Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Units Program: Wyoming
Education, Research and Technical Assistance for Managing Our Natural Resources

Interstate 80 crosses the range of the Uinta Mule Deer Herd which comprises approximately 12,000 to 14,000 animals. These deer are known to cross I-80, which dissects the winter range for this herd. As deer navigate between seasonal ranges they are exposed to being hit by vehicles along the I-80 corridor and in other locations in the herd unit. There is a need for comprehensive assessment of the movements and migratory routes of the Uinta herd to provide information for effective mitigation of the wildlife-vehicle collisions (WVCs). The project is a collaboration of researchers across multiple agencies and includes the University of Wyoming, Wyoming Cooperative Fish & Wildlife Research Unit, Wyoming Migration Initiative, Wyoming Game and Fish Department (WGFD), and the Wyoming Department of Transportation (WYDOT). Mule deer migration corridors have never been mapped in this part of Wyoming, and this collaring study is providing this critical information to identify current mule deer use of existing crossing structures along the I-80 corridor. This study will collect movement and habitat use data for mule deer to aid WYDOT, WGFD, and partners in reducing wildlife vehicle collisions and conserving ungulate migrations along the I-80 corridor in western Wyoming.