Migration Corridors of Mule Deer in the Kaibab Herd in Arizona

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 juniper. Summer range is dominated by a mix of ponderosa pine, spruce, fir, and aspen, interspersed with open meadows. There are currently few impediments to mule deer migration on the Kaibab Plateau. These data provide the location of migration corridors for Mule Deer from the Kaibab Herd in Arizona. They were developed from Brownian bridge movement models using 123 migration sequences collected from a sample size of 48 adult mule deer comprising GPS locations collected every 0.5-7 hours.

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  "geospatial"
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