Some skeptical of school’s wild horse research

Friday, Oct. 1, 1999 | 10:21 a.m.

But several horse protection advocates say they are skeptical of the research given the university's traditional support for the livestock industry.

"Wild horses are a very emotional issue," said Erik Beever, a doctoral candidate in biology at the University of Nevada, Reno. "There's very little data about how wild horses interact with the ecosystem."

Wild-horse advocates see the mustangs as the living embodiment of the spirit of the American West, a sacred species.

But many ranchers see them as an imported animal that gobbles up grass and ruins an ecosystem that cows - another imported species - and native wildlife depend upon.

Beever is studying 19 Nevada sites to see what happens to soil, plants and animals where wild horses have grazed or not grazed. His work eventually could lead to redistribution of horse populations throughout the West or possibly more horses being removed.

That's why many wild-horse advocates question his motives and even his scientific integrity.

"To me, (Beever) seems typical of the progeny from the UNR Department of Agriculture, which I find has a philosophy to promote, promote and promote livestock and no wild horses on public lands," said Dr. Betty Kelly, a member of Wild Horse Spirit in Carson City.

Deborah Ellsworth of Redwings Horse Sanctuary in Carmel, Calif., is also skeptical of the work.

"It's no secret the cattle interests see wild horses as a threat," she said.

"The federal range managers are supposed to maintain an ecological balance, but I think they would prefer a road side situation where people can see a token few wild horses."

Beever said he has no agenda but science, no bias but a search for the facts.

"I'm trying to take in the considerations and concerns of all the different publics who use this land," Beever said. "I'm trying to add scientific information to a debate which has always been clouded by politics and emotions."

"To this point, the debate has been dominated by a certain lack of information and some mudslinging," he said.

Beever said his preliminary results show wild horses have a significant influence on plants, soil, small mammals and soil compacting. A number of variables affect the severity of that influence, including the timing of grazing and number of horses in the area.

"Any time any mammal, be it a rabbit, horse or mule deer, uses a particular area, it will exert some influence on its environment," he said. "The researcher's job is to quantify that influence and identify the factors that can modify it. Managing agencies and the public will have to decide what acceptable levels of influence are on Great Basin public lands."

Beever, under the direction of biology professor Peter Brussard, is hoping that his study could lead to an expanded monitoring program for wild horses in the state.

"Monitoring would spot early indicators of potential problems," he said. "One of my goals has been to improve the current methods that determine if animals should be removed from an area."

There are an estimated 44,000 wild horses in the West, about half of them in Nevada.

The Bureau of Land Management, responsible for most of the federally-protected wild horses in the West, currently gathers excess wild horses and offers them for adoption.

For the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, the BLM gathered 4,830 mustangs - 2,480 of them in Nevada.

"The decision to gather horses is a multiple-use decision," said Maxine Shane, BLM spokesman in Reno. "We look at the horses, livestock and cattle in an area."

Yet, other than some computer generated population models, the agency has little data on range health or the effect of horses on an area.

Shane said the agency isn't sure how many head of cattle are grazing on public lands although it is certain far more cattle graze there than wild horses.

"I think what constitutes the appropriate number of horses and the removals of horses will be debated forever," Shane said. "It's impossible to please everyone involved."