Table 1.

Relative empirical support for selection of habitat patches when at peak IRG during the green-up season. Step selection functions were parametrized by data from two populations each of bighorn sheep, mule deer, elk, moose and bison in western Wyoming and eastern Utah (totalling 463 individuals) between 2004 and 2014. The base model included variables representing habitat attributes known to influence habitat selection of each species (e.g. cover type, elevation, slope, aspect, distance to escape terrain). The model including IRG also contained all variables in the base models. Support was assessed using the QIC, n refers to the number of individuals in a population, n event refers to the number of movement steps used to fit the model and K is the number of model parameters.

pop model	QIC	ΔQIC	n event	K	pop model	QIC	ΔQIC	n event	K
Teton Range bighorn sheep (n = 20)					Whiskey Basin bighorn sheep (n = 8)
IRG	9762.6	0.0	1584	7	IRG	1336.1	0.0	211	7
base	9793.4	30.8	1584	6	base	1339.5	3.4	211	6
Green River Basin mule deer (n = 29)					SE Wyoming Range mule deer (n = 46)
IRG	8580.6	0.0	1366	7	IRG	12709.5	0.0	2046	7
base	8646.2	65.6	1366	6	base	12716.9	7.4	2046	6
S Greater Yellowstone elk (n = 119)					Absaroka mountains elk (n = 88)
base	65747.1	0.0	10 345	6	base	14727.5	0.0	2371	6
IRG	65750.2	3.1	10 345	7	IRG	14727.5	0.0	2371	7
Buffalo Valley moose (n = 39)					NE Wyoming Range moose (n = 64)
IRG	7998.6	0.0	1243	8	IRG	8034.3	0.0	1259	8
base	7999.6	1.0	1243	7	base	8120.4	86.1	1259	7
Henry Mountains bison (n = 46)					Book Cliffs bison (n = 4)
IRG	15302.9	0.0	2669	7	base	854.7	0.0	156	6
base	15314.3	11.4	2669	6	IRG	855.5	0.8	156	7