Dating back to the late 1980s, scientists, land managers, and community leaders have emphasized the need for continuous monitoring, protection and care of the Pando Tree as a unique wonder. In 2023, Friends of Pando established a longitudinal Wildlife Monitoring Program working in collaboration with Fishlake National Forest (FLNF), Pando’s federal land stewards responsible for habitat management, and Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (UDWR) who manage wildlife populations in Pando’s homeland. The wildlife monitoring program is a first-of-its-kind longitudinal wildlife monitoring and management program where Friends of Pando and our partners operate an array of wildlife cams and bioacoustic devices allowing us to observe and document wildlife year-round. Each month, we gather data which we analyze to understand wildlife behavior and inform management decisions in work to protection and care of the Pando Tree and all that call it home.

Between October of 2024 and September of 2025, we observed wildlife using 9 wildlife cams equipped with motion and infrared sensors, set to high sensitivity to help ensure fast-moving and small animals would be captured. We deployed 6 wildlife cams along the outer periphery of Pando’s wildlife controls, and 3 wildlife cams within existing wildlife controls to observe wildlife events. To be sure, an “event” documents activity and not the population of a given species in the area since the same animal could be seen multiple times at the same site, or, by crossing multiple observation points we established. In all, we observed 924 wildlife events for 2025, down from 1,416 events in 2024. While learning about this previously hidden world of animals who call Pando home, ungulate activity, namely Mule Deer and Elk, are a primary concern in management strategy for the Pando Tree. Mule Deer and Elk can play a destructive role in Pando’s health as the animals can eat large volumes of new growth before it can mature, and can also nibble, bite or scratch at the thin bark of Pando’s trunks making damaged trunks more susceptible to disease. Over the past year, we observed 645 Mule Deer events, a 35% reduction over 2024’s, 986 events with no Mule Deer observed inside wildlife controls. We documented 112 Elk events, a 63% reduction over 2024, where we saw 309 events. One male and one female elk observed inside the wildlife control were released in November of 2024 by UDWR. In addition to ungulate activity, 2025 is the first year we have observed the activity of badger, marmots and birds of prey. We have previously documented Mountain Lion, Black Bear, Fox, Coyote, Bobcat, Bats and scavenger birds such as vultures. The variety of wildlife observed reveals a once hidden world, and supports the claim that aspen forest in Utah are a hotspot of biodiversity.

Now with 3 seasons of wildlife data to examine, we can begin to make sense and make use of trends. First, consistent with accounts from UDWR, wildlife controls work to keep Mule Deer and Elk moving around and away from Pando’s landmass. Second, we can now describe seasonal patterns of ungulate activity. Mule Deer typically arrive by May and stay until late September, while Elk arrive in October and tend to stay in the area until February or until snow cover becomes too cumbersome to navigate. Third, Mule Deer observations outnumber Elk observations 4 to 1. Fourth, Mule Deer we observe tend to be females (Doe) and their young (Fawn) while observations of Bucks (Male Mule Deer) are rare, indicating the area is likely not a mating ground for Mule Deer but does seem to serve as a seasonal nursery. Fourth, in contrast to Mule Deer, we do find that Elk Bulls (Male Elk) arrive with their harem (a community of female Elk, aka “cows”), indicating the area is likely used as a mating ground, but not as a nursery. Finally, aspen management models familiar to those in state and federal forestry agencies, would likely describe the reduction in ungulate numbers as a qualified success where ungulates are the challenge most often discussed when it comes to work to understand, protect and care for the Pando Tree.

We have many reasons to be hopeful about the changes we witnessed between 2024 and 2025. Using wildlife data and patterns as a guide, we designed a plan to expand wildlife controls in 2025 and today, 80% of Pando is now in protective care. Compared to 2024, we observe fewer ungulates overall. We have documented ungulates move around the tree’s landmass and use pathways we designed to maximize confrontation with predators, both animals and human hunters alike. What’s more, in the event ungulates are observed inside wildlife controls, we can also act to limit their impact as we did in Fall of 2024. As has long been suggested, interagency collaboration, a commitment to continuous monitoring, data-driven decision making, and integrating field conditions as you work, delivers quantifiable improvements like those we can report for 2025.