(s) - bring
back habitat, lower expectations
Management of Populations –
Predators and Competitors I
• White-tailed deer populations growing
• Predator populations growing
• Washington State
– White-tails moving into mule
deer ranges
– Cougar population increasing
– Cougar will select mule deer
– Increased predation on mule deer driving down
population
Management of Populations
Predators and Competitors II
• Washington State
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Hunting cougars decreases # of mule deer predated
Increases white-tailed deer population > 30%/yr
Mule deer / white-tailed deer competition increases
Final result still unknown, mule deer losing for now
• Unintended results! Hunting cougars causes and
increase in human-cougar conflict
– Teenagers are trouble, hunting shifted population
towards young itinerant males
Management of Populations –
Predators and Competitors III
• Back to Washington State
– Area with no white-tailed deer + no cougar hunting,
otherwise very similar to other sites
• Mule deer not in decline
• Conclusion
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–
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Mule deer + white-tails = more cougars
Cougars prefer mule deer
Hunt cougars = more cougar - human conflict
Hunt cougars until extirpated = white-tailed deer
population explosion
– What then? Mule deer out competed
Management of Habitats - Logging
• Create patches of good cover and of good
feeding areas
– Patchy habitat usually means greater densities
– Often better if burned post-logging
• Logging – results in early successional habitat
– Caution in the far north – need cover in winter
• Logging slash – can be bad or good if left
behind
Management of Habitats - Fire
• Patchy fire is usually a good thing
– Results in early successional habitats
– Patches = lots of edge habitat with
forage and cover
• Large-scale intense fires can be
extremely detrimental
– Remove cover – kill too many trees
– Result in large-scale population
swings
Management of Habitats – Fire II
• Fire can help invasive species get established
• Season of fire matters
• Fire has different impacts in different regions
– In the southwest fire can remove spine from cacti,
making them attractive food
• Some species dependent upon fire to sprout
seeds
– Forage increases for several years following a fire
• But not if it’s so hot that it burns through the soil
Management: Damage Control
• Mule deer help to spread invasive plants
– Eat seeds and carry them around when migrating
• California chaparral areas – hottentot fig
• Get into crops/gardens/tree nurseries
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The more valuable an ornamental the tastier it is!
Because they jump 2m+ fences are needed
Electric fence – add peanut butter to make them lick
Time harvest to avoid deer
Dogs to frighten deer off
Slanted fence – can’t jump that!
Future Outlook
• Mule deer populations will likely continue to
decline
• White-tailed deer and elk will continue to
expand
• Extinction unlikely
some local populations
are fine and they have a
huge range
Future Management
• Limit development, avoid
areas wintering sites
• Hunt more white-tailed deer
and elk
• Keep up a regime of small,
mild, patchy fires
– Avoid large intense blazes
Current Events
• BLM – re-vegetating mule deer range in California
after fire August 2012 (315,000 acres).
– Volunteers planted 3,000 seedlings
• Roan Plateau – Colorado
– Oil and gas development on BLM land
– Fragmenting/destroying habitat
– Conservation and hunting groups sued to stop drilling
until a further impact review could be done
Current Events / Discussion
• Utah trying to “recover” mule deer populations
• Highest population occurred during the 1950s (500,000)
– Mule deer numbers then began immediate decline for several decades
• Utah Division of Wildlife Resources says that the population is only
50% of what they want (currently at 320,000)
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Also say that mule deer are overgrazing some of the available habitat.
Paying to move mule deer around the state by air
Bounties for coyote program – want to kill 10,000
Supposed to help mule deer
Research says coyotes don’t matter, it’s the weather
Doing it anyway – hunters happily say they want coyote extermination
to protect the big adult deer - when coyotes only kill fawns.
– As a bonus, killing coyotes may cause coyote population increase in
the short-term
Current Events / Discussion
• Predation by coyotes is not a limiting factor in nearby locations – 6yr study
on Utah/Idaho border (Hurley et al 2011)
– Population growth rate did not increase with coyote or cougar removal
– Coyote population mirrored lagomorphs, not mule deer
• Prey on mule deer more when lagomorphs population falling, still not a significant
impact
• Strong indications of climate/weather being the most important factor
• Disease also not a factor
• Mule deer over grazing parts of Utah range, population slowly increasing
or in decline elsewhere – could they be at/approaching K?
• If predator control will not have impact, then why do it?
• What other methods might increase the mule deer population?
• Should mule deer population increase to 1950s levels even be a goal at
all?
Sources
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The National Park Service at http://www.nps.gov/romo/naturescience/mule_deer.htm
US Fish and Wildlife Service at http://ecos.fws.gov/speciesProfile/profile/speciesProfile.action?spcode=A04K
Mammals of Texas online edition at http://www.nsrl.ttu.edu/tmot1/odochemi.htm
Mule Deer Foundation at http://www.muledeer.org/hunting
Mule Deer Working Group at http://www.muledeerworkinggroup.com/index.htm
Hanley, Thomas P. 1984. Relationships between Sitka black-tailed deer and their habitat. Gen. Tech. Rep. PNW-168. Portland,
OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Forest and Range Experiment Station. 21 p
Hurley et all. 2011. Demographic response of mule deer to experimental reduction of coyotes and mountain lions in
southeastern Idaho. Wildlife Monographs. 178:1-33.
Krumm, C. E., M.M. Conner, N.T. Hobbs, D.O. Hunter, and M.W. Millar . 2009. Mountain lion prey selectively on prion-infected
mule deer. Biology Letters. 6: 209-211
Leckenby, Donavin A. 1978. Western juniper management for mule deer. In: Martin, Robert E.; Dealy, J. Edward; Caraher,
David L., eds. Proceedings of the western juniper ecology and management workshop; 1977 January; Bend, OR. Gen. Tech.
Rep. PNW-74. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Forest and Range Experiment
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Fox, Kevin B.; Krausman, Paul R. 1994. Fawning habitat of desert mule deer. The Southwestern Naturalist. 39(3): 269-275.
Robinette, W. Leslie; Julander, Odell; Gashwiler, Jay S.; Smith, Justin G. 1952. Winter mortality of mule deer in Utah in
relation to range condition. The Journal of Wildlife Management. 16(3): 289-299.
Marshal, Jason P.; Krausman, Paul R.; Bleich, Vernon C. 2008. Body condition of mule deer in the Sonoran Desert is related to
rainfall. The Southwestern Naturalist. 53(3): 311-318
Forest Service:
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Innes, Robin J. 2013. Odocoileus hemionus. In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain
Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/ [ 2013, August 27].
http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/animals/mammal/odhe/all.html#Taxonomy
Sources II
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Dasman, R. F., and R. D. Taber. 1956. Behavior of Columbian black-tailed deer with reference to population
ecology. Journal of Mammalogy 37:143-164.
Texas Parks and Wildlife at
http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/landwater/land/habitats/southtx_plain/habitat_management/gun.phtml
Cowan, Ian McTaggart. 1945. The ecological relationships of the food of the Columbian black-tailed deer,
Odocoileus hemionus columbianus (Richardson), in the coast forest region of southern Vancouver Island, British
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Experiment Station. 31 p
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Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife
Martin, S. Clark. 1983. Responses of semidesert grasses and shrubs to fall burning. Journal of Range Management.
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Sources III (Pictures)
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VerCauteren, K. 2003. The Deer Boom: Discussions on the Populations Growth and Range Expansion of the White-tailed Deer. USDA National Wildlife Research Center
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alcommons.unl.edu%252Fcgi%252Fviewcontent.cgi%253Farticle%253D1276%2526context%253Dicwdm_usdanwrc%26ei%3D32onUtvaGInO9ASy8oHIBA%26usg%3D
AFQjCNE5o--VoZUX4K37CRokqHJ4jylD-w%26bvm%3Dbv.51495398%2Cd.eWU#search=%22white-tailed%20deer%20expanding%20mule%20deer%22
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