The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Ely District is scheduled to begin gathering and removing approximately 120 excess wild horses from in and around the Silver King and Triple B Herd Management Areas (HMAs) in eastern Nevada on Monday, Nov. 10.
BLM officials say the helicopter gathers are necessary to prevent further damage to private property and provide for public and animal safety.
The District will remove up to 50 excess wild horses from in and around the Silver King HMA.
The horses to be gathered are located about 120 miles south of Ely. They are a safety concern on U.S. Highway 93 and are damaging private property, resulting in property owner complaints. AML for the Silver King HMA is 60-128 wild horses. The current population is 452 wild horses.
The District will remove about 70 excess wild horses from the Triple B HMA, located about 30 miles northwest of Ely, that are damaging private property, and harassing and breeding domestic stock resulting in landowner complaints. Appropriate Management Level (AML) for the Triple B HMA is 215-250 wild horses. The current population is 1,311 wild horses.
Wild horses removed from the range will be transported to the National Wild Horse and Burro Center at Palomino Valley (PVC), in Reno, Nev., where they will be offered for adoption to qualified individuals. Wild horses for which there is no adoption demand 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. The BLM does not sell or send any horses to slaughter.
