Elk resource selection patterns in a semiarid riparian corridor

Elk (Cervus elaphus) have depredated corn at Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge (BDANWR), New Mexico, USA, which has interfered with the refuge's ability to provide supplemental nutrition to overwintering sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis) and other waterbirds. To identify management options for minimizing cropland depredation, we examined elk resource selection patterns using negative binomial generalized linear mixed models. We used 8,244 global positioning system (GPS) locations collected from 9 adult female elk to model fine-scale resource use (sampling units were 100 × 100-m cells; n = 3,646) and corn field use (sampling units were corn fields; n = 18) by a resident herd along the Rio Grande River in central New Mexico, USA. The fine-scale model suggested that elk use in cropland areas increased when alfalfa and corn were present and elk use was greatest 0.14 km from uncultivated areas. Elk use in uncultivated areas increased as canopy cover increased. Elk use exhibited a