Federal land managers have begun a series of horse and burro roundups across Nevada, including a major operation in the Spring Mountains just northwest of Las Vegas.
The Bureau of Land Management says 425 horses and 425 burros will be gathered from the Spring Mountains Complex, an area spanning more than 600,000 acres across the Johnnie, Red Rock, and Wheeler Pass herd management areas.
Officials describe the effort as necessary to restore what they call a “thriving natural ecological balance” on public lands. The agency also cited public safety concerns, noting an increasing number of horses and burros near highways in the region.
Animals gathered from the Spring Mountains will be shipped to the Palomino Valley corrals near Reno.
The Spring Mountains operation is part of a broader statewide effort to remove about 2,305 horses and 425 burros from BLM-managed land. All current gathers rely on bait and water trapping methods, without the use of helicopters.
Additional roundups are planned in areas north of Las Vegas, including the Pancake Complex west of Ely, where about 300 horses are targeted; the Caliente Complex in southeast Lincoln County, where about 550 horses are expected to be gathered; and the Antelope/Triple B Complex northeast of Ely, where approximately 1,000 horses are slated for removal.
Earlier this year, two separate roundups in White Pine County and northern Nevada removed a combined 524 horses. The operations did involve helicopters.
According to BLM records, 13 horses died during those earlier gathers. One death was attributed to an injury sustained during the roundup, and the remaining animals were euthanized due to chronic health conditions that officials said would have prevented their survival in the wild.
Those earlier operations took place outside the Antelope Herd Management Area northeast of Ely and within the Owyhee Complex, the site of last year’s Jakes Fire.
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