MagicValley.com, December 26, 2019 

By BRIAN PEARSON Idaho Department of Fish and Game 

MONTPELIER — On Dec. 18, Idaho  Department of Fish and Game finalized two voluntary conservation  easements at Rocky Point, south of Montpelier in Bear Lake County, which  will permanently protect crucial migration areas for big game on more  than 1,800 acres of land in southeast Idaho.

The  conservation easements are for property on both sides of U.S. Highway  30 where thousands of mule deer cross on their migration between summer  range in the Caribou Mountains and winter range on the Bear Lake  Plateau.

Without the easements, future development could obstruct migration of mule deer, as well as elk, pronghorn and moose.

 Based on the terms of the conservation  easements, the properties will remain undeveloped to ensure that the  land remains a big game migration area and that access to winter range  is protected. The private owners of the land will also continue to use  it for livestock grazing.

“This  is a working lands ranch from a working-lands family and we have no  intention of changing that,” said Matt Pieron, wildlife biologist and  Mule Deer Initiative Coordinator for Idaho Fish and Game. “The current  use of this sagebrush-steppe habitat is perfectly compatible with our  conservation goals.”

The  properties will also be opened to the public for hunting, fishing,  trapping, and wildlife viewing, and will connect public lands on either  side of the highway.

The group  of mule deer that use this migration corridor belongs to one of Idaho’s  largest herds, which spend summers in the Caribou Mountains, numbering  around 20,000, based on Fish and Game’s aerial surveys. The herd winters  in a variety of areas, but about one-third of them cross the short  stretch of U.S. 30 at Rocky Point.

“Based  on collision reports, staff observations, remote cameras, and  electronic collar data, we have a ton of information that shows that  these mule deer are migrating through a 3 or 4-mile stretch of highway  that borders these easements,” Pieron said.

The  total acquisition cost for the conservation easements was $1.275  million, and Fish and Game contributed $576,500 in license monies for  the project. The funding balance came from a variety of partners,  including the following:

   Southeast Idaho Mule Deer Foundation/Sagebrush Steppe Land Trust

•   SE Idaho Chapter of Muley Fanatics Foundation
•   National Fish & Wildlife Foundation
•   Greater Yellowstone Coalition
•   Knobloch Family Foundation
•   The Pew Charitable Trusts
•   Idaho Fish & Wildlife Foundation
•   Center for Large Landscape Conservation

“We  had tremendous support across the board, including from smaller,  grassroots, local organizations like the Southeast Idaho Mule Deer and  Muley Fanatics foundations,” Pieron said. “These folks are incredibly  important, because they are the people who know firsthand how crucial it  is to preserve this area to ensure the long-term health of their mule  deer population, and in turn, the health of their local economy.”

Every  fall, more than 4,000 mule deer hunters visit Unit 76, where Rocky  Point is located. These hunters combined spend over 22,700 days hunting  for mule deer, and over $2.4 million on supplies.

Without  this mule deer migration, the size of the herd would likely shrink, as  would hunting opportunity and the local economic benefits associated  with the animals’ population.

“This  mule deer herd is very important to us, both culturally and  economically, and that’s why we supported this project,” Chris Price,  chapter president of Muley Fanatics Foundation, said.

This  stretch of U.S. 30 is a well-known hot spot for wildlife-vehicle  collisions. According to the roadkill data that Idaho Fish and Game  collects, over 100 mule deer are struck and killed by vehicles annually  on a 20-mile stretch of U.S. 30, 70% of which have been killed within  the 4-mile section at Rocky Point. Because wildlife-vehicle collisions  with large animals tend to be underreported, the number of mule  deer-vehicle collisions is likely even higher. This makes this mule deer  population and the hunting opportunity it supports susceptible to  continued decline, and poses a continuing safety hazard to drivers. It  is something the local community has been concerned about.

“We lose so many deer on this stretch of highway,” Price said. “We want to do what we can for our deer herds to help them out.”

The  conservation easements have opened the door for solutions that will  decrease the number of wildlife-vehicle collisions moving forward. Fish  and Game and the Idaho Transportation Department are working together to  design wildlife crossing improvements for this segment of U.S. 30.  Idaho Transportation Department will provide the funding for the  wildlife crossings in the area.

“The  community will have the opportunity to learn more about this project  and provide input on potential improvements that will help wildlife  cross the highway,” ITD project manager Tara Capson said. The first  opportunity for the community to give input will be in early 2020.