JIM LAYBOURN Star-Tribune correspondent A herd of desert elk is seen from Interstate 80 east of Rock Springs on a recent winter day. Heavy snowfall in the Red Desert has caused large herds of elk, deer and antelope to bunch near the interstate. .
..Weather watch
The National Weather Service is predicting light snow for much of the state later this week and into the weekend. And more below zero temps.

JACKSON — Hunters may see fewer licenses this fall if the harsh winter continues to take its toll on wildlife.

Bill Rudd, assistant wildlife division chief for the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, said people within his department are watching the high mortality this winter in the form of roadkill and deteriorating body conditions, and will evaluate those deaths for hunting season.

“We still have several months,” he said. “Conditions could ameliorate.”

Early snow, cold temperatures and early freezing and thawing events have proven tough for wildlife this winter. Although exact numbers won’t be available for several months, people around the state are seeing more roadkill and dying animals, old and young, as they struggle to reach forage under thick or crusted snow.

January proved particularly difficult for wildlife, with deep snow and a warming spell followed by cold that crusted snow. This, in part, pushed wildlife closer to roads as they searched for food.

In mid-February, Game and Fish moved elk out of Rawlins as they were getting close to the interstate and getting hit, Rudd said.

“The biggest fear at this point is if we continue without a pretty good reprieve either through warmer temperatures or chinook winds,” he said. “We’ll see higher mortality that would impact our season-setting.”

Last month, Game and Fish compiled a report from around the state detailing how wildlife is faring in each region.

In Campbell County, a wildlife official tallied deer in recent weeks and was disheartened to see fewer numbers of fawns and does than expected. Deep snow in that county has made life difficult for wildlife, and the amount of energy they consume after reaching forage is often spent pushing through the sometimes chest-deep snow to get there.

In western Wyoming, severe winter conditions and the possibility of elk moving on to private ranch lands prompted Game and Fish to feed hay to elk near Moran and Afton. Emergency feeding under similar conditions last occurred in those areas in 2008.

Mark Gocke, spokesman for Game and Fish in Jackson, said the area has seen more roadkill than in recent memory. He said more wildlife are coming down to lower elevations to look for food, and state feedgrounds and the National Elk Refuge have seen higher numbers of elk.

“We’re seeing some of the older animals and some young-of-the-year dying,” he said. “It’s hard to predict what’s going to happen here. But we have quite a bit of winter left, potentially. If we have some more significant snow and colder temperatures, we could see some more die off.”

Sue Colligan, executive director of the Jackson Hole Wildlife Foundation, said from what the group has seen and what people have reported, roadkill numbers are up.

“We’d like people to pay attention, and slow down,” she said. Official roadkill numbers are not available yet.

Game and Fish also noted in its January report that roadkill has “definitely increased” in Teton and Lincoln counties.

The Big Horn Basin is seeing conditions “average to slightly more severe than normal,” according to the department.

The area around Baggs has been difficult for wildlife, with numerous fawn deaths reported.

In Rawlins, heavy snow around Christmas pushed antelope to the railroad line, where a mass collision caused the death of 57 animals on Dec. 21.

In Casper, Game and Fish officials said the possibility exists for high wildlife mortality this spring. That prediction extends to basically every area around the state.

Rudd said people should be aware statewide of animals traveling long distances and often winding up on roadways.

“Animals that are being stressed, they really try to conserve energy as best they can,” he said. “If you have the option of not spooking the animals or causing them to flee, it helps them conserve their energy reserves.”

The late winter and early spring weather will dictate how animals ultimately survive this winter.

“I wouldn’t say this was an exceptionally bad winter,” Rudd said, “but it’s certainly more of a winter than we’ve seen in the last four or five winters.”