BLM concludes Silver King HMA wild horse gather
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ELY, Nev. – The Bureau of Land Management Ely District, Caliente Field Office concluded the Silver King Herd Management Area (HMA) wild horse gather on February 16, 2021. The BLM gathered 284 excess wild horses and removed 256 excess horses from public and private lands in and outside the HMA located in Lincoln County, Nevada. The BLM is treating 25 mares with the fertility control vaccine GonaCon-Equine and will release them back into the HMA.
The purpose of the gather was to prevent undue or unnecessary degradation of the public lands associated with excess wild horses, and to restore a thriving natural ecological balance and multiple-use relationship on public lands, consistent with the provisions of Section 1333(b) of the 1971 Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act. Removing excess animals would also enable significant progress toward achieving the Standards for Rangeland Health identified by the Mojave-Southern Great Basin Resource Advisory Council.
The BLM transported wild horses removed from the range to the Palomino Valley Wild Horse and Burro Center in Reno, Nev., to be readied for the BLM’s wild horse and burro Adoption and Sale Program. Wild horses not adopted or sold will be placed in long-term pastures where they will be humanely cared for and retain their “wild” status and protection under the 1971 Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act.
Additional gather information is available on the BLM website at https://go.usa.gov/xAtAF.
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.