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~~ J <br />I 1 <br />• • ~ • <br />/ Nt<. Kent CYofts <br />I4t. Terrell Johnson December 30, 1981 <br />Page 3 <br />Page ten, second paragraph. Future reports should include information <br />on hunting season mortality as well as natural trnrtality. This kind of <br />information could be collected frcan check stations or questionna;res. <br />We ooald advise you of the best wetlands and the type of questions most <br />beneficial. In the future we will age rrortalities by the dental carnntion <br />technique if you will wllect one or both front incisors and submit them <br />to us. <br />Page 12, first paragraph. You state that a ~w~alf ratio of 62:100 (1.6:1) <br />on the permit area demonstrates that elk were as productive on the permit <br />area as off yet there is no mention of ww/calf ratios off the permit area <br />in this section of the report. This ratio is also the highest ratio mentioned <br />in your report. We suggest that you include a discussion of all cow/calf <br />ratios observed rather than selecting only those ratios which you chose to <br />discuss for whatever reason. As mentioned earlier we are interested in pre <br />and post-disturbance cow/calf ratios ca~q~ared to cow/calf ratios in ~ntrol <br />groups of animals. <br />Page 13, first paragraph. Did eight or nine of the r~idioed elk spend the <br />calving season in the permit area? On page 12, first paragraph you state <br />that eight of the 20 remained in the permit area yet 45~ indicates nine <br />rather than eight. <br />Page 13, last paragraph. Statements you made in the paragraph represent <br />your opinion based on one year of observation. Additionally our maps prepared <br />in 1976 have always shown that elk from many areas, but especially frwn the <br />south, winter in Eclanan and Twenty Mile Park. We fail to see how you have <br />concluded that this indicates an aance of calving habitat and that calving <br />habitat is not a limiting factor. [~ are irore interested in potential changes <br />in elk production rates than whether or not calving habitat is a limiting <br />factor in this specific instance. The primazy question is whether or not <br />production rates will change when elk are displaced from preferred calving <br />habitat. <br />We have re~nrnndations to make that we feel would increase either the scope <br />or the reliability of your study. First, and crost importantly, we strongly urge you <br />to consider a permanent antenna system for gathering radio telemetric observations. <br />According to Biggins and Pitcher (1978), a fixed antenna systen is the least expensive <br />per observation as well as the rrost accurate. Fixed antenna systems can be modified <br />by adding recording units to increase the number of observations. increasing the <br />number of observations is the best way to develop greater statistical reliability anti <br />observations can be increased most efficiently with a fired antenna system whether <br />or not you use recorders. <br />As Biggins and Pitcher (1978) point out there are two levels of radio telerietric <br />data. The first level is the number of instsimiented individuals which is generally <br />determined by economics rather than statistical analysis. The second level is the <br />