Diets and habitat analyses of mule deer on the 200 areas of the Hanford Site in southcentral Washington

Technical Report · Wed Oct 01 04:00:00 EDT 1980

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/6774704· OSTI ID:6774704

Uresk, D W; Uresk, V A

Forty-four food items were identified in the fecal pellets of the mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus hemionus) on three areas of the Hanford Site. Microscopic analysis of plant fragments indicated that bitterbrush was the most common species occurring in the diets of deer from the B-C Cribs area. Russian thistle (Salsola kali) and goldenrod (Solidago sp.) were the most abundant plants found in the fecal pellets collected from B Pond and Gable Mountain Pond habitats, respectively. The similarity in diets among the habitats was low, ranging from 10% to 16%. Preference indices of forage plants among sites were not similar (7% to 19%). The B-C Cribs, B Pond and Gable Mountain Pond habitats were characterized for canopy cover and frequency of occurrence of plant species. Twelve species were sampled in the B-C Cribs and B Pond areas; 22 species were identified on the Gable Mountain site. The most commonly occurring plant was cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) in all three sites. The similarity in frequency and canopy cover of plants was low among sites. Mule deer inhabiting the Hanford site can serve as a pathway for movement of radioactive material from low-level radioactive waste management areas to man. Maximum levels of /sup 137/Cs found in deer pellet groups collected from B Pond and Gable Mountain Pond areas were 100 pCi/g and 128 pCi/g, respectively. Background levels were reported at B-C Cribs area. Maximum /sup 90/Sr values found in deer pellets at B Pond were 107 pCi/g and 184 pCi/g at Gable Mountain Pond.

• Research Organization: Battelle Pacific Northwest Labs., Richland, WA (USA)
• DOE Contract Number: AC06-76RL01830
• OSTI ID: 6774704
• Report Number(s): PNL-2461
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

510100* -- Environment
Terrestrial-- Basic Studies-- (-1989)
510302 -- Environment
Terrestrial-- Radioactive Materials Monitoring & Transport-- Terrestrial Ecosystems & Food Chains-- (-1987)
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
ALKALI METAL ISOTOPES
ALKALINE EARTH ISOTOPES
ANIMALS
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
CESIUM 137
CESIUM ISOTOPES
DATA
DEER
DIET
ECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
ENVIRONMENTAL EXPOSURE PATHWAY
EVEN-EVEN NUCLEI
EXPERIMENTAL DATA
HANFORD RESERVATION
INFORMATION
INTERMEDIATE MASS NUCLEI
ISOTOPES
MAMMALS
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
NUCLEI
NUMERICAL DATA
ODD-EVEN NUCLEI
PLANTS
RADIOECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
RADIOISOTOPES
RUMINANTS
STRONTIUM 90
STRONTIUM ISOTOPES
US DOE
US ERDA
US ORGANIZATIONS
VERTEBRATES
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES