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Because deer, unlike elk, do not concentrate in certain areas to <br />• bear their young, no key deer fawning areas are known to exist; <br />however, the large number of does with fawns commonly observed <br />throughout the early summer in or near dense stands of oak and <br />service berry indicates there is high usage by the does of these <br />areas. In addition, most doe and fawn observations are made near <br />water ponds located on the site, along Taylor Creek and near the <br />springs in upper Streeter Draw, because the does do not like to <br />move considerable distances to water when the fawns are very young. <br />From this observation, it appears that those areas of good cover <br />within one-fourth to one-half mile of water are key areas for <br />fawning. <br />Data collected from 1974 to 1977 indicated that browse use by deer, <br />elk and cattle, both past and present, was excessive. This was <br />evidenced by the "hedged" and "decadent" condition of the majority <br />of the browse found in the study area. All browse species (e.g., <br />oak, serviceberry, sage, rabbitbrush, snowberry, and bitterbrush) <br />showed signs of over-utilization. <br />The net result of the past browse use was a reduction in annual <br />• growth with less available palatable forage. In addition, species <br />such as oak and serviceberry have grown taller, with palatable <br />growth limited to those portions of the shrubs that are out of <br />reach to all but the largest elk. In some instances, even the <br />larger elk are unable to reach the growth. <br />As the oak and serviceberry have grown taller, they have created <br />large windbreaks. In the winter these dense areas of cover hold <br />the snow, which becomes deep enough to limit all access by deer and <br />elk. The serviceberry-snowberry transects showed low use for both <br />1974-1975 and 1975-1976. The snowberry bushes which were <br />completely covered by deep snows showed no use. The use of the <br />serviceberry has been limited to bushes near the edges of the <br />stands where less snow buildup occurs. <br />1~I7.6 <br />During the winter of 1975 deer use of some areas changed from <br />the winter of 1974-1975. The big sage transect showed a higher use <br />in 1975-1976. The snow cover was much lower in 1975-1976 and 1976- <br />1977 than in 1974-1975, and a result the deer were better able to <br />utilize the big sage. <br /> <br />2.04.11-12 <br />