Master of Science in Range & Wildlife Management

Seasonal and Acclimation Period Movement and Habitat Use for Translocated Pronghorn in the Trans-Pecos Region of Texas

My name is Howell Pugh and I grew up in the Cross Timbers region of north-central Texas. Some of my favorite memories are from those days that I spent exploring the surrounding countryside searching for hidden wildlife. After helping my family start a small auto repair business in Arlington, TX, for several years into adulthood, I joined the Army and had a successful career as a flight paramedic. It was not until I was transitioning from the Army back into civilian life that I discovered that you could make wildlife management a career. After the Army, my family and I moved to San Marcos, Texas to attend Texas State University where I received my Bachelor of Science in Wildlife Biology. Upon receiving my degree, we moved to Alpine where I am currently working towards a Master of Science in Range and Wildlife Management while working with Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) on the pronghorn restoration project in the Trans-Pecos region of West Texas.

UPDATE

I am a recipient of the Dan L. Duncan Scholarship for the 2019-2020 academic school year. I am very thankful for the moral and financial support that comes with being a recipient of the scholarship and a member of the Houston Safari Club Foundation. I would especially like to thank Mr. Gary Rose and the scholarship committee; without their tireless efforts and contributions, many students like myself would not be blessed with the wonderful opportunities that the HSCF and the Dan L. Duncan Scholarship has provided. I am currently working towards a graduate degree at Sul Ross State University. My graduate thesis research focuses on the movement ecology of translocated female pronghorn in the Trans-Pecos region of Texas. I am working with Texas Parks and Wildlife Department to address two main questions about translocated pronghorn. The first question is how much room does a translocated female pronghorn in the Trans-Pecos need? The second question is what areas are translocated female pronghorn in the Trans-Pecos using and what ones are they not using? The first question is what is referred to as the home range of the animal. The second question is referred to as the habitat use of the animal. To answer these questions, I have collected data from five translocations (years 2011, 2013, 2015, 2016, and 2017) to get a broad look at the behavior of the translocated does. I will be using data collected from GPS collars that were affixed to pronghorn does during the translocation process. I will be comparing variables, such as the dry, wet, and fawning seasons, to see how they affect the home range and habitat use of the translocated female pronghorn. One hundred and sixty-nine GPS collars will be used for the analysis with a total of 1,099,264 separate locations to determine the home ranges and the habitat use.

This past summer I presented preliminary findings of the 2017 translocation’s home range data to the 28 th Biennial Western States & Provinces Pronghorn Workshop. Later this spring (April 2019) I will be presenting further results of all the translocations’ home range data at Sul Ross State University’s Graduate Symposium in a talk titled “Home Range of Translocated Pronghorn in Trans-Pecos, Texas.” Additionally, portions of my research and analysis were used in a report titled “Trans-Pecos Pronghorn Restoration Update: November 2018.” I look forward to continued outreach and communications about my thesis work. As I continue to analyze and write my thesis, I am excited about the results I am seeing. I truly believe that the work I am doing will not only help the wildlife professionals who are tasked with restoring the diminished Trans-Pecos populations, but will also be fully accessible and understandable to landowners who want to apply the lessons learned from my research. I am very thankful to the Houston Safari Club Foundation for offering the generous Dan L. Duncan Scholarship. The scholarship has allowed me to be focused on my research and schooling in a way that has allowed my project to reach its fullest potential.

Thank you for your support.