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Nevada WildlifeNevada Wildlife is the official voice of the Nevada Wildlife Federation, Inc.

We are an affiliate of National Wildlife Federation and the oldest statewide conservation organization dedicated to sustaining Nevada’s natural resources for wildlife through conservation and education.

Volume 19, Issue 2 Summer, 2015

U.S. Department of the Interior

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Basin and Range National Monument is one of three new national monuments that help tell the story of significant events in American history and protect unique cultural and natural resources for the benefit of all Americans, as announced by President Obama on July 10.

“This area is a spectacular ex-panse of rugged public lands that tell the proud story of the West, from the ancient rock art of our first Americans to the early homesteaders looking for opportunity on the open range,” said U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell. “Today’s action builds on lo-cal efforts to preserve and protect this special place, while also allowing traditional ranching practices, recre-ational opportunities, future scientific study and national security exercises.

“The President’s action ensures that this area will remain a beloved resource for generations to come.”

Basin and Range National Monument, located in Lincoln and Nye counties about two hours from downtown Las Vegas, spans about 704,000 acres of rugged mountains and sweeping valleys. The monument tells the story of the area’s native peo-ple, as well as the history of more re-cent settlers and mining communities. The designation preserves current uses of the land, including ranching practices and ongoing military train-ing operations, while ensuring that the land remains unspoiled for future generations.

In February, Interior Deputy Secretary Mike Connor and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Director Neil Kornze visited Las Vegas at the request of Sen. Harry Reid and Rep. Dina Titus to hear from the communi-ty about its vision for conservation in southern Nevada. Legislation to with-draw the Basin and Range area from mining and other uses had been intro-duced by Sen. Reid and Rep. Titus.

Nevada businesses also supported protection of the area, including MGM Resorts International, the state’s larg-

Basin and Range:

Nevada home to new national monument

est employer; Wynn Resorts; Barrick Gold Corporation; and Rockwood Lithium North America, as well as the Las Vegas Metro Chamber of Commerce and the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.

The national monument, com-prised of existing federal lands, will continue to be managed by BLM. It is the newest addition to the National Conservation Lands, a system man-aged by BLM that contains some of the West’s most spectacular and unique landscapes, including Red Rock Canyon outside Las Vegas. The national monument includes Garden Valley and Coal Valley; the Worthington Mountains, Golden Gate Range, Seaman Mountains, and

Mount Irish Range; Hiko Narrows and White River Narrows; and the Shooting Gallery rock art site.

The proclamation allows for con-tinued historic uses of the area, in-cluding hunting and fishing, which will continue to be managed under existing regulations.

Both Garden Valley and Coal Valley have long traditions of ranch-ing. The proclamation will not affect grazing operations in the monument, including use of motorized vehicles, construction and maintenance of wa-ter infrastructure, and construction of fences and other range improvements relating to grazing. Additionally, the designation does not affect U.S. mili-tary uses of the airspace and allows

continued military access for emer-gency response and training activi-ties.

The Basin and Range area has been threatened by various proposed development projects for decades, in-cluding various railroad lines, solar energy, oil and gas, and major elec-trical transmission lines. Interest in mineral development within the area has been minor in recent years, with more attractive prospects to the north and east of the area while BLM’s Western Solar Plan established areas for focused solar energy development elsewhere in southeastern Nevada.

The Basin and Range National Monument contains a wealth of sci-entifically significant geological, ecological, cultural and historical re-sources, and is an important area for studies of paleoecology, seismology, archaeology, and paleoclimatology. The area’s vast unbroken expanses on the transition between the Mojave Desert and the sagebrush steppe of the Great Basin makes it home to a wide diversity of plants and wildlife, including desert bighorn sheep, gold-en eagles, and a host of bat, lizard and snake species.

The national monument designa-tion will protect recreation such as hiking, hunting, horseback riding, mountain biking, fishing and rock climbing.

Located on private lands with-in the monument boundary, is the landscape sculpture City by Michael Heizer. Comparable in size to the National Mall in Washington, D.C., the work explores contemporary and ancient American influences in the context of the stark and open land-scape.

Protection of the work and its surroundings has been supported by major American art institutions such as the Nevada Museum of Art, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Museum of Contemporary Art. The Los Angeles County Museum of Art currently holds a conservation ease-ment that ensures public access once

See Basin and Range on Page 3

2 Nevada Wildlife – Summer, 2015

Nevada WildlifePublished quarterly

by Nevada Wildlife Federation, Inc.

Editor: Lorna WeaverAssociate Editor: Gale DupreeIn this Issue:Basin and Range gets protection 1Nature Notes 2Judge rules against Walker Lake 3President’s Post 3Agency complies with guzzler law 4Wardens close illegal trapping case 4Duck stamp subject chosen 4Nevada lends to pronghorn recovery 5Affiliates support states’ grouse plan 5Interior rolls out new sage fire plan 6Fuelbreak helps stop spread of fire 6Project to conserve sage-grouse 7Comment sought on land-use plan 7Land designated for blue butterfly 8Agency seeks OK for frog plan 8Agency alters jurisdiction boundary 8

Nevada Wildlife Federation, Inc.P.O. Box 71238, Reno, NV 89570

phone (775) 677-0927Web site: www.nvwf.org

President: Robert GaudetDistrict 1 (Reno) Vice Pres.: Ed WagnerDistrict 2 (Elko) Vice Pres.: Jack PrierDistrict 3 (Las Vegas) Vice Pres.: Kevin CabbleSecretary: Barbara McKinnonTreasurer: Tom GrimmNational Wildlife Federation (NWF) Representative: Robert GaudetAlternate NWF Rep: Kevin Cabble

Corporate SponsorsPatagonia – Reno

AffiliatesNational Wildlife Federation – NationAnimal Ark – RenoFriends of Nevada Wilderness – RenoGreat Basin Chapter Trout Unlimited – BakerMotorcycle Racing Assoc. of Nevada – Las VegasNevada Bowhunters Association – ElkoNorthern Nevada Outdoors – WinnemuccaTruckee River Flyfishers – RenoWalker Lake Working Group – Hawthorne

nature notesHave you ever slept in a fire lookout?

The Sierraville Ranger District, Tahoe National Forest recently opened its Sardine Peak Lookout to public rental use. This season reservations are free, but next season will have a rental fee. Call (530) 994-3401 for reservations. Most days are

already filled. Sardine Peak Lookout is located be-tween Verdi and Loyalton, Calif.

States promote fishing through free fishing daysThe Free Fishing Day in Nevada was Saturday

June 13, 2015. Many enjoyed free public events in all parts of the state. In California there are two free fishing days, July 4 and Sept. 5, 2015.

No ESA for sage-grouse, federal agency saysThe Bi-state sage-grouse are existing well enough

that U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service issued a finding not to list the bird as threatened or endangered. Ranchers and developers got a token relief. A lot of federal dol-lars have been spent on restoring sage-grouse habitat and thousands more are planned to be utilized to im-prove sage-grouse habitat in the Bi-state region.

I personally spent hundreds of hours studying sage-grouse in the Bi-state area. I chaired the Mount Grant Population Management Unit (PMU) for awhile, counted leks in the spring and developed most of the plans for restoration of the sagebrush habitat in the Mount Grant PMU near Hawthorne, Nev. Before that, I got many people involved in doing work for sage-grouse, organized workshops and attended western states’ sage-grouse workshops and field trips.

The sagebrush sea is a huge ecosystem of sage-brush that covers 11 states in the American West. Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) released a broad-cast about the Sagebrush Sea on May 20, 2015. If you missed it, you can review it at: www.video.pbs.org/vid-eo/2365475128.pbs.org.

Trivia:I have a question for you. How do you sex sage-

grouse in flight? The answer can be found at the end of this column.

Basin and Range protection Recently, President Obama designated more than

700,000 acres to be the Basin and Range National Monument to permanently protect both the basin and the range – thereby keeping intact wildlife corridors, preserving important prehistoric sites, and ensuring

this special corner of Nevada remains pristine for fu-ture generations to enjoy.

Only a two-hour drive from Las Vegas (Southeast of Battle Mountain) one arrives at a landscape of lim-itless valleys and majestic mountain ranges. Garden Valley and Coal Valley are two spectacular basins sur-rounded by incredible mountain ranges and peaks that tower overhead.

Now it’s time for some fishing trivia statements1. The worst day fishing is better than

the best day working.2. Fishing is generally better before you

get there and after you leave.3. Work is for people who don’t know

how to fish.Until we meet again, have a great day outdoors and

God bless you!

Meet the Nevada Wildlife Federation DirectorsNevada Wildlife Federation will be an exhibitor at

Cabela’s Fall Great Outdoor Days I and II. Aug. 15-16 and Aug. 29-30. “Fall Great Outdoor Days I” will fo-cus on general outdoors, camping and fall fishing. Fall Great Outdoor Days II will showcase hunting apparel, fall hunting and accessories and general outdoors.

Membership supports Nevada wildlife activitiesIf you are not already a member, please consider

joining the Nevada Wildlife Federation (NVWF). With an investment of as little as $25.00 a year, you can help make important things happen. You will join other sportsmen and wildlife enthusiasts in representing your interest at local, state and federal levels.

We are a membership organization comprised of citizens who care about Nevada’s wildlife and outdoor recreation. You will receive the Nevada Wildlife news-letter four times a year and be more informed on criti-cal conservation issues facing our state. NVWF is the state’s oldest nonprofit conservation education organi-zation. NVWF represents the views of hunters, fisher-men and anyone who deeply cares about our wildlife and wild lands. Membership application can be found at www.nvwf.org or in the cutout box below.

Gale Dupree

Join Nevada Wildlife Federation today!Your membership dues fund wildlife

conservation and education programs in Nevada.

Membership Categories per yearCorporate: $250, $500, $1,000 and upBenefactor: $100 and upSustaining: $40 to $99Life: $400Family: $35, for families at same addressAssociate or Affiliate: $25Student: $12

Name: _____________________________________________Address: ___________________________________________City: ______________________________________________State, Zip: __________________________________________Phone: ____________________________________________E-mail: ____________________________________________

Mail this coupon with your check or money order to Nevada Wildlife Federation, P.O. Box 71238, Reno, NV 89570

Gifts for higher renewal rates *Members who join or renew at a rate of $45 or higher can

choose among several gifts:

Campaign logo T-shirts – The slogans are: “Water for Wildlife,” “Share Your Backyard with Wildlife,” “Save Our Sagebrush Family” and “Support Elk on Public Lands.” A T-shirt with the NvWF logo is also available.

Please circle your choice of T-shirt. Please indicate size: Adult: Small, Medium, Large, XL, XXL, XXXL. Youth: Medium, Large.Hats

Baseball hat with the federation’s logoBooks Best Easy Day Hikes of Death Valley, Animals of the Western Range Land, Hiking Death Valley National Park, Hiking Nevada, Nevada Wildlife Viewing Guide, Rockhounding Nevada, Basic Essentials for Survival, Also available is Beyond Fair Chase and Inherit the Hunt, which contain stories on the tradition of hunting by Jim Posewitz.Pocket guides Nevada Trees and Wildflowers, Nevada Birds, Birds of Prey, Ducks, Wilderness Survival, Animal Tracks, Nevada Wildlife, Invasive Weeds of North America. Please circle your choice of book. Your generous donation of $60 or more will be rewarded with a choice of any two items listed above (books and cloth-ing only). Please circle your two gift choices.

* Life memberships are not a renewal and are not entitled to gifts after initial donation.

Answer to identifying the sex of a flying sagegrouse: (Males fly straight like a bomber and females fly erratic like they had too much “corn” (booze).

Senate Joint Resolution 1: Federal Land has never been state land

Proponents of the “trans-fer” of Federal land would have you believe that they

are righting an historic wrong, which long ago the feds grabbed land that did not belong to them, and that it should be “returned”

to state ownership. That’s a very convenient (an incorrect) reading of Western history. The real story is that almost all Western states were once federal territories, land purchased by the U.S. Treasury (from France, Great Britain, Russia) or seized (from Spain, Mexico and Indian nations) and governed according to fee title by the federal government until statehood.

During the 2015 Legislature, some of our leg-islators sold the sportsmen and women of Nevada down river for a few pieces of silver. I am referring to Senate Joint Resolution 1 (SJR1), the urging of Congress to transfer federal lands to the states. I guess in this case, as in many others, our elected officials pay no attention to voters. They talk out of both sides of the mouth, saying they listen to their constituents, but when the rubber meets the road they fold. Of the 897 opinions cast by Nevada voters, only 87 were in favor of SJR1, which equals 10.3 percent of the citizens of Nevada who sup-ported this devastating bill.

With this bill’s passage, we have the potential to lose a basic American value forever: the unique and abundant freedom to experience our undevel-oped and wild spaces; natural wonders; wildlife and waters; and assets that have made life and citi-zenship in our country the envy of the world. Our public lands were created as a uniquely American solution to natural-resource challenges that have plagued nations for centuries. While no Westerners would say that federal management of our public lands is perfect, the idea that individual states will do a better job is fundamentally flawed.

If SJR1 is implemented and public lands are given to the states, the American hunting and fish-ing tradition would be eliminated, replaced by a model that resembles the old-world system where only the elite few can pursue the “kings’ fish and game.” The greed of a few to deprive us or our children of our freedom – or our tradition of hunt-ing and fishing and enjoying the great outdoors – is unforgivable.

Please thank those legislators who opposed SJR1.

Board seeks new directors to shape futureNevada Wildlife Federation, Inc. (NvWF) is

the state’s oldest nonprofit conservation organiza-tion. Founded in 1951, NvWF represents the views of hunters, fishermen, gardeners and anyone who deeply cares about our wildlife and wild lands.

NvWF is looking for outdoors enthusiasts who are passionate about Nevada’s wildlife and habi-tat and are interested in becoming a leader. Board of Directors membership is a volunteer position that requires a minimum four hours of service per month. Some travel throughout the state is re-quired.

We are looking for people who will inspire Nevadans to protect wildlife for our and our chil-dren’s future. Board of director positions are open in three geographic areas in the state: Northwest, Reno area; East, Elko area; and Southern, Las Vegas area. For information see www.nvwf.org. To apply to the board, please send a resume to me at [email protected].

Nevada Wildlife – Summer, 2015 3

President’s Post

Robert Gaudet

Walker Lake Working Group

Federal District Court Judge Robert Jones is-sued rulings on May 28 rejecting every petition and claim before him concerning the Walker River, including efforts to deliver more water to Walker Lake. Advocates for Walker Lake welcomed this development to finally address the central merits of these claims, even though Judge Jones’s rulings were adverse.

“We have been trying to get the court to is-sue a ruling on substance of our claim for Walker Lake for years,” said Glenn Bunch, Walker Lake Working Group President. “And even though the rulings were negative, we are happy to finally get the judge to address the issue, so we can take it up on appeal.”

Walker Lake Working Group and Mineral County joined litigation to open the court decree governing the allocation of Walker River Walker in an effort to provide a permanent supply of fresh water to preserve the lake’s fresh-water ecosytem. They say they will appeal Judge Jones’s rulings to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

“In our view these rulings are – as expected – plainly erroneous, and we believe the court of ap-peals will reverse them and clarify the law so that we finally can obtain the required remedy for Walker Lake,” said Simeon Herskovits, of Advocates for Community and Environment, the law firm repre-senting Walker Lake Working Group and Mineral County.

Marlene Bunch/Walker Lake Working GroupVolunteers Toby Montoya of Walker Lake Crusaders, (left) and Glenn Bunch of Walker Lake Working Group, on July 31 put the finishing touches on an information monument at Walker Lake’s State Beach, just north of the town of Hawthorne, Nev. The graphic provides visitors with information on the plight of the lake that in recent history has seen its freshwater ecosystem collapse due to upstream water diversions and rising salinity levels.

Judge rules against Walker Lake, group vows appeal

From Basin and Range on Page 1 the artwork is completed, no later than five years from now, and ensures the protection of City. The Museum intends to donate the conservation easement to the United States. Upon acquisition by the United States, the easement will be managed by BLM as part of the monument.

BLM will prepare a management plan for the monument in formal cooperation with the state of Nevada, local governments and tribes. The plan will be developed in an open process with maximum public involvement.

“Collaborative management of this area is a key priority for the BLM in Nevada,” said BLM Acting Nevada State Director John Ruhs. “This designation represents an oppor-tunity for new businesses in the communities of Lincoln and Nye counties while also sup-porting the traditional ranching economy. We look forward to working closely with local partners on this effort.”

The Antiquities Act was first used by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1906 to des-ignate Devils Tower National Monument in Wyoming.

Since then, 16 presidents have used this authority to protect unique natural and histor-ic features on public lands in America, such as the Grand Canyon, the Statue of Liberty, and Colorado’s Canyons of the Ancients.

With these new designations, President Obama will have used the Antiquities Act to establish or expand 19 national monuments. Altogether, he has protected more than 260 million acres of public lands and waters – more than any other President – as well as preserved sites that help tell the story of significant people or extraordinary events in American history, such as Cèsar E. Chàvez National Monument in California, Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Monument in Maryland and Charles Young Buffalo Soldiers National Monument in Ohio.

The greed of a few to deprive us or our children of our freedom – or our tradition of hunting and fishing and enjoying the great

outdoors – is unforgivable.


Nevada Department of Wildlife

As sportsman head to hills to scout for their ap-proaching hunts, Nevada Department of Wildlife (NDOW) is asking for assistance in monitoring the state’s wildlife water developments. More than 1,700 water developments, commonly known as “guzzlers,” dot the Nevada landscape. These struc-tures are built in suitable wildlife habitats to pro-vide an additional source of water for all types of wildlife. They work by collecting precipitation that lands on a collection apron, store it in tanks and make it available to wildlife at a drinker.

The survival of Nevada’s wildlife is partially dependent on their adaptability to the state’s arid conditions and ability to find water sources, rang-ing from natural springs or puddles to raindrops on leaves and dew on grass. Lack of water can some-times lead wildlife to turn away from Nevada’s oth-erwise quality habitats. Guzzlers and their essential water help Nevada’s wildlife to take advantage of this otherwise suitable habitat.

By their very nature, most guzzlers are not in easy to reach locations. Often guzzlers can be found on mountain tops or in canyons and are often located away from roads. Building them is a monu-mental task that requires NDOW biologists work-ing in coordination with sportsmen’s groups and a team of volunteers.

What do you do when a guzzler gets damaged or broken?

“Even though some of the guzzlers in the state aren’t necessarily under NDOW’s ownership and were initially built by other agencies, such as Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service, we have taken on the responsibility for maintenance of their units as well,” said Clint Garret, Habitat biologist for NDOW. “Every year we try to assess 300-600 guzzlers to see if they’re dysfunctional in any way. Some are so remote, NDOW is forced to use a helicopter to get to some of the guzzlers to as-sess their condition.”

The task of checking and repairing up to 600 guzzlers each year is tough enough, but in 2013, NDOW staff were additionally charged with plac-

ing signage on all of the 1,700-plus water develop-ments to assist the public in reporting any observed damage.

Senate Bill 134 passed in 2013 requiring NDOW to post contact information signs that may be used to notify the person or agency that placed the guz-zler, if it is in disrepair. It also required NDOW maintain guzzler fences to prevent livestock from being trapped. These mandates presented a sizeable challenge for NDOW’s water development crews, since they required the placement of signs on all 1,712 water developments within a one-year win-dow to ensure compliance.

“This was a huge request of our water devel-opment crews, which required weeks of helicopter time to reach the remote “hike-in” units and months of on-the-ground visits,” said Alan Jenne, Habitat Division Chief.

In concert with these visits, NDOW performed maintenance activities and recorded future main-tenance needs. Although approximately 346 guz-zlers required some level of maintenance, most of the units only required minor maintenance and are still functioning.

“We basically break it down by minor and ma-jor maintenance,” said Garret. “The major main-tenance being something where we may have to rebuild a big portion of that guzzler, and minor be-ing tweaks on fences or quick fixes that we can do while we are there at that time.”

Checking on all of the guzzlers in the state is a monumental task, but when you consider that NDOW used only two small crews, one for north-ern Nevada and one for southern Nevada, it is ap-parent completing this task was an impressive feat. The two crews consist of one biologist who super-vises the crew of two technicians.

Nevada’s history of installing water develop-ments for wildlife dates back nearly 70 years. When despite having the essential habitat requirements of food and cover, many areas of the state lacked water to support wildlife. Beginning in the 1940s, what was then the Nevada Fish and Game Commission, installed guzzlers to expand habitat for Gambel’s quail in southern Nevada. Based on early successes

and a dedicated team of NDOW biologists, sports-man-conservation groups and hundreds of volun-teers, the program has grown substantially. Now strategically located throughout Nevada, guzzlers support a myriad of species. In addition to benefit-ting game species such as bighorn sheep, antelope, mule deer and elk, NDOW has learned through monitoring that guzzlers have tremendous benefits for non-game birds, bats, other small mammals, reptiles and even insects.

As the program has grown over the years, so has public support. Sportsmen’s groups provide substantial funding, as well as extensive volunteer labor to install these water developments.

“There are a few key groups that are really involved in the construction of these water devel-opments for wildlife,” said Kim Toulouse, volun-teer coordinator for NDOW. “Nevada Bighorns Unlimited in the northern half of the state and the Fraternity of the Desert Bighorn in the southern half of the state.”

Toulouse also points to Pershing County Chukar Club, Carson Valley Chukar Club, Nevada Chukar Foundation, Nevada Muleys, Elko and Fallon Bighorns Unlimited and Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation as groups who actively support the program.

Although NDOW and sponsoring sportsmen’s organizations have played a major role in wildlife water development in Nevada, the program has also been a cooperative effort between the Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Forest Service and the Federal Aid for Wildlife Restoration Program.

While NDOW continues to routinely check guzzlers each year, it still needs help from the pub-lic. NDOW asks for the thousands of sportsmen who are in the field to help in keeping this program healthy by reporting any damaged guzzler they may encounter.

Should you find a guzzler that has been dam-aged, vandalized, or is not functional, please note the number of the guzzler, its location, and a de-scription of the problem, and report it to the Guzzler Hotline or website.


Stemming from a multi-month investigation in Lander and Elko counties, an Elko man was sen-tenced for illegal trapping activities on June 4 in Elko Justice Court. The investigation uncovered the illegal use of exposed bait and trap-visitation times that exceeded the legal limit, causing the death of many animals, including a mule deer fawn and an elk calf.

Commercial trapper Trevor Charles Walch, 29, of Elko entered a guilty plea to three counts of unlawful trapping and was sentenced to $1,065 in court fines and fees plus a $5,000 civil penalty. The court also ordered consecutive jail sentences of five days for each count, but suspended the jail time for one year on the condition that Walch pay his fines and fees as ordered. The three charges in the plea deal were a reduction from the 14 original charges in both Elko and Lander counties.

“There is no excuse for the blatant illegal behav-ior we saw in this case that resulted in several ani-mals dying in traps because the trapper didn’t check the traps on time,” said Chief Game Warden Tyler Turnipseed. As a result of the trapper’s negligence, game wardens discovered a dead elk calf, a dead yearling deer and three dead coyotes, all of which

appeared to have died in the traps. Game Wardens observed the dead deer and one of the coyotes in two separate traps for a period of at least 13 days in Lander County. Because traps are legally required to be checked within 96 hours, the 13 days was far outside the bounds of law.

“Despite the egregious misdemeanor charges in this case, Mr. Walch will not lose his license privi-leges as a result of the case, having incurred only nine demerit points on a scale that mandates license revocation does not occur until reaching 12 demer-its,” said Turnipseed.

NDOW game wardens conducted an extensive investigation and monitored many illegally set traps over a period of several months. The final charges were for one count of trapping near exposed bait and two counts of failing to visit traps within the required 96-hour time limit.

Game wardens patrol more than 110,567 square miles of Nevada, responding to boat accidents, search and rescue operations, investigating wild-life crimes of all kinds and general public safety as needed. Game wardens in remote stations in-dividually patrol areas up to 10,000 square miles. Members of the public can follow Turnipseed on Twitter for periodic updates to cases and wildlife crime-related news.

nevada dePartment of Wildlife

Agency satisfies new guzzler law requirements

Game wardens close illegal trapping case Bufflehead subject of 2016 duck stamp contestNevada Department of Wildlife

The Nevada Waterfowl Association (NWA) has selected the Bufflehead as the species for this year’s Nevada Duck Stamp Art Contest.

The contest is sanctioned by the Nevada Board of Wildlife Commissioners with the winning art-work to be featured on the 2016-2017 state duck stamp.

All interested artists, Nevada resident or not, are encouraged to enter the contest. Entries must be an original creation, in any medium and must be received by Nevada Department of Wildlife (NDOW) no later than Oct. 16, 2015. Contest rules are available at www.ndow.org, or by calling (775) 688-1998.

The name Bufflehead refers to its large bulbous-shaped head. This is noticeable when the male puffs out the feathers on the head, which increases the size. It is one of the smaller ducks ranging from 13 to 16 inches long with drakes larger than the females. Adult males are black and white, with iridescent green and purple heads and a large white patch be-hind the eye. Females are grey-toned with a smaller white patch behind the eye and a light underside.


Nevada refuge lends to pronghorn recovery in WestBob Maichle and Barbara McKinnonNevada Wildlife Federation

The pronghorn, Antilocapra americana, may well owe its current existence to the great state of Nevada. The 1900s saw pronghorn populations in extreme decline almost ev-erywhere, except Nevada with our open range and lack of fences, pronghorn

populations declined slower.People like Boone and Crockett

Club Chairman George Bird Grinnell, wrote the U.S. Secretary of the Interior with his concerns. The Boone and Crockett club started sequestering herds of pronghorn on game reserves, parks and in Montana, Kansas,

and South Dakota but the prong-horn would soon begin to die off from the effects of fences used to protect the wildlife within. Boone and Crockett Club member Charles Sheldon wrote: “I think that the antelope are doomed, yet every attempt should be made to save them.”

By the beginning of the Great Depression, less than 13,000 pronghorn remained in North America, most of which resided in Nevada. Grinnell with the aid of T. Gilbert Pearson of Grinnell’s National Audubon Society worked to create the Charles Sheldon Antelope Refuge in Washoe and Humboldt counties, in

northwestern Nevada and Lake County, Oregon. The two orga-

nizations purchased 2,900 acres of land to be turned over to the Biological Survey as a prong-horn refuge. The offer was contingent upon the govern-ment kicking in 30,000 acres of adjacent federal land

President Herbert Hoover

added the 30,000 acres on June 20, 1929, and on Jan. 26, 1931, signed the executive order creating a fenceless area for antelope recovery. President Franklin Roosevelt increased the size to 549,000 acres on Dec. 31, 1936.

Today, the Sheldon National Wildlife Refuge, one of 270 National Wildlife Refuges, protects more than 900 square miles of wildlife habitat, home to 270 species, including pronghorn, as well as Greater sage-grouse, California bighorn sheep, mule deer and waterfowl.

Due to conservation efforts like the Sheldon, about one million pronghorn roam North America today.

Pronghorn are the fastest running hoofed ani-mal in North America. Adults have been clocked at 55 miles per hour and may reach 60 miles per hour for short spurts. Pronghorn have a dispropor-tionately large heart and lungs, with very efficient circulatory and respiratory systems. Their eyes are located far back on the sides of their head to allow a field of view of nearly 360 degrees. These adap-tations allow them to detect approaching predators and escape by running at high speed for extended periods of time.

The genus name, antelocapra comes from a cross between an antelope and a goat. The prong-horn is the only species in the genus and is not a

ameriCan PronGHorn

Origin: western North America (Canada, United States, Mexico)Population: 30-40 million (1700s); 20,000 (1924); nearly 1 million (present day)Weight: 7-9 lbs (3.5-4 kg) at birth; 75-130 lbs (34-59 kg) adultHorns: Bony interior covered by keratinous (horn-like) sheath shed annually (like antlers)Top speed: 60 mph (100 kph)Migration: 100+ milesAge: 7-10 yearsDiet: Herbivore; forbs, shrubs, sagebrush, grasses and cacti.

source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Reprinted with permission from Boone and CrockettThe world record for pronghorn was harvested in Socorro County, N.M., in 2013. It scores 96-4/8.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife ServicePronghorn fawns like the one pictured above have a greater chance of survival on game refuges like Sheldon National Wildlife Refuge in Nevada that provides vast expanses of land required by the species.

true antelope. It is not closely related to the antelope of Africa or the goats of the Western Hemisphere. This unique animal has been roaming the plains of north America for thousands of years.

June 11, 2015The Honorable Mitch McConnell The Honorable Harry Reid Majority Leader Minority LeaderUnited States Senate United States Senate Washington, D.C., 20510 Washington, D.C., 20510

Dear Majority Leader McConnell and Minority Leader Reid: On behalf of the undersigned sportsmen-conservation organizations, we respectfully encourage you to oppose any legislation that would serve to delay or

fundamentally reshape federal decision making as it relates to the Greater sage-grouse.We define success for the forthcoming sage-grouse listing decision as keeping the bird off of the endangered species list and grouse populations under contin-

ued management by the states. We believe that the recently introduced federal plans for federal lands, coupled with strong state conservation plans and voluntary efforts from private landowners are the best paths to success. The proof that collaboration works was clearly illustrated earlier this year, as the distinct Bi-state (Calif.-Nev.) population of sage-grouse was deemed “not warranted” for listing by the Department of the Interior’s Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS); a similar process can play out with the same successful outcome on the range-wide populations of Greater sage-grouse, if Congress allows that process to continue. On the other hand, a congressionally mandated delay to the September 2015 decision by USFWS would actually create long-term uncertainty about sage-grouse populations, and could increase the potential for sage-grouse to be listed as a threatened and endangered species in the future.

The Western sage ecosystem is home to more than 350 different species, including iconic game and fish species such as mule deer, bighorn sheep, pronghorn, elk and several species of wild trout. If we can successfully conserve sage-grouse and its habitat, we will help support a wide range of fish and wildlife habitat and our hunting and fishing traditions.

Please allow the current process of cooperation and collaboration to play out between the 11 Western states and federal government. Let what has been a 15-year-long process of scientific research, refinement of habitat and population management, and positive collaborations between the states, federal agencies and private stakeholders lead to a sound decision on the legal status of the Greater sage-grouse. The current path is the best approach to keep federal jurisdiction intact for federal lands, grouse populations under state management, and the sage-grouse off of the endangered species list.

Sincerely,Nevada Wildlife Federation – NevadaBig Sky Upland Bird Association – MontanaMuley Fanatics Foundation – Wyoming

Joint affiliate letter supports states’ management of sage-grouse


saGe-Grouse

Bureau of Land Management

BOISE, Idaho – U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell released in late-May a comprehensive, sci-ence-based strategy to address the increasing threat of wildfires that are damaging vital sagebrush land-scapes and productive rangelands in the West. The strategy details a more focused, coordinated and collabora-tive approach for rangeland fire man-agement, particularly in the Great Basin region of Idaho, Utah, Nevada, Oregon and California.

The final report, An Integrated Rangeland Fire Management Strategy, focuses on reducing the size, severity and cost of rangeland fires, addressing the spread of cheatgrass and other invasive species that exacer-bate the threat of fire, and positioning fire management resources for more effective rangeland fire response. The long-term action plan builds upon an initial report, issued March 10, that detailed immediate actions Interior’s bureaus and partners are taking to ad-dress the threat of rangeland fire to sagebrush landscapes before and dur-ing the 2015 wildfire season.

“We now have a fully integrated strategy among federal, state, tribal and community partners that provides a set of actions to take now and in the future to fight rangeland fires across the West,” said Secretary Jewell, who was joined by Idaho Gov. C. L. Otter and Jim Hubbard, U.S. Forest Service, Deputy Chief for State and Private Forestry at U.S. Department of Agriculture. “This roadmap takes a comprehensive and scientific approach to protect against some of the most in-tense wildfires that are damaging the American West’s productive range-lands and sagebrush landscapes.”

Jewell has been working closely with western leaders and federal and other partners to improve rangeland fire-fighting capacity at all levels and to encourage proactive partnerships with ranchers, farmers, rural commu-nities and other landowners.

“Habitat degradation due to wildfire and invasive species is the primary threat to sage-grouse in Idaho,” Gov. Otter said. “Rangeland Fire Protection Associations (RFPAs) are an integral part of Idaho’s sage-grouse conservation strategy. They’ve already impacted the BLM’s ability to manage wildfire by reducing response times. Before creating RFPAs, these fires more than likely would have run out of control and burned a lot more habitat.”

Deputy Chief Jim Hubbard said, “USDA Forest Service will work with our partners within the Department of Interior, as well as state, tribal and local firefighting organizations to support wildland fire management operations in sagebrush landscapes. These cooperators are essential to en-suring that every wildfire receives an


Winnemucca, Nev. – The Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Desert Basin Zone Fire responded on June 30 to a wildland fire on the side of Highway 290, about 15 miles south of Paradise Valley. The “290 Fire,” was started by a vehicle that caught fire on the side of the road and ignited the surrounding vegetation. Fire crews responded within 15 minutes, but it was the Highway 290 Fuelbreak that arrested the fire spread and allowed crews to quickly extinguish the fire.

The fire was close to priority sage-grouse habitat. If the fuelbreak was not in place, no barriers would have limited the fire spread. What turned out as a .7 acre wildfire, could have easily been many times that, given extremely high temperatures and low humidity that day. This could have resulted in the fire consuming Greater sage-grouse habitat, as well as other natural resources and private property.

The Highway 290 Fuelbreak was put into place by the Winnemucca District in 2003, and along with the Highway 95, 140 and 447 fuelbreaks, have proven effective in stopping the spread of multiple fires.

“The areas right next to highways have some of the highest human-caused fire occurrences,” said Mike Fettic, Fire Management Officer for the Desert Basin Zone. “We ask the public to be vigilant in maintaining your vehicle. That means checking tire pressure, checking fluids, checking for dragging chains or other metal parts, and watching your gauges. If your vehicle does break down, pull off safely, but not into the grass.”

Fuelbreak stops wildfire spread into priority sage-grouse habitat

Interior announces fire strategy to protect sagebrush

appropriate, risk informed, and effec-tive response regardless of the juris-diction.”

The final report delineates a series of actions that federal and state wild-land fire managers and their partners can take to improve efforts to prevent and suppress rangeland fires as well as restore burned rangelands to healthy landscapes. Projects include invasive weed treatments, fuel breaks, juniper encroachment projects, sagebrush re-planting, seed collection and post-fire rehabilitation efforts. The manage-ment plan also includes:

• Designing and implementing integrated fire response plans for all Interior wildland firefighting agen-cies that prioritize protection of rural communities and landscapes most at-risk to the detrimental impacts of rangeland fire and invasive species, while recognizing human life as al-ways the highest priority;

• Applying current research to better target funding and other re-sources to specific high-value range-lands, based on relative resilience and resistance to disturbance, and consis-tent with efforts on tribal, state and other lands;

• Making better use of maps and technology to get information about priority areas for fire suppression in the hands of fire managers and fire-fighters on the ground;

• Developing new tools to fight the spread of non-native, invasive species like cheatgrass that contribute to the increased threat and intensity of rangeland fires;

• Directing better coordina-tion between resource managers and firefighters to ensure that preventive

measures like fuelbreaks, suppression efforts, and restoration strategies pro-vide the greatest benefit to communi-ties and wildlife;

• Increasing the collection and use of native seeds and plants to re-store fire-impacted lands and acceler-ating efforts to use existing funding to revegetate landscapes scarred by fire;

• Expanding training and use of veterans, rural and volunteer fire departments, and Rangeland Fire Protection Associations (RFPAs) to increase capacity for fire response; Planning fire prevention and resto-ration efforts at a landscape level to expedite planning and analysis and reduce delays in getting essential land treatments underway;

• Identifying opportunities to en-hance tribal, state, and local fire man-agement capabilities and coordination in priority sage-steppe areas.

The accelerated invasion of non-native grasses and the spread of pin-ion-juniper, along with drought and the effects of climate change, have increased the frequency and intensity of rangeland fires. The fires can dam-age sagebrush landscapes that support more than 350 species of plants and animals – such as golden eagle, elk, mule deer and pronghorn – as well as ranchers, livestock managers, hunters and outdoor recreation enthusiasts.

The plan’s landscape-scale ap-proach emphasizes sustainability of entire ecosystems, integrates stake-holder collaboration, and address-es the present and possible future conditions of lands across jurisdic-tional boundaries. Given the scope and magnitude of the challenges of

a landscape that crosses 11 western states and two Canadian provinces, the Strategy relies on the Fire and Invasive Assessment Tool (FIAT) to identify and prioritize important sage-steppe and Greater sage-grouse habi-tat and calls for greater use of effec-tive adaptive management to ensure that design practices and implementa-tion strategies reflect both emerging scientific findings and knowledge gained from past actions.

Heightened collaboration includes developing a community of practice for fuels reduction and management, restoration, monitoring and adaptive management in the sagebrush-steppe ecosystem with a cross-jurisdictional consortium of agencies, organizations and partners. The strategy will work to improve agencies’ analytical abil-ity to acquire, pre-position and mobi-lize firefighting assets to effectively prepare for and respond to wildland fire, with priority given to rangeland areas. The integrated strategy stresses that the safety of firefighters and the public has been and will remain the absolute top fire management prior-ity, while recognizing the need to improve overall capacity to fight the threat of rangeland fire.

The strategy builds on wildland fire prevention, suppression and res-toration efforts to date, including the National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy, which pro-vides a roadmap for achieving “All Hands – All Lands” cooperation, and the President’s wildland fire budget proposal to change how fire sup-pression costs are budgeted to treat extreme fire seasons the way other emergency disasters are treated.

The announcement is the final report called for in Secretarial Order 3336. Already this year, the order has spurred development and implemen-tation of best-management practices for responding to fires in high-prior-ity sagebrush habitat, driven an in-crease in fuels management project planning, and heightened a scientific emphasis on rangeland health issues.

Efforts to conserve and protect sagebrush habitat are the center-piece of an historic effort to address threats to Greater sage-grouse prior to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s court-ordered 2015 deadline for de-termining whether the bird warrants Endangered Species Act protection. Scientists and fish and wildlife ex-perts have identified rangeland fire as the greatest threat to the survival of the Greater sage-grouse in the Great Basin region.

To protect these landscapes for economic activity and wildlife like Greater sage-grouse, a three-pronged approach includes developing strong land management plans for federal lands, implementing conservation measures on state and private lands, and an effective strategy to address the threat of rangeland fire.



In a continuing effort to help in-crease the Bi-state sage-grouse popu-lation, Nevada Department of Wildlife (NDOW) is partnering with the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) to address ma-jor population threats within an area located in Lyon and Mineral counties.

The East Walker Landscape Habitat Improvement Project is part of the Bi-State Action Plan, a strategy to provide long-term conservation of Bi-state sage-grouse and its habitat. The project, in part, calls for the removal of pinon and juniper trees in a 20,400-acre area located about 15 miles north of Bridgeport, Calif. NDOW has com-mitted $330,000 for projects such as this in the next year alone.

“This is certainly not the first project of its kind to help conserve and improve habitat for the Bi-state

sage-grouse, and it won’t be the last,” said Mark Freese, Habitat Biologist for NDOW. “But this project is fairly significant in its scope relative to prior projects.”

Projects like this and others helped convince U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS) that the Bi-state sage-grouse is not in need of extend-ed protections under the Endangered Species Act, according to Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell in an April announcement.

“What this has shown is that despite the stresses we feel on the landscape here, particularly around drought and wildfire and other stress-es that impact this part of the world, we can still create and find habitat that supports sage-grouse,” Jewell said.

The East Walker project is just one in a long list of successful projects be-ing developed and implemented in a

partnership with other state and fed-eral agencies in the ongoing effort to improve or expand habitat for the Bi-state sage-grouse. Another such proj-ect is the Sweetwater Flat Pinyon and Juniper Reduction Project that took place on the north end of Sweetwater Flat in Lyon County. NDOW worked with USFS and provided funding for the project that removed pinyon trees from around crucial sage-grouse leks and nesting habitat. Also, working closely with USFS in the China Camp area near Aurora, NDOW provided funding to remove pinyon and juniper trees within historic sagebrush domi-nated habitats. NDOW has also been involved with several projects in the Pine Nut Mountains including fire re-habilitation and habitat enhancement projects.

“It’s a testament to what people can accomplish when they are all

working towards the same goal, said Shawn Espinosa, upland game bi-ologist for NDOW. “We would not be where we are today without all of the cooperation and help from our partners like U.S. Fish and Wildlife, Bureau of Land Management, Natural Resources Conservation Service, Local Area Working Group, Sagebrush Ecosystem Technical Team and the Hawthorne Army Depot.”

While Espinosa was pleased with the decision not to list the sage-grouse, he is also quick to point out the fight is far from over.

“It is important for everyone to understand this decision can be re-visited at any time,” Espinosa said. Challenges will arise, and it’s up to us to continue to implement conservation actions and projects that demonstrate a positive effect on the Bi-state sage-grouse population.”

New project planned to help Bi-state sage-grouse


CHEYENNE, Wyo. – The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) released in late-May the final environmental reviews for proposed land-use plans that will help conserve Greater sage-grouse habitat and support sustainable economic development on portions of public lands in 10 states across the West. The land management plans, developed during the past three years in partnership with the states and with input from local partners, will benefit wildlife, outdoor recreation, ranching and other traditional land uses that rely on a healthy sagebrush landscape.

The updated plans are an essen-tial element of an unprecedented and proactive strategy to respond to the deteriorating health of the American West’s sagebrush landscapes and de-clining population of the Greater sage-grouse, which is under consideration by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) for protection under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).

The collaborative federal-state effort includes three key elements to conserve sagebrush landscape, which faces threats from fire, invasive spe-cies and encroaching development: a comprehensive strategy to fight rangeland fire, strong conservation plans for federal public lands, and conservation actions on state and pri-vate lands.

“The West is rapidly changing – with increasingly intense wildfires, invasive species and development altering the sagebrush landscape and threatening wildlife, ranching and our outdoor heritage,” said U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell. “As land managers of two-thirds of Greater sage-grouse habitat, we have a responsibility to take action that en-sures a bright future for wildlife and a thriving western economy.

Together with conservation ef-forts from states and private land-

owners, we are laying an important foundation to save the disappearing sagebrush landscape of the American West.”

“Federal and state governments and private landowners recognize that a healthy sagebrush landscape means a healthy western economy,” said U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack.

The 14 final Environmental Impact Statements (EISs) and pro-posed plans released in May, in addition to the Lander Resource Management Plan released last May, will guide land management on BLM and USFS-administered resources in 10 western states. The final EISs are the result of a multi-year public pro-cess, including public scoping ses-sions, public meetings and comment periods on each of the draft EISs. The plans are now undergoing a 60-day Governor’s Consistency Review period and concurrent 30-day pro-test period, after which Records of Decisions will be signed.

The plans address issues identi-fied by USFWS in a 2010 determi-nation that found the Greater sage-grouse was deserving of protection under the ESA due to the inadequacy of regulatory protections to prevent further sagebrush habitat fragmen-tation, placing the bird in danger of extinction. Federal protection was deferred because of higher priorities; however, USFWS is required to revisit the determination by Sept. 30, 2015.

With the shared goal of taking actions to avoid the need to list the bird, in 2011, then-Secretary Ken Salazar and western governors, led by Wyoming Gov. Matt Mead and Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper, formed the Sage-Grouse Task Force to develop a cooperative approach to conserving the species across the West.

The proposed plans are grounded in the best available science and ad-dress threats identified in a peer-re-viewed report written by state and

federal wildlife biologists, known as the Conservation Objectives Team (COT) report.

The plans provide a layered man-agement approach that offers the highest level of protection in the most valuable habitat, known as Priority Habitat Management Areas. Within priority habitat, the plans seek to limit or eliminate new surface disturbance, particularly in Sagebrush Focal Areas, identified by USFWS as “stronghold” areas essential for the species’ surviv-al. The proposed plans seek to mini-mize disturbance in General Habitat Management Areas, which are lands that require some special manage-ment to sustain Greater sage-grouse populations, but are not considered as important as priority habitat.

Importantly, the plans will honor all valid, existing rights, including those for oil and gas development, renewable energy, rights-of-way, lo-catable minerals, and other permitted projects. The plan measures only ap-ply to BLM and USFS-managed lands and minerals.

The plans contain three common approaches:

1. Minimizing new or addition-al surface disturbance – The plans seek to reduce habitat fragmentation and protect intact habitat by imple-menting surface disturbance caps on development, minimizing surface occupancy from energy develop-ment, and identifying buffer distanc-es around leks – areas critical to the sage-grouse life-cycle – to be consid-ered during project implementation.

2. Improving habitat condi-tion – While restoring lost sagebrush habitat is difficult in the short term, it is often possible to enhance habitat quality through purposeful manage-ment. Where there are unavoidable impacts to habitat from development, the plans will require mitigation to enhance and improve sage-grouse habitat.

3. Reduce threat of rangeland fire – Rangeland fire can lead to the

conversion of previously healthy sage-brush habitat into non-native, cheat-grass-dominated landscapes. Experts have identified wildfire as one of the greatest threats to sagebrush habitat, particularly in the Great Basin region of Idaho, Utah, Nevada, Oregon and California. The plans seek to fight the spread of cheatgrass and other inva-sive species, position wildland fire management resources for more ef-fective rangeland fire response, and accelerate the restoration of fire-im-pacted landscapes to native grasses and sagebrush.

Individual proposed plans con-tain variations where different ap-proaches or priorities were consistent with overall conservation objectives. To learn more about the BLM-USFS plans for each state, visit www.blm.gov/sagegrouse.

The vast majority of federal lands within the priority sage-grouse habi-tat have zero to low potential for oil and gas, solar, and wind energy devel-opment. The plans limit surface occu-pancy within priority habitat areas for oil and gas; however, technological advances in horizontal drilling make it possible to conserve sensitive habi-tats while still developing subsurface resources.

Over the last four years, USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and its partners in the Sage-Grouse Initiative have worked with more than 1,100 private land-owners to restore 4.4 million acres of sage-grouse habitat while maintain-ing working landscapes.

More than 350 other species rely on healthy sagebrush habitat, includ-ing elk, mule deer, pronghorn and golden eagles. Greater sage-grouse habitat currently covers 165 million acres across 11 western states, repre-senting a loss of 56 percent of the spe-cies’ historic range. At one time, the Greater sage-grouse population likely numbered in the millions, but is esti-mated to have dwindled to 200,000 to 500,000 birds range-wide.

Feds release land-use plan review for sage-grouse recovery


u.s. fisH and Wildlife serviCe

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

LAS VEGAS – The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) an-nounced on June 29 its designa-tion of about 5,214 acres in south-ern Nevada’s Spring Mountains as critical habitat for the endangered Mount Charleston blue butterfly. The butterfly was listed as endan-gered in October 2013, under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The final critical habitat rule will appear in the Federal Register on June 30, 2015. The rule becomes effective on July 30, 2015. The land comprising the critical habitat is 99 per-cent federally owned and mostly within designated wilderness.

“Critical habitat” is a term in the ESA that iden-tifies geographic areas of particular importance to the conservation of a threatened or endangered spe-cies. The ESA defines “conservation” as the actions leading towards the eventual recovery of a species to the point where it is no longer threatened or en-dangered.

The Mount Charleston blue butterfly (Icaricia (Plebejus) shasta charlestonensis) is a distinct sub-species of the wider-ranging Shasta blue butterfly. The butterfly occupies high elevations in the Spring Mountains National Recreation Area, approximate-ly 25 miles west of Las Vegas.

The Mount Charleston blue butterfly was given ESA protection due to the threat posed by the loss and degradation of its habitat. The species is likely to experience continued habitat loss due to changes in natural fire regimes and succession, fuels reduc-tion projects, and the implementation of recreational development projects. Additionally, climate change and invasive nonnative plants will increase the in-

herent risk of extinction for the Mount Charleston blue butterfly.

The acreage designated as critical habitat for the butterfly contains host and nectar plants, as well as open areas essential to the conservation of the species. Plants upon which the Mount Charleston blue butterfly depends are Torrey’s milkvetch (Astragalus calycosus var. calycosus), mountain oxytrope (Oxytropis oreophila var. oreoph-ila), and broad keeled milkvetch (Astragalus platytropis).

USFWS worked with the U.S. Forest Service during the process to identify and remove certain ar-eas from the designated critical habitat to minimize future management conflicts while protecting vital habitat for the butterfly. The removed locations in-clude several day-use areas, campgrounds, and the Las Vegas Ski and Snowboard Resort. These areas have high concentrations of infrastructure, experi-ence heavy recreation use or management activi-ties, or lack functional habitat.

Copies of the critical habitat rule and the rule protecting the Mount Charleston blue butterfly as endangered are available at www.fws.gov/nevada, www.regulations.gov or through the Southern Nevada Fish and Wildlife Office at (702) 515-5230. The ESA provides a critical safety net for America’s native fish, wildlife and plants. This landmark con-servation law has prevented the extinction of hun-dreds of imperiled species across the nation and promoted the recovery of many others. Our priority is to make implementation of the ESA less com-plex, less contentious and more effective. We seek to accelerate recovery of threatened and endangered species across the nation, while making it easier for people to coexist with these species.


LAS VEGAS – The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) is seeking public comment on an Enhancement of Survival Permit applica-tion submitted by the Nevada Department of Wildlife (NDOW). The permit would authorize the take of relict leopard frogs (Lithobates onca) resulting from certain land-use and conservation activities, should the species be listed as endan-gered or threatened in the future. Land-use and conservation activities include improving or creating habitat, as described in the associated proposed Programmatic Candidate Conservation Agreement with Assurances (CCAA). Under the Endangered Species Act, the term “take” means to harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect or to attempt to engage in any such conduct.

The planning area for the CCAA includes about 275,300 acres of non-federal lands in Clark County, of which a small portion is considered suitable aquatic/riparian habitat for relict leopard frogs. However, the lands support a significant proportion of the total riparian and aquatic habi-tats that occur within the county including areas of known historic occurrence and distribution for the frog. Under the proposed permit and CCAA, landowners who enroll their property under the CCAA and implement conservation measures to reduce threats to the frog will be covered under NDOW’s permit, and would not be subjected to increased property use restrictions if the species is listed as endangered or threatened in the fu-ture.

USFWS is accepting comments on the permit application, proposed Programmatic CCAA and draft National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) compliance documentation. A notice of availabil-ity of the permit application and other documents is scheduled to be published in the July 20, 2015, edition of the Federal Register, opening a 30-day public comment period. Written comments must be received on or before Aug. 19, 2015.

People wishing to review the application, the proposed CCAA, the draft NEPA compliance documentation, or other related documents may obtain copies by written or telephone request to Jeri Krueger, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Reno Fish and Wildlife Office, 1340 Financial Boulevard, Suite 234, Reno, NV, 89502; or by phone at (775) 861-6300. Copies of the docu-ments are available at www.fws.gov/nevada/pro-tected_species/amphibians/species/relict_leop-ard_frog.html.


LAS VEGAS – The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) announced its realigned Nevada Fish and Wildlife Office (FWO) offices in mid-May to reflect the need to provide more regionally-fo-cused conservation and recovery actions in north-ern and southern Nevada.

With this reorganization, the USFWS’s Reno and Southern Nevada FWOs each report directly to the USFWS’s Pacific Southwest Regional Office in Sacramento, Calif.

Among other purposes, the realignment assigns oversight of the Desert Tortoise Recovery Office to the Southern Nevada FWO in Las Vegas, and plac-es the majority of Bi-state and Greater sage-grouse habitat in eastern California and Nevada within the geographic area of responsibility of the Reno FWO. Adjusting the boundaries and responsibilities of the Reno and Las Vegas offices is expected to further improve the agency’s interactions with and service to local communities, tribes, and other government agencies.

Ted Koch is the Reno FWO Field Supervisor, while Mike Senn is Field Supervisor of the Southern Nevada FWO. Koch has been in Reno as the Field Supervisor for more than three years, and has been with USFWS for more than 25 years. Prior to join-ing USFWS in 2012, Senn spent 23 years with the Arizona Game and Fish Department. He was a member of the department’s executive leadership

Fish and Wildlife Service realigns Nevada offices

team his last 12 years with the agency.The Reno FWO is located at 1340 Financial

Blvd., Reno, Nev., phone (775) 861-6300.The Southern Nevada FWO is at 4701 N. Torrey Pines Drive, Las Vegas, Nev., phone (702) 515-5230.

Agency designates critical habitat for Mount Charleston blue butterfly

Agency seeks public comment on proposed conservation agreement for relict leopard frog

Lower Colorado River Conservation ProgramNevada Department of Wildlife is seeking a permit for leopard frog conservation activities.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife ServiceMount Charleston blue butterfly.

paid return service requested permit #310 nevada wildlife · 2017-06-03 · nature notes have you...

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