Oregon Launches Community-Science Study to Monitor Central Oregon Porcupines

In summer 2025 ODFW launched a study to map porcupine distribution and mortality in Deschutes, Crook, and Jefferson counties. Volunteers submit sightings on iNaturalist and borrow trail cameras from the High Desert Museum or local libraries. Cameras are loaned for three months; images are uploaded to iNaturalist for analysis.

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Porcupines are native to Central Oregon’s high-desert and appear on the state’s Species of Greatest Conservation Need list, though not formally endangered. ODFW attributes a suspected decline to road-kill, predator resurgence, and climate-related habitat shifts. Existing records are largely anecdotal, prompting systematic citizen-generated data collection.

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The study is led by ODFW assistant wildlife biologist Mikayla Bivona. High Desert Museum curator Jon Nelson manages the trail-camera bank; Jefferson County Library director Jane Ellen Innes runs the library loan program. Equipment funding comes from the Wildlife Ecology Institute and the Oregon Wildlife Foundation. Library branches in the three counties serve as distribution points.

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More than 140 citizen reports have been logged, and 20 captured porcupines have been fitted with radio collars to track movement, home-range size, and survival. Trail cameras operate continuously, documenting nocturnal activity otherwise missed.

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ODFW’s website notes that more than 140 volunteer reports have been generated and that the project aims to develop a standardized monitoring protocol for future conservation. The High Desert Museum notes its fifteen-year use of trail cameras for education, while the Jefferson County Library highlights the program’s role in attracting patrons and raising local wildlife awareness.

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No criticism or organized opposition to the study appears in the available sources.

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Volunteers report road-crossings, often describing a “cute waddle” as porcupines move across highways. Observations are uploaded to iNaturalist for review.

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The inferred decline relies on anecdotal sightings; no quantitative baseline exists, and the specific causes of mortality have not been quantified.

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• “We maintain a bank of trail cameras and then we make those available to the public,” — Jon Nelson, Curator, High Desert Museum

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• “I think it's important for people to understand their surroundings,” — Jane Ellen Innes, Library Director, Jefferson County Library

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• “It is heartwarming how many people have reached out and called me to say ‘It was crossing the road,’” — Mikayla Bivona, Assistant Wildlife Biologist, ODFW

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• “It also inspires people to come into the library and learn more about them and the services we offer,” — Jane Ellen Innes, Library Director, Jefferson County Library

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ODFW will continue radio-collar tracking through the study period, analyze collected movement data, and refine the monitoring protocol for broader application across the state’s wildlife programs.

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