By Phoebe Coburn, Communications Specialist
Morgan Graham, Teton Conservation District’s GIS & Wildlife Specialist, started counting mule deer when he moved to Jackson in 2006. Since then, he has observed more than 3,650 deer over a series of 450 observations.*
Morgan Graham enjoying an afternoon counting mule deer.
Morgan now counts mule deer on the southern slopes of East Gros Ventre Butte about once a week. He records the number of deer observed, their activity (ex. eating or bedding), their approximate location, general weather, and other information. He compiles that data into a geodatabase, which can help us visualize where and how many deer are spending their time on the butte from year to year.
I tagged along with Morgan last week and we spotted 130 deer! Well, I spotted about 10 and Morgan spotted 120. I’ve lived in Jackson nearly my entire life, and the astounding part of this experience was that we didn’t have to hike anywhere or hide out in secret blinds—we spotted all 130 deer in under two hours from Morgan’s “very secret” observation stations: parking lots around town!
This Winter Mule Deer Observation Study builds upon efforts conducted by Biota Research and Consulting (from 1981 to 1992) and subsequently the Conservation Research Center of Teton Science Schools (from 2004 to 2009). With a recent perceived decline in mule deer populations, Morgan decided to pick the observation study back up again. “We have a general idea of the size of the Jackson deer herd based on Wyoming Game and Fish Department harvest counts, but those counts lump in animals from the Wyoming Range. This long-term dataset isn’t perfect. However, it gives us the best idea of the number of deer utilizing winter range adjacent to the town of Jackson,” said Morgan. So far this year, he’s counted 420 mule deer from the three in-town observation stations. The data hasn’t been analyzed yet, so we can’t draw any conclusions about the historical mule deer population trends, but Morgan says he hopes data products will help people understand the importance of honoring winter range closures (Don’t Poach the Powder bro!).
Winter deer observations on East Gros Ventre Butte. Circles buffered by total number of deer observed at each location. Largest red circle is an observation of 155 deer in December 1989…..most likely due to illegal backyard feeding.
Mule deer spotted through a scope.
I asked Morgan if he has any tips on spotting deer. He said he likes to slowly “paint” the butte with his scope or binoculars, methodically moving up and down and up again across the hillside. If you’d like to spot a mule deer in Jackson, you don’t have to go far! Take a moment to pause anywhere in town where you can see East Gros Ventre Butte. Using binoculars or a scope is definitely helpful, as is the fresh snow—it’s much easier to spot a deer on snow than bedded down in grass. Taking a moment to connect with nature close to home (while social distancing!) can help ease stress and cabin fever. Plus, it’s always nice to know that when you’re viewing wildlife from far away, you don’t risk disturbing them.
*Keep in mind that Morgan has likely counted the same individual deer more than once—the number of observed deer is different than the number of individual deer.