Great Basin Naturalist
Article Title
Winter habitat selection by reintroduced pronghorn on Antelope Island, Great Salt Lake, Utah
Abstract
The recent and future introduction of several ungulate species on Antelope Island necessitates knowledge of habitat use by each species. In this study habitat preferences of reintroduced pronghorn (Antilocapra americana) on Antelope Island were evaluated during February–March 1993 and January–March 1994. Elevation, slope, physiography, aspect, and habitat type of sites used by pronghorn were compared to similar data collected from random points. During the severe winter of 1993, pronghorn preferred terrain that was 1281–1380 m in elevation and was relatively flat or at the base of a hill. Slopes greater than 30% were avoided. South-facing slopes were preferred; west-facing slopes were avoided. Pronghorn preferred sagebrush habitats and avoided grasslands. During the mild winter of 1994, pronghorn showed preferences for slightly higher elevations, avoided slopes greater than 30%, but used other habitat features in proportion to their availability. Future winter studies of pronghorn should include considerations of snowfall patterns and the availability, versus the abundance, of sagebrush.
Recommended Citation
Kilgore, Melissa J. and Fairbanks, W. Sue
(1997)
"Winter habitat selection by reintroduced pronghorn on Antelope Island, Great Salt Lake, Utah,"
Great Basin Naturalist: Vol. 57:
No.
2, Article 7.
Available at:
https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/gbn/vol57/iss2/7