The Starkey Project: a synthesis of long-term studies of elk and mule deer

Abstract

The Starkey Project is a unique program that has combined long-term research with multi-disciplinary, multi-partner involvement. The research was, and still is, designed to answer management questions. Even studies designed as basic research have been conducted in a manner that could identify mechanisms relevant to management. What is particularly noteworthy is that this research approach has resulted in a wide array of information critical to the management of elk, mule deer, cattle, forests, and rangelands. Importantly, results have provided a better understanding of the many interactions among the three species and human uses of forests and rangelands.     The original Memorandum of Understanding developed for the Starkey Project reflected a long-term commitment by the Forest Service's PNW Research Station and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. Other partners who have been essential to the success of the Project include Boise Cascade Corporation, National Council for Air and Stream Improvement and the Eastern Oregon Agricultural Research Center of Oregon State University. Over 40 other partners, including federal and state agencies, universities, tribal nations, and private organizations have participated in the Project.     Four major themes of research were identified when the Starkey Project began in the mid-1980s. Elk herd productivity was being recognized as a major issue of herds in the Northwest. Intensive timber harvest and concomitant increases in road density and traffic related to both logging and recreation were recognized as having a substantial effect on deer and elk distributions across landscapes. Competition for forage among cattle, deer, and elk had long been a contentious issue among sportsmen, stockmen and wildlife managers. These four major issues-elk herd productivity, intensive timber management effects on deer and elk, roads and traffic effects on deer and elk, and competition for forage among elk, deer, and cattle-formed the basis for the project from 1989 through the late 1990s. Several complementary studies also were developed, such as the influence of late summer nutrition on elk cow and calf survival , and elk thermal cover needs. Again the long-term commitment of diverse research partners provided the opportunity to address critical information through a variety of studies beyond the original research themes.     The long-term commitment of the research partners is evident throughout this book. The manuscripts provided here synthesize the four major research themes and the many subsequent, complementary studies conducted in response to managers' continued requests for additional information. These sy nthesized manuscripts are based largely on peer-reviewed articles that have appeared in scientific publications, and we encourage readers to examine those articles for more details.     Importantly, the long-term commitment of partners in the Starkey Project continues today, and many new manuscripts have recently been submitted for publication in scientific journals. These new articles reflect changing research directions that address the effects of ungulate herbivory on ecosystem patterns and processes; the dynamics of habitat-nutrition-predator relations with ungulate condition and population performance; the effects of forest management designed to reduce fire risk on forage and habitat use by ungulates; and the effects of human recreation on elk and mule deer populations. Many of these studies are being conducted not only at the Starkey Experimental Forest and Range, but also on industrial forestland and national forests in the western United States. The new studies maintain the same high degree of integrity exemplified by the research partnerships of past studies.

Citation

Wisdom, Michael J., technical editor. 2005. The Starkey Project: a synthesis of long-term studies of elk and mule deer. Lawrence, Kansas: Alliance Communications Group. 252 p.