Facing a Downward Trend, Round Valley Mule Deer Get Boost from Public Support at Eastern Sierra Land Trust Field Trip

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Facing a Downward Trend, Round Valley Mule Deer Get Boost from Public Support at Eastern Sierra Land Trust Field Trip

Bishop, CA – March 15, 2024

At this time of the year, many animals that call the Eastern Sierra home are preparing for a long journey. When food and shelter become scarce in their usual habitat and the weather gets colder, many animals migrate to warmer areas. The Round Valley mule deer herd is no exception. Twice each year, the mule deer herd migrates between its winter range on the valley floor to its summer range in the High Sierra meadows and forests. The mule deer herd travels on the same paths each year, forming what biologists call a migration corridor. With each journey through the corridor, the herd will face both new and continuing threats to their survival.

Eastern Sierra Land Trust (ESLT) recently hosted a successful field trip to educate the public about the critical migration corridor of the Round Valley mule deer herd. The event, which drew 31 attendees including travelers from as far away as Fresno, CA, provided a firsthand look at the challenges faced by this iconic species.

“The Round Valley herd has unfortunately seen a decline in population due to various factors,” said Gena Wood, Community Connections Manager at ESLT. “This field trip aimed to highlight the importance of the migration corridor and garner public support for ongoing conservation efforts.”

The event featured insightful presentations from Stacy Corless, former Mono County Supervisor, and Katie Rodriguez, Senior Environmental Scientist with CalTrans. They provided updates on the much-anticipated Mammoth Wildlife Crossing project, a collaborative effort that ESLT is involved in, aimed at significantly reducing deer-vehicle collisions.

Dan Taylor, a California Deparment of Fish and Wildlife biologist, shared valuable insights on the current status of the Round Valley mule deer herd. Participants had the opportunity to observe the deer grazing in the distance through spotting scopes and binoculars, gaining a firsthand perspective of their migration journey.

A Narrow Passage and a Long Journey

The Round Valley mule deer undertake a remarkable twice-yearly migration, traveling between their summer range in the High Sierra meadows and their winter range in Round Valley. This journey presents a significant challenge as the deer must navigate a narrow bottleneck through Swall Meadows. Challenging winters, raging wildfires, droughts and additional human development have also made the mule deer herd’s migration increasingly more difficult each year. These changes have increased the threat on the important resources that the mule deer depend on to make their long journey.

“Thankfully, this critical bottleneck is permanently protected thanks to conservation easements established by forward-thinking landowners who formed ESLT in 2001,” said Kay Ogden, ESLT’s ED/CEO. Concerned by the impact human development would have on the mule deer herd, a group of residents and concerned citizens teamed up to form what would become Eastern Sierra Land Trust. Since then, ESLT has worked with local landowners in the Swall Meadows area to permanently protect private land to ensure a safer passage for the mule deer each year.

Wildlife Crossings: A Collaborative Solution

Another crucial element in protecting the mule deer is the ongoing effort to establish wildlife crossings in the Mammoth area. These crossings will significantly reduce deer-vehicle collisions, which pose a major threat to the herd’s population. “The goal of the Mammoth Lakes U.S. 395 Wildlife Crossing Project is to reduce wildlife-vehicle collisions (WVC) and restore a migration corridor in the Eastern Sierra, particularly for the Round Valley mule deer herd unit. Between 2016 and 2019, there were 226 deer-vehicle collisions (DVC’s) reported within the project area along U.S. 395 and State Route 203, creating an average of 57 DVC’s each year” said Katie Rodriguez, Senior Environmental Scientist at CalTrans.

“This area has been identified as the most active WVC hot spot in the Eastern Sierra Nevada (Mono County, Inyo County, and Eastern Kern County). Our Eastern Sierra Wildlife Stewardship Team successfully received a $3.17 million grant from the Wildlife Conservation Board to complete planning studies for the environmental document and updated design for the project. Having strong local support and a need backed by science has helped garner attention for our project on a state-wide level. We anticipate additional funding to push this beneficial project forward,” Rodriguez continued.

“The field trip offered a unique perspective of the migration path and the challenges faced by the deer,” said Wood. “Witnessing the bottleneck firsthand underscores the importance of collaborative efforts like the wildlife crossings project.” ESLT encourages continued public support for the Round Valley mule deer and other wildlife conservation initiatives.

About Eastern Sierra Land Trust

Eastern Sierra Land Trust works with willing landowners to protect vital lands in the Eastern Sierra region for their scenic, agricultural, natural, recreational, historical, and watershed values. To learn more about ESLT’s work and how to get involved, visit www.eslt.org.

News Staff