Wind River/Bighorn Basin District
| Contacts: | Sarah Beckwith | |||
| (307) 347-5207 |
North Lander Wild Horse Gather to Begin This Weekend
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Lander Field Office will begin a wild horse gather in the North Lander Wild Horse Herd Management Area (HMA) Complex southeast of Riverton this weekend. It is anticipated that the gather will continue for two to three weeks.
The North Lander Complex encompasses the Conant Creek, Dishpan Butte, Muskrat Basin and Rock Creek HMAs and is located in Fremont County, south of Wyoming Highway 136 (the Gas Hills Road) and north of Wyoming Highway 789/287.
The BLM will gather, treat with PZP-22 fertility control, release and remove wild horses. The gather is necessary to bring the population of the complex back to its appropriate management level and slow the growth rate of the population that is returned to the North Lander Complex to help achieve a thriving natural ecological balance and a multiple use relationship with other resources within the HMAs.
There is no anticipated closure of public lands, except if deemed necessary due to safety concerns. Hunters and other outdoor recreationists should be aware that brief road closures may be needed to allow movement of wild horse herds and that low flying aircraft will also be present in the area. The BLM requests pilots avoid flight patterns through the North Lander Complex area as air traffic could pose a safety risk. Helicopters used in gather operations often have to change course and altitude quickly.
“Animals removed from the North Lander Complex will be available for adoption through the BLM Wild Horse and Burro Adoption Program,” says Lander Field Manager Rick Vander Voet. “Those that are not adopted will be cared for in long-term pastures, where they retain their “wild” status and protection under the 1971 Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act.”
If interested in viewing the North Lander gather, please visit the gather website at www.blm.gov/wy/st/en/programs/Wild_Horses/2012nlander-gather.html. Public viewing sites will be designated a safe distance from wild horse trap sites and outside the aircraft flight plan.
Please be advised that gather operations are fluid and may change at any time. Monitor the North Lander Complex gather website closely for the most up-to-date information.
For more information, please contact BLM Wild Horse Specialist Scott Fluer at 307-332-8400.
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.
Wind River/Bighorn Basin District 1335 Main Street Lander, WY 82590