CWMP 2017-2018 Winter Report
4
level-two species were detected. Mule deer were found at Denny Creek and elk were found
at Denny Creek, Price Noble, and Easton. It is notable that these observations were of sign
other than tracks that could have persisted from the fall. It is not clear that there was any
activity of either species during the winter within the study area. For detailed maps of
detections for each transect site see Appendix A. Similar to past years, coyote and bobcat
comprised most of detections made to species (45%).
As in years prior, Price Noble and Easton Hill remain the most species rich and species
diverse of the five transects (Table 1), though this may be due to higher detection rates east
of the crest, possibly due to better snow track quality (Table 2). Snow track quality (STQ) is
recorded each visit with detections, and while we don't collect snow track quality during
visits with no species detections, it serves as a general correlate for the ability to accurately
detect and identify tracks. STQ scores of 1 denote snow conditions where all track features
are obscured, and identifications are made primarily through track patterns of incomplete
track sets (gaits), while STQ scores of 4 denote snow in which fine detail of individual
tracks can be accurately identified and every track registers. All detections at Denny Creek,
the lowest and westernmost transect, were made from scat identifications, and visits were
free of snow multiple times. Thus, the odds of not detecting species that were present are
much higher.
Figure 1. Total detections by species at all five transect sites on I-90 at Snoqualmie Pass during the 2018 winter monitoring
season
Table 1. Distribution of species detections at the five transect survey sites during the 2018 winter monitoring season.
2018 CWMP Transect Species Detections
Ambiguous
Coyote
Bobcat
Elk
Mule Deer
Raccoon
Beaver
Cougar
River Otter
