Black-tailed deer (Odocoileus hemionus columnbianus) populations and hunter harvest trends have declined in Oregon since 1994. The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) is concerned with this decline and has identified current knowledge gaps regarding black-tailed deer ecology in Oregon that are necessary to facilitate ODFW’s management of this species. To address these knowledge gaps, ODFW initiated a large-scale, long-term black-tailed deer research project in the fall of 2011 that included the attachment of VHF and GPS radio-collars to adult deer. In collaboration with a Unit graduate student, these radio telemetry data will be used by the student to generate seasonal resource selection functions and estimate seasonal and annual survival rates of black-tailed deer relative to habitat use. Information on habitat selection and it's effect on key vital rates like adults survival would fill a primary knowledge gap for black-tailed deer in Oregon that will facilitate effective management by ODFW.
