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StumbleConservation plans approved for wildlife refuges in Southern Nevada
Crystal Spring, in Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge near Amargosa Valley in Nye County, is one of many bodies of water that are home to the endangered pupfish. The refuge is a major discharge point for a vast underground aquifer system resulting in an abundance of water for a desert climate.
Monday, Feb. 1, 2010 | 7:13 p.m.
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Beyond the Sun
CARSON CITY — Major changes are being planned for the 1.6-million-acre Desert National Wildlife Refuge in Southern Nevada over the next 15 years.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has approved final plans for the area and three other smaller refuges in Southern Nevada.
An aim in the desert national refuge is to restore the bighorn sheep populations, whose numbers have declined from an estimated 1,090 in 1985 to 475 in 2008.
Dan Balduini, a spokesman for the wildlife service, said a study will begin this summer to determine the cause of the decline -- whether it was mountain lions or the habitat itself.
The desert area is the largest wildlife refuge in the country outside of Alaska.
The federal agency will close 40 miles of illegal roads and trails used by off-road vehicles along the southern boundary and restore desert habitat. The plans call for completing the visitor center at Corn Creek.
The wildlife service also issued conservation plans for the 23,000-acre refuge at Ash Meadows, the 5,380-acre Pahranagat refuge and the 117-acre refuge at Moapa Valley.
The goal, Balduini says, is to return these areas to their natural historical state. There is no cost estimate but much of the work will be done by the employees of the wildlife service, he said.
These plans were developed over eight years and call for such things as restoring springs, removing highly flammable vegetation, developing new interpretive trails and constructing or completing visitor centers.
For instance, in the Moapa area, the plan calls for expanding the boundary by 1,765 acres to protect 90 percent of the remaining Moapa dace habitat. At Ash Meadows, the service wants to restore the endemic fish populations to 25-50 percent of the historic range.
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Do they still have bighorn sheep at Lake Las Vegas? I used to see them about 8 years ago on the golf course. Easily the most beautiful animals I have ever seen. Hope they're still there.
If there not,, just look inside the houses and check whats hanging on their walls....
I drove through the Desert National Wildlife Refurge in November 2008. It is a real gem.
It'd be great if the roads through DNWR were paved.
asleepatthewheel,
That was funny
These comments are what I don't get. BringtheRain wants to pave roads (which is environmentally damaging). nednougat is sooo... setting on the couch because he/she hasn't gotten out the last 8 years to investigate whether there are still Big Horn sheep. I on the other hand utilize the freedom of boating and OHV use to enjoy these spectacles in all their glory without disrupting their life and I can assure you that the Big Horn sheep population is alive and well in Nevada contrary to the Anti OHV Liberal views that you read. Get out and see for yourself, or do we make all our new laws from the couch by listening to the biased liberal media now? Same goes for the supposed Threatened Desert Tortuois population. There have been zero studies done since 1990 to show one way or the other whether the population has increased or decreased due to increased Governmental laws and yet Harry Reid is all for giving 10's of thousands of acres of their habitat away to foreign companys that want to invest in Solar Power. The very substantial OHV community is fighting for the critters AND our recreational rights. Contrary to popular belief OHV users are not miscreants out to destroy our beloved land and we are activally involved in protecting the treasures we were blessed with.
Could we move a little farther south please to Laughlin, Nv. The Big Bend Consevation Area needs a no wake zone so the wave runners will stay out of the lagoon!!! They are endangering the wildlife that live there year round as well as the ones that migrate during the winter.