Wintering Grounds Question

ABolt

Member
Messages
20
Have a couple questions about the wintering grounds of muleys.

1. Do they typically go to the same area every winter?
2. If their summer range gets pounded early with snow, and they go to their wintering range, will they go back to their summer range if it warms up within a few weeks or do they typically know to stay there for longer.

Thanks guys
 
I believe,
1. Yes.
2. They will move down as far as they need to to get by, which may be lower elevation summer range or transition range. I doubt they would move back to higher ground if their was enough snow to push them down. They can tolerate more snow than many think as long as there is good browse. I expect most seasoned bucks move down to the secondary ridges from the higher country in an effort to avoid hunters, before snow pushes them down.
 
Assuming the following, the deer summer at or above treeline, they winter in lowland sage of the same river drainage.

They generally leave tree line as soon as it frosts hard.
They head as much as 50-100 miles towards their winter grounds avoiding pressure, pressure of snow from up-valley, pressure from orange from down -valley.

Some end up in the same 10 acres of sage every year, some end up in the same 10 sq miles and use almost all of it, depends on the animal/snow pack.

Winter range is not a very precise term, what is normally winter range is devoid of deer right now they are on what I call the "dying range", as in there is no more "down" without swimming.

Wherever they winter is 'winter range" for that particular winter.
 
>Have a couple questions about the
>wintering grounds of muleys.
>
>1. Do they typically go to
>the same area every winter?
>
>2. If their summer range gets
>pounded early with snow, and
>they go to their wintering
>range, will they go back
>to their summer range if
>it warms up within a
>few weeks or do they
>typically know to stay there
>for longer.
>
>Thanks guys
Too many variables to give exact answers. I have been hunting where we got a big snow up high, deer bailed off the high country into the benches where winter range begins. Doe kept going out to winter range. A few days later we got a big warm up, snow melted. A few days after that the bucks where back on top. No doe. Same thing happened in the cascades with blacktail one year. Another area the deer drop off the cascade range 5000' to 8000'. Migrate 10 to 20 miles across a lower level area, then up hill to a large 5000' plus plateau. Then use it as the fall range until snow pushes them to winter range 20-40 miles farther east. Where the deer summer and what is between it and winter range Dictates the migration.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------support your local guzzlers. OHA life member,lapine oregon
 

Click-a-Pic ... Details & Bigger Photos
Back
Top Bottom