across a major drainage (Sand Creek) to a large complex of 

 south- and north-facing slopes. She wandered throughout that 

 complex during the remaining month of winter. During winter 

 1978-79, also very severe, she did not leave her normal winter 

 area until late January, but when she did move, she 

 immediately went to the last area she had used the previous 

 winter and remained localized there for the remainder of 

 winter. 



During most years, female 0476 occupied a yearlong home 

 range, but when snow depth exceeded 60 cm during 1977-78 and 

 1978-79, her normal winter range was not adequate. Snowdrifts 

 from unusual north and east winds often covered the smaller 

 south-facing slopes of her normal winter range. She finally 

 moved to an area that contained south-facing slopes with twice 

 the elevational gradient of those on her normal wintering 

 area. South-facing slopes on the auxiliary winter area 

 bordered on a large open drainage bottom, with the closest 

 major ridge to block the sun during early and late portions of 

 the day more than 1.5 km away. On her normal winter area, 

 smaller south-facing slopes were bordered by ridges on the 

 south less than 200 m away, effectively blocking sun from much 

 of the south-facing slope except during mid-day. 



The pattern of movements exhibited by this female during 

 the severe winters of 1977-78 and 1978-79 indicated that she 

 did not have an auxiliary winter range or that its location 

 was a distant memory (she was a yearling during the previous 

 severe winter of 1971-72). Her movements during winter 

 1977-78 indicated that she moved only when forced by extreme 

 circumstances and then she did not go directly to an auxiliary 

 winter range, but progressed through a series of more distant 

 sites, apparently as the result of wandering movements. 

 During winter 1978-79, however, once conditions became severe, 

 she immediately moved to the best auxiliary winter range site 

 she had encountered during her wanderings the previous winter. 

 Other resident deer had similar patterns of movements during 

 those severe winters. The speed and directness with which 

 they moved to auxiliary winter range sites varied and may have 

 depended upon their previous experience or that of the 

 matriarch in their social group. 



Female 0476, as the others profiled, spent most of her 

 time in a much smaller area than indicated by PHR size (Fig. 

 8.8). A total of 64% of the relocations of female 0476 were 

 within an area that was 4.2% of her life PHR and 13% of her 

 life PHR that excluded relocations during severe winters. 

 This deer did not need an area of 21.9 km 2 (total life PHR) to 

 survive, but during some winters she did need to use areas 5 

 km from her normal home range. 



228 



