Rock Springs Field Office
| Contacts: | Serena Baker, | |||
| 307-212-0197 |
White Mountain/Little Colorado Wild Horse Gather Decision
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will gather the White Mountain and Little Colorado (WMLC) Herd Management Areas (HMA). BLM Rock Springs Field Office released a decision record to remove excess wild horses to the low appropriate management level as the proposed action. This replaces the decision of June 22, 2011.
The decision authorizes gathering approximately 90 percent (or about 873 wild horses), removing roughly 696 excess wild horses, leaving 205 wild horses in the White Mountain HMA, and 69 wild horses in the Little Colorado HMA. All mares released to the HMAs would be treated with the Porcine Zona Pellucida (PZP) vaccine. Sex ratios would also be adjusted favoring stallions to mares. The gather would reduce the current population of nearly 1,000 wild horses in the WMLC HMAs, which is roughly three times the appropriate management level. The appropriate management level for White Mountain HMA is between 205-300 horses, and for Little Colorado HMA is 69-100. The two HMAs were last gathered in November 2007.
The WMLC gather is scheduled to begin within the next 30 days, and is expected to last approximately three weeks. BLM is committed to offering as many public viewing opportunities as possible during the gather. If interested in watching the gather, you must contact Serena Baker, sbaker@blm.gov, 307-212-0197, to be added to the anticipated visitors’ log. Only individuals listed on the visitors’ log will be contacted with daily viewing sites, times, and locations of where to meet.
All gathered mustangs will be examined by a veterinarian, dewormed, Coggins tested, and given booster shots. The wild horses will then be available for adoption to qualified applicants. Adoption applications and requirements for the White Mountain/Little Colorado gathered horses are available at: www.blm.gov/wy/st/en/programs/Wild_Horses/adopt.html.
For more information, visit: http://www.blm.gov/wy/st/en/info/NEPA/documents/rsfo/whitemtn_littlecolo.html.
The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land, the most of any Federal agency. This land, known as the National System of Public Lands, is primarily located in 12 Western states, including Alaska. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. In Fiscal Year (FY) 2011, recreational and other activities on BLM-managed land contributed more than $130 billion to the U.S. economy and supported more than 600,000 American jobs. The Bureau is also one of a handful of agencies that collects more revenue than it spends. In FY 2012, nearly $5.7 billion will be generated on lands managed by the BLM, which operates on a $1.1 billion budget. The BLM's multiple-use mission is to sustain the health and productivity of the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations. The Bureau accomplishes this by managing such activities as outdoor recreation, livestock grazing, mineral development, and energy production, and by conserving natural, historical, cultural, and other resources on public lands.
Rock Springs Field Office 280 Hwy 191 N. Rock Springs, WY 82901