There is currently much pressure from cities and sportsmen to transplant deer from urban areas to wild populations; however, little is known about how deer do in this situations. Results from the proposed study will provide managers with an understanding of survival, costs and impacts in urban areas of translocating urban mule deer. This will allow managers to judge the efficacy of using translocation as a tool to address urban deer conflicts. Managers will also be able to determine relative costs of capture using a variety of capture techniques, and the benefits translocation supplements provide to wild populations.

The overall goal of this graduate project is to determine the efficacy of using translocation as a method of urban deer control by determining the survival rate of translocated deer, cost per deer of capture across multiple capture techniques, and assessing the change in urban deer populations by looking at changes in deer vehicle collisions and public perceptions. 1. Evaluate the efficacy of translocation as a management tool to reduce human-wildlife conflicts with urban mule deer a. Design and administer a survey questionnaire to determine public perceptions of urban deer pre-and post-treatment b. Assess the change in number of deer-vehicle collisions in the city before and after the translocation study 2. Estimate and compare the annual survival rate of translocated urban mule deer at two different release sites a. Make additional comparisons to other translocation studies and estimates of wild deer survival in the vicinity of the release locations 3. Calculate the cost per deer of capture using varied capture methods 4. Assess the body condition of captured urban deer a. Compare body condition to wild mule deer in Utah b. Examine the effect of body condition at capture on post-release survival probability

Urban deer issues continue to increase. Not doing this study will delay our knowledge of whether this is a viable option or not.

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2 PMArchaeology, NA, Apr 1 2015 / 6 NEPA, NA, Apr 1 2015

During winter 2014--2015, the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (UDWR) will remove 200 adult does and buck mule deer from Bountiful, Utah, adjacent cities and other suburban areas along the Wasatch Front and release 100 in the Raft River Mountains in Box Elder County and 100 in Big Wash in Duchesne County. Capture start date will be dependent upon the first significant snowfall and will continue until conditions warm and snow melts. The UDWR will capture deer using multiple techniques including drop net, clover trap, drive net and canister net. Traps will be baited and set in the evenings and checked at first light. When traps are checked and nets are deployed, division personnel and volunteers will manually restrain deer until they are hobbled and blindfolded. Animals will be placed in sternal or left lateral recumbency to prevent bloat. The heart rate, respiratory rate and rectal temperature will be monitored and recorded approximately every 5 minutes throughout processing. At rectal temperatures > 104F, animals will be cooled by applying ice bags, water, or alcohol to the neck, chest and abdomen. All bucks will have their antlers removed to ensure the safety of animal handlers and that of the animal. Deer will then be aged, sexed, weighed assessed for body condition (Riney 1960, Cook et al. 2010) and have measurements of the metatarsus and chest girth taken (Parker 1987). A blood sample may be taken by venipuncture. All deer will receive a numbered ear tag; yearling and adult deer will also be tested for chronic wasting disease (CWD) by a rectal biopsy and fitted with a radio collar (does) or ear tag radio transmitter (bucks). To complete CWD testing, a liberal amount of analgesic cream will be applied to the anus of each animal immediately upon arrival. A rectal speculum will be inserted into the anus. A 1x1 cm piece of the rectal mucosa will be extracted and placed into a tissue cassette and fixed in formalin. Gauze will be placed over the extraction site. New gloves and disposable speculums, forceps, tweezers and iris scissors will be used on each animal to prevent transmission of disease. All deer will receive an injection of FlunixiJect (Flunixin meglumine, 2.2 mg/kg intramuscularly) to reduce pain and stiffness and be given Ivomec (Ivermectin, 0.2 mg/kg subcutaneously), an antiparasitic. Chemical immobilization drugs will be used on a very limited basis for individual deer which pose a risk to itself or others and will only be administered by trained DNR personnel. Each deer will be loaded into a horse trailer or box and transported to the release location. Deer may be taken from multiple trap locations to a central location and transferred to one trailer before being taken to release site. Deer will be captured, processed, transported and released on the same day. Release at the site will occur as quickly as possible to minimize time spent in the trailer. Following release, the graduate student will monitor for radio signals at least once a month over the course of two years to determine survival. Monitoring will be conducted by fixed-wing aircraft every other month and on the ground as needed. All mortality signals will be found as soon as possible so collars can be retrieved and necessary data can be collected at the scene. During year two of the study beginning winter of 2015--2016, another round of trapping will commence at the first significant snowfall and continue until snow melt. Procedures will be similar to those outlined for year 1.

Transplanted deer will be monitored through a combination of aerial and ground telemetry.

We will partner with cities and sportsmen groups.

If proven successful, transplanting urban deer may be used in the future to help alleviate urban deer issues.

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07/01/2016

06/30/2017

2017

Bountiful November 13, 2014 -- March 4, 2015: DWR with the help of SFW, MDF and other volunteers trapped and relocated 211 mule deer from Bountiful, UT. * 100 adults fitted with radio collars (77 females) or ear tag transmitters (23 bucks) o Trap site mortality 1.9% (4); transport mortality 0% Release Sites * Big Wash, Duchesne County o 99 deer released in Big Wash o 48 radio marked deer * Raft River Mountains, Box Elder County o 94 deer released in Raft River Mountains o 52 radio marked deer * East Canyon WMA, Morgan County (Not part of survival study) o 14 deer released in East Canyon WMA December 1, 2015 -- February 18, 2016: DWR with the help of SFW, MDF and other volunteers trapped and relocated 265 mule deer from Bountiful, UT * 117 adults fitted with radio collars (77 does) or ear tag transmitters (23 males) o Trap site mortality 2.6% (7); transport mortality 0.4% (1)   Release Sites * Big Wash, Duchesne County o 94 deer released in Big Wash o 58 radio marked deer * Raft River Mountains, Box Elder County o 93 deer released in Raft River Mountains o 59 radio marked deer * Manti, Emery County (Not part of survival study) o 69 deer released on the Manti o 59 radio marked deer (10 with 3-month transmitters) * East Canyon WMA, Morgan County (Not part of survival study) o 2 deer released in East Canyon WMA (no radios) Telemetry/Movements * Raft River o Deer have migrated back to winter range including some that summered in Idaho o No tagged or radio collared deer reported harvested this year * Big Wash o Deer also making large movements and have been found north along Starvation Reservoir and just south of Roosevelt and west near Strawberry Reservoir o Report of two deer harvested by a hunters near Roosevelt, including a doe that was in the extended archery area * Deer will continue to be monitored up to two years post release Public Perception Survey * Cross-sectional and longitudinal telephone survey of general attitudes towards deer, perceived problems and beliefs about management options * 14 questions, added 15th in 2016 -- Season of deer problems * December 2014 -- Pre-Translocation Survey o 488 completed surveys * November 2016 -- Post-Translocation Survey o 707 completed surveys  245 resampled  462 new respondents * Damage to gardens and landscaping and vehicle collisions were viewed as the most serious problems caused by the deer. * The majority of residents across sample groups believed trap and relocation was the most acceptable management solution. * Compared to 2014, respondents to the 2016 survey provided weaker support for statements that there are too many deer in the city and that management action must be taken. Capture Costs * Created a template for cities to use to estimate costs * Cost per deer most dependent on some fixed costs (ex: radio collars) and variable costs (ex: number of personnel and pay rate, miles to release site) * First cost estimates for the Bountiful project FY2015 and FY2016 o $242-282 per deer 11-Month Apparent Survival Estimates for RR & BW Combined * Adult females from all years tracking other Utah wild deer translocation projects * Male survival lower possibly due to: o Small sample size o Different energetic needs o Hunting allowed in study areas Other Interesting Facts: * All translocated urban deer tested for CWD returned negative results for all capture years and locations o 214 CWD samples taken, no positives

Project background/goals: Mule deer populations have been under population objectives throughout much of Utah but in contrast, numbers have increased in urban and suburban areas. These resident urban deer create conflicts with humans including damaging landscaping and gardens, causing deer-vehicle collisions and are considered a general nuisance. Traditional urban deer management has included special public hunts or sharpshooters; however, these methods often have limited use within high density municipalities due to firearm ordinances and perceptions about safety. As a result, Utah DWR, with USU, SFW and MDF, initiated a trap and translocate project to determine its efficacy as a potential management tool to reduce urban herds while supplementing declining wild herds. Project goals include determining annual survival rate for deer at each release site and comparing with other translocation and survival studies; administering a survey questionnaire to determine public perceptions of urban deer pre-and post-treatment; assess the change in deer-vehicle collisions in the city; calculate the cost per deer using varied capture methods and assess body condition of captured urban deer. Cause of death will not be studied in this project, but other studies results will be taken into consideration.

The DWR has continued to trap and relocate urban deer throughout the Wasatch Front.