Wyoming Game and Fish Department biologists have counted near-record numbers of summering antelope and the highest fawn ratios since modern record-keeping started in Jackson Hole.
Part of a regional count that assesses the strength of the Path of the Pronghorn migration, the survey is used to determine hunting quotas and seasons for the following year. It’s a trend survey and is not considered a census count of the population.
“It’s good news for the antelope here,” Game and Fish wildlife biologist Doug Brimeyer said of the pronghorn survey, which he conducted aerially and by horse.
“I counted 40 on the refuge, 260 in Grand Teton National Park, and the rest of the 400 were in the Gros Ventre [drainage],” Brimeyer said. Four hundred antelope — “that’s as high as we’ve ever counted.
“We reached those levels in the early ’90s, but the data I have after 1985 doesn’t have as high a number of fawns.”
Because of the small population, Game and Fish permits a very limited Jackson Hole hunt. Just 15 tags were issued for this fall, Brimeyer said. Read more….