Volunteer Opportunity- July 13th Fence Removal Project-Wood River Chapter-MDF

[Hunthigh1]

What: Fence Removal at Rock Creek Ranch. SW of Hailey Idaho - Conducted by the new Wood River Chapter of MDF
When: Saturday July 13th-8AM
Where: Meet at the Rest Stop at Highway 20 and Highway 75 junction located South of Hailey, west of Picabo.
Why: Removing fence that obstructs ungulate migration in the Wood River valley. Fence location was Identified by IDFG as priority.
What to bring: Leather Gloves, Hat, Water, lunch, Sunglasses, rugged clothing, boots, fence pliers/wire cutters if you have them. We will have some extra gloves, and fencing pliers for volunteers if needed.

For questions PM me here on Rokslide, ANY help spreading the word is appreciated.

NOTE: I will be away from cell and internet from July 4th-10th so will be non-responsive to messages until July 10. The event is all-system's go and we are looking forward to your help completing some more on-the-ground work for migrating wildlife.

 

[robby denning]

you guys are FREAKING awesome!

Sticky Status awarded.

Just sent you a PM for podcast invite.

Thanks for serving Mule Deer! Hats off to you all

 

[Hunthigh1]

Thank you Robby! Post edited to add specific meetup details.

 

[Geewhiz]

I don't mean this to downplay what you guys are doing in any way but as an honest question, with probably literally millions of miles of fences in idaho that mule deer jump on a regular basis, why is this seen as a priority? I've never really observed regular fences obstructing mule deer migrations, or is it a high fence?

Also, regardless of your answer I appreciate all involved that are making an effort to be productive.

 

[Hunthigh1]

The short answer: Migration corridors. With the increase in use of GPS collars, biologists are able to narrow down the most commonly used migration routes. If you hunt any of these big migrations, you may know them relatively well without the need for collar data. When fence removal efforts are focused on specific locations that are known to have hundreds or thousands of animals crossing them each spring and fall I think the efforts can make a difference. I have personally seen deer, antelope, and sage grouse killed by becoming entangled in fence. This doesn't include the extra energy they burn dealing with fences from a calorie expenditure, predator avoidance, and habitat fragmentation standpoint. Pronghorn have a really hard time with fences and this project may benefit them more than any other species.

Similar thinking is being used when these "wildlife overpasses" are being built. They only build them in spots that are know for heavy wildlife crossing due to collar data and road kill data.

If you check out these papers:

USGS Publications Warehouse

Broadly distributed across the Western United States, ungulates (hooved mammals) play an important role in ecosystem function by affecting vegetation communities and forming the prey base for large carnivores. Additionally, ungulates provide economic benefits to regional communities through...

pubs.usgs.gov

USGS Publications Warehouse

Migration is widespread across taxonomic groups and increasingly recognized as fundamental to maintaining abundant wildlife populations and communities. Many ungulate herds migrate across the western United States to access food and avoid harsh environmental conditions. With the advent of global...

pubs.usgs.gov

USGS Publications Warehouse

Across the western United States, many ungulate herds must migrate seasonally to access resources and avoid harsh winter conditions. Because these migration paths cover vast landscapes (in other words migration distances up to 150 miles [241 kilometers]), they are increasingly threatened by...

pubs.usgs.gov

...you will see a general overview of many migrations throughout the western us. They provide a very zoomed-out look at it. BUT, when you use that data to zoom in a bit I think identifying specific areas to improve mule deer habitat becomes doable. Our chapter's fence removal projects will always be focused on key migration corridors or significant winter range and should never be a random fence out on a rarely used hillside.

Since we have just started this chapter, we don't own any sage or bitterbrush seedling to plant this year. So, planting efforts are ruled out for now. We will be collecting seed this fall for planting efforts in 2025 and beyond. We are awaiting word on some possible leftover IDFG plants that we may luck out on and be able to plant a little bit this year in a burnt portion of winter range.

 

[Geewhiz]

Thanks for taking the time to respond.

 

[Customweld]

Good to see some work being done for the muleys! Hope you guys get a good turnout.

 

[Hunterscamera]

I'm down to help

 

[Bubblehide]

That would be one heck of a drive for me. I'm tempted, but not tempted enough considering the minimum 2+ day drive. But if I have a co-driver, it might make me commit.

 

[Hunthigh1]

That would be one heck of a drive for me. I'm tempted, but not tempted enough considering the minimum 2+ day drive. But if I have a co-driver, it might make me commit.

That is a LONG haul. Keep us in mind for a future project and maybe you can make a scouting trip out of it on the front or back end to help justify the drive. We hope to plan our habitat work with more advance notice in future.

 

[Hunthigh1]

I'm down to help

Awesome! See you there.

 

[Bubblehide]

That is a LONG haul. Keep us in mind for a future project and maybe you can make a scouting trip out of it on the front or back end to help justify the drive. We hope to plan our habitat work with more advance notice in future.

I've got two close friends in eastern Washington (I know, I'd be living on the Idaho side) that I am long overdue to visit; one is a vet, the other works for the VA. Throwing in some scouting would be a bonus.

 

[robby denning]

That would be one heck of a drive for me. I'm tempted, but not tempted enough considering the minimum 2+ day drive. But if I have a co-driver, it might make me commit.

Bubblehide for the win! that would be over the top!

There are 120+ MDF chapters out there, if you wanna pitch in, look for something closer, and pro-tip: volunteer in areas you might be hunting in future.

 

[robby denning]

And Hunthigh1 and I just recorded a 10 min segment on this project, the area affected, and his vision for the chapter. Runs on the Rokcast Monday 7/8

@Geewhiz , we covered your question in the episode

 

[Bubblehide]

Bubblehide for the win! that would be over the top!

There are 120+ MDF chapters out there, if you wanna pitch in, look for something closer, and pro-tip: volunteer in areas you might be hunting in future.

I appreciate your comments. I am familiar with the MDF and the great work chapters do. None the less, you made a great suggestion and as hunters, we should be involved in somevway shape or form.

 

[robby denning]

appreciate your comments. I am familiar with the MDF and the great work chapters do. None the less, you made a great suggestion and as hunters, we should be involved in somevway shape or form.

 

[IDVortex]

It's gone and went, granted i wouldn't had been able to do anything anyway. But I'd like to know if you may know of any other projects coming up?

 

[Hunthigh1]

It's gone and went, granted i wouldn't had been able to do anything anyway. But I'd like to know if you may know of any other projects coming up?

Thanks for your interest, I would be happy to keep this conservation section updated with upcoming projects from our chapter.

The Wood River chapter will be conducting a Sage Seed collection in the fall. We are awaiting approval from IDFG and BLM for specific location and timing. I would be happy to post that event when I have the details nailed down. Thanks for your interest. Yes, I know an event during hunting season is blasphemy, but I'm told it's the only time to effectively collect sage seed around here. We want to start building up a collection for future chapter planting efforts.

The event went well on Saturday. We had about 13 volunteers and completed our goal of just under 1 mile of fence removal by 1PM . Some of the fence included grid mesh-style sheep fence which is particularly hard on wildlife.

 

[Customweld]

Thanks for your interest, I would be happy to keep this conservation section updated with upcoming projects from our chapter.

The Wood River chapter will be conducting a Sage Seed collection in the fall. We are awaiting approval from IDFG and BLM for specific location and timing. I would be happy to post that event when I have the details nailed down. Thanks for your interest. Yes, I know an event during hunting season is blasphemy, but I'm told it's the only time to effectively collect sage seed around here. We want to start building up a collection for future chapter planting efforts.

The event went well on Saturday. We had about 13 volunteers and completed our goal of just under 1 mile of fence removal by 1PM . Some of the fence included grid mesh-style sheep fence which is particularly hard on wildlife.

That's awesome!

 

[IDVortex]

Thanks for your interest, I would be happy to keep this conservation section updated with upcoming projects from our chapter.

The Wood River chapter will be conducting a Sage Seed collection in the fall. We are awaiting approval from IDFG and BLM for specific location and timing. I would be happy to post that event when I have the details nailed down. Thanks for your interest. Yes, I know an event during hunting season is blasphemy, but I'm told it's the only time to effectively collect sage seed around here. We want to start building up a collection for future chapter planting efforts.

The event went well on Saturday. We had about 13 volunteers and completed our goal of just under 1 mile of fence removal by 1PM . Some of the fence included grid mesh-style sheep fence which is particularly hard on wildlife.

One way to look at it is, give up a few days for hunting, or have to give up hunting mule deer completely. People need to look at the long term project, not short term.