How one Wyoming mule deer won friends and influenced science

Jo the deer offered researchers a look into migrations and how long it takes deer to visit a forest after a fire.

 

Wyoming Migration Initiative biologists release Jo the mule deer in Wyoming's Prospect Mountains after a quick biological check-in last December.

Every spring, a herd of more than 1,000 mule deer leaves its winter range in Wyoming’s Red Desert in search of bountiful grasses and forbs. Some of the animals travel far, heading north up to 155 miles to the mountain slopes of the Hoback Basin, while others stay closer to home. They reconvene in the fall to ride out the winter in the Red Desert.

But one deer — Jo, short for Journey — never made it back to the Red Desert this winter. Researchers announced her death in mid-March after her fans kept asking, “Where’s Jo?” Although it’s hard to pinpoint a cause of death without a biologist immediately at the scene, her collar stopped moving last July. When scientists located it, they also found evidence of bear scavenging. Now they’re looking back on her life and discussing just what made this deer so special: how she offered a window into how, and why, her herd fans out across the Wyoming landscape.

Researchers collared Jo in 2018 and, in the spring of 2020, introduced her to followers of the Wyoming Migration Initiative, a University of Wyoming-based collaborative of biologists, photographers, mapmakers and writers studying ungulate migrations. Research monitoring deer in the Hoback Basin started almost a decade earlier, yielding the data necessary to designate a 160-mile, 830,000-acre migratory corridor there. Mule deer populations throughout the state have been declining since the ’90s, and researchers are hoping to learn how to better protect and conserve their populations. In 2020, wildlife agency officials estimated that there were 330,700 mule deer in Wyoming — 31% below the target of 476,600 deer.

Other humans followed along as, for years, Jo moved between the Red Desert and the wildflower-dotted slopes of the Gros Ventre Range. Jo’s journey from basin to high country took about four months and entailed crossing rivers, bounding through sagebrush, raising fawns, and avoiding highways, energy development and fences. YouTube videos and social media posts chronicled her travels, and followers often left comments, writing, “Thanks for making it possible for us to travel along with Jo!” and “Safe travels!” 

Reactions to Jo’s death ranged from disappointment — “Bummer. She provided great intel and was fun to follow” — to emotional — “Rest in peace sweet girl. May your offspring flourish in this place we all love” — and matter-of-fact — “And so nature goes.”

“Her story is done, but her legacy will continue and so will the research,” said Anna Ortega, a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Wyoming. Jo — an excellent representative of the herd’s long-distance migrants — gave Ortega and her colleagues a unique opportunity to study ungulate movement post-wildfire. Celebrity animals, like Jo, are also a powerful way to pique interest in migrations. “It’s more likely that someone will be invested in, say, Jo the deer, than several thousand animals moving,” said Kristin Barker, a Ph.D. candidate at the University of California, Berkeley who studies elk in Wyoming. “It helps people connect more personally to something that would otherwise be abstract.” Barker herself was not involved in the Red Desert mule deer research.

“It helps people connect more personally to something that would otherwise be abstract.” 

Anna Ortega and Ben Robb release a mule deer (not Jo) after tagging, outside of Rock Springs in the Red Desert, Wyoming. Jo gave Ortega and her colleagues a unique opportunity to study ungulate movement post-wildfire.

A few months after Jo was born, lightning ignited the Cliff Creek Fire, which burned over 20,000 acres. Ortega found that the deer in Jo’s herd avoided the dense conifer forest before the fire, perhaps because a lack of sunlight meant fewer plants to eat. But afterward, Jo and others swept into the area, drawn by the lush new plant growth. “That suggests that wildfire does open up habitat that was once unfavored by mule deer or elk,” Ortega said. Jo raised several fawns on the vegetation that sprang up post-fire.  

Ortega is learning that where, and how rapidly, ungulates return to a burn scar is determined in part by burn severity. The animals tend to avoid extremely scorched areas at first, preferring places that experienced less intense fire activity, since they have the forage deer need. But after a year or two, once plants start to regrow in badly burned areas, ungulates flock to them again.

Jo’s own journeys added context to the movements of the greater herd. “When you look more closely at the individual level … you get a more nuanced understanding of how animals actively perceive and respond to their environment,” Barker said. Jo’s herd showed researchers that migration is key to survival, even when the distance traveled varies. “The thought is that migration diversity exists because there are some trade-offs in survival and reproduction,” Ortega said. “It’s similar to not putting all your eggs in one basket.” For example, deer that travel longer distances gain more fat over the growing season, but deer that migrate medium and shorter distances are more likely to see their fawns survive to fall.

One animal, known as Deer 255, wowed researchers with her record-setting migration — 242 miles one way, the longest documented land migration in the Lower 48. She helped set the upper bounds of the herd’s migration, but did not serve as the best proxy for understanding the majority. Most deer travel far, but not that far. “We haven’t captured anybody like her,” Ortega said. “She’s an anomaly and an outlier. But when we look at Jo, she’s representative of all the long-distance migrants.”

Although Jo’s journey ended last summer, others will soon begin. Spring is coming, snow is melting, plants are emerging, and within the next month or two, researchers will be watching to see where the next generation of mule deer go.

A trail-cam photo of Jo the deer captured in 2020.
Courtesy of Tanner Warder, Wyoming Coop Unit

Kylie Mohr is an editorial intern for High Country News writing from Montana. Email her at [email protected] or submit a letter to the editor. See our letters to the editor policy. 

 

High Country News Classifieds
  • ESCAPE THE CROWDS AND EMBRACE NATURE: AFFORDABLE RETREAT, JUST AN HOUR FROM GLACIER NATIONAL PARK AND BOB MARSHALL WILDERNESS!
    Welcome to your new tranquil oasis in Montana. This beautiful 2-bedroom home FSBO is just an hour's drive to the east entrance of Glacier National...
  • DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR
    Areas of Responsibility: The Development Director collaborates with the Executive Director, other HEAL Utah staff, board, and supporters to continue building one of Utah's most...
  • DIGITAL ENGAGEMENT SPECIALIST
    Position Summary Western Resource Advocates (WRA) is hiring an organized and creative Digital Engagement Specialist to join our Marketing and Communications Team. The Digital Engagement...
  • 92 ACRE EASTERN WASHINGTON GEM
    Welcome to Lost Creek Sanctuary... a true hidden gem in the heart of the Palouse. 1900 square feet, the main house is warm and charming,...
  • WEEKLY NEWSPAPER FOR SALE
    Vibrant, financially successful 1,100 print run, community-focused subscription newspaper in beautiful Pacific Northwest Washington seeks owner/s. It is time to retire. Now, your Norman Rockwell-like...
  • STAFF ATTORNEY - WILDLANDS AND WILDLIFE PROGRAM
    Job Opening Announcement: Wildlands and Wildlife Program Staff Attorney Reports to: Wildlands and Wildlife Program Director Location: Pacific Northwest, ideally in Eugene, Oregon, Portland, Oregon,...
  • HEAD OF PROJECT MANAGEMENT
    The Head of Project Management will oversee our project execution to ensure that we are providing our partners around the world with the field data...
  • LEGAL DIRECTOR
    Trustees for Alaska is the only nonprofit environmental law firm founded and based in Alaska. We are seeking a Legal Director, full-time based in Anchorage....
  • EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
    The Fund for People in Parks seeks leader to identify, develop, fund, and facilitate high-impact projects in western National Parks. Remote position with some travel....
  • GRASSROOTS REGIONAL COORDINATOR
    Great Old Broads for Wilderness is a women-led national grassroots organization that engages and inspires activism to preserve and protect wilderness and wild lands. The...
  • GRASSROOTS ADVOCACY MANAGER
    Great Old Broads for Wilderness is a women-led national grassroots organization that engages and inspires activism to preserve and protect wilderness and wild lands. Position...
  • GRASSROOTS LEADERSHIP DIRECTOR
    The Grassroots Leadership (Director) oversees the training, guidance, and support of volunteer Broadband Leaders. (Broadbands are women-led grassroots chapters, with 40+ across the country.) They...
  • FOCUS GROUP PARTICIPANT NEEDED
    We would like to invite you to participate in a 60-minute focus group to help us enhance the New Mexico Courts website (https://www.inside.nmcourts.gov/). Our aim...
  • GILA GRASSROOTS ORGANIZER
    New Mexico Wild is seeking a Gila Grassroots Organizer who is passionate about public lands and community engagement. The Gila Grassroots Organizer will take a...
  • 20/40 ACRES IN ARIZONA WINE COUNTRY
    Chiricahua riparian ecosystem: 5100 ft elevation:18+ inches of rain/year: 1/4 mile creek through property: The Chiricahuas' have been called: "The most biologically diverse place in...
  • SMALL CABIN WITH 260 ACRES
    Adorable quaint cabin on the Arizona Strip, on the foothills of the Kaibab Plateau with 260 acres bordering BLM lands on two sides of the...
  • STAFF ATTORNEY
    Food & Water Watch works to create a healthy future for all people and generations to come—a world where everyone has food they can trust,...
  • LUNATEC HYDRATION SPRAY BOTTLE
    A must for campers and outdoor enthusiasts. Cools, cleans and hydrates with mist, stream and shower patterns. Hundreds of uses.
  • LUNATEC ODOR-FREE DISHCLOTHS
    are a must try. They stay odor-free, dry fast, are durable and don't require machine washing. Try today.
  • EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
    The Civil Conversations Project, a 501c3 organization working to end racism in America is seeking an experienced and passionate part-time Executive Director. For full job...