BLM asks public to avoid beetle habitat at Big Dune
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LAS VEGAS — The Bureau of Land Management Pahrump Field Office asks the public to help protect the habitat of an endemic beetle at Big Dune in Nye County, Nevada.
The BLM is presently placing protective buck-and-rail fencing on the north side of Big Dune to protect the densest population of Giuliani’s Dune Scarab. Giuliani’s Dune Scarab beetle occur at Big Dune and Lava Dune in the Amargosa Valley and nowhere else in the world.
“This beetle is rare, and the fencing is to protect the population while still leaving the vast majority of the dune available to Off-Highway Vehicle activity,” said Joe Varner, Acting Pahrump Field Manager. “We are asking the public to continue recreating at the dune, but to please not use OHV vehicles within this fenced area.”
Maps of the fenced area are available at https://www.blm.gov/sites/default/files/docs/2022-12/Nevada_PFO_Big-Dune-Fencing-overview.pdf and https://www.blm.gov/sites/default/files/docs/2022-12/Nevada_PFO_Big-Dune-Fencing-North-Side.pdf.
Visitors are still able to recreate on more than 95 percent of the dune, including the main dune system. The fence will help direct OHV vehicles away from driving on the smaller dunes that are critically important for the Giuliani’s Dune Scarab. The beetles live in these small dunes as larvae until they can pupate and come out as adults to breed in the spring. This will also protect some of the plants the beetle feeds on throughout the year.
The BLM has placed 665 meters (0.41 miles) of wood buck-and-rail fencing and 397 meters (0.25 miles) of plastic tri-corner fencing at Big Dune. In the next couple of months, the BLM will place an additional 275 meters (0.17 miles) of wood buck-and-rail fencing and 400 meters (0.25 miles) of plastic tri-corner fencing at Big Dune. The project should be complete by February 2023.
The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land located primarily in 12 western states, including Alaska, on behalf of the American people. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. Our mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of America’s public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations.