The BLM roundup at Canyonlands burro Herd Management Area (HMA) in Utah has begun.
Preface
Canyonlands spans 77,311 BLM acres, 10,465 State acres, and 1,616 NPS acres for a total of 89,392 acres about 60 miles south of Green River in Wayne County, Utah. BLM has set AML (or the number they will allow) at 60-100 burros and says the population is estimated to be 208. BLM plans to remove approximately 100 burros via helicopter drive trapping.
BLM is shipping captive burros to the Axtell Off-Range Facility that is “off-limits” to public visitation except for a tour each year. The annual tour currently does not include allowing the public to view captive burros and was part of our litigation at the Blue Wing Complex (future tours will include burros and the BLM will work to change the contract to include access to areas where burros are held and processed for future tours as part of the outcome of that litigation).
Every captive wild horse or burro is in the target zone of drastic budget cuts and in danger of changing policy that will cause them to be sold without limits (slaughter) or euthanized. We are monitoring this situation closely. There are numerous alternatives to save money and we touch on a few in a recent article HERE.
It is critically important to track burro roundups and care in holding. Burros are highly susceptible to Capture Myopathy and Hyperlipemia (capture stress related and most often fatal conditions). The story of one baby burro outlines this deadly threat and the inability of BLM to change their protocols or to accept help. Help that could have saved a young life.
Cumulative totals:
Captured: 85 Wild Burros (49 Jacks, 32 Jennies, and 4 Foals)
Shipped to off-limits to viewing facility (Axtell): 82 Wild Burros (44 Jacks, 34 Jennies, and 4 Foals)
Died: 3 ( 8-yr old pinto Jack BLM said had a large tumor with no prognosis of recovery, 10-yr old gray Jack BLM said had a large tumor with no prognosis of recovery. BLM said that a 5-yr old pain Jack had missing left eye with no prognosis of recovery and put him down.)
Newer info posted at the top, scroll for earlier information.
Day 5
10 (5 Jacks, 4 Jennies and 1 Foal) and 33 shipped to the off-limits to the public facility in Axtell.
Day 4
23 (14 Jacks, 7 Jennies and 2 Foals) were captured. 0 shipped.
Day 3
8 burros were captured (3 Jacks, 5 Jennies).
BLM said that a 5-yr old pain Jack had missing left eye with no prognosis of recovery and put him down.
Day 2
21 (13 Jacks, 7 Jennies and 1 Foals) were captured.
27 (14 Jacks, 13 Jennies, and 0 Foals) were shipped to the private Axtel facility. Of note: the foal did not ship to Axtel. (Yes, we know BLM listed shipping in their update as Monday. However, we believe this is a simple error as BLM captured 23 on Monday, not 27. Shipping occurred on day 2, Tuesday, and we believe it will be rectified.)
2 died: 2 ( 8-yr old pinto Jack BLM said had a large tumor with no prognosis of recovery, 10-yr old gray Jack BLM said had a large tumor with no prognosis of recovery.)
Burros are not horses and helicopter drive trapping represents abnormal exertion. Many people see burros as “hardy.” Burros are hardy animals and can extract essential nutrients in sparse desert environments from harsh, fibrous plants, allowing them to thrive in challenging conditions. Burros can also live in water sparse areas, can lose up to 30% of their body weight in water and replenish it in one drink. In captivity, things like legume hay such as alfalfa are far too rich for a burro and can lead to deadly consequences. However, burros have a harder time dealing with stress and a much longer recovery time.
Day 1: On the first day 23 Wild Burros (14 Jacks, 9 Jennies, and 0 Foals) were captured. About 20% were roped (It is sad that we have to note this due to crazy social media attacks: 10% of 20 is 2. 20% of 20 is 4.)
The little burro above was roped and then, as it was being pushed through the wings into trap, appeared to fall or freeze as the saddle horse tried to push the burro.
All of our work is only possible with your support. We thank you for keeping the critical work we do at WHE running for our wild ones.
Notes on AML:
AML in the 89,000 acre Canyonlands (southern UT) is the higher than the roughly 2.2 million acre Blue Wing Complex (northern NV) where AML for burros is 55-90 burros. No wonder the public sees everything represented by BLM as a “fact” as simply “nonsense.” The numbers BLM sets as “appropriate management level” for wild horses and burros is always a subject on contention. Much of the contention arises because BLM has really never disclosed how the numbers were set. They will say some land use plan or Final Multiple Use Decision (FMUD); these documents just carry over a number and provide no analysis or equation. How AML is/was set is supposed to be disclosed in Herd Management Area Plans (HMAP). We have had to go to court simply to get BLM to create these documents, the foundational management plans that have been illegally withheld for over 40 years. We have won two of these cases to date and have more active. BLM is just beginning to rectify this egregious deficit and it looks like we will be heading back to court as BLM still refuses to disclose things like how AML is set.
BLM has set the maximum number allowed of both wild horses and burros for all western states at 26,785. The target goal is what they call low AML. Low AML for wild horses is 14,259 and burros is 2,101 (in fragmented populations without exchange representing genetic bankruptcy). These numbers are not based in science but set through agreements that that have been carried over since the 1980s as “affirmed,” but never actually analyzed. When we look at the national AML for burros it is extremely alarming. Burros are being pushed into threatened or endangered status worldwide due to the illegal wildlife trade in donkey hides to fuel the Ejioa trade.
BLM likes to claim management is science-based and carefully analyzed.
When every single decision involves removal to a number BLM has never, ever, disclosed data or methodology to arrive at, the entire program is based on assertion, administrative convenience and nothing but nonsense.
Categories: Wild Horse Education
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