2020 Outside Cibola-Trigo Nuisance Gather — Imperial and Cibola National Wildlife Refuges
[Gather Complete]
Purpose of Gather
The purpose of this gather is to remove nuisance burros that are damaging wildlife refuge and private property and creating a public safety hazard for motorists along roadways. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has received complaints of natural resource loss, infrastructure damage and destruction, and concerns about human health and safety by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in the Imperial and Cibola national wildlife refuges and adjacent private property owners.
Details of Gather
The BLM plans to remove 150 nuisance burros from the Imperial National Wildlife Refuge and 150 nuisance burros from the Cibola National Wildlife Refuge including adjacent private land outside the Cibola-Trigo Herd Management Area (HMA) between the months of September and November 2020, via bait trapping, water trapping, or both. A contractor and BLM staff will set temporary traps on refuge and private lands, and will remove the panels, hay and manure once the trapping is complete. For the purpose of this gather no burros will be treated with fertility control. All trapping operations will be overseen by the Yuma Field Office.
Public Observation
There will be no public viewing opportunities for this gather due to the nature of the gather.
Adoption Information
Animals removed from outside the Cibola-Trigo HMA will be made available for adoption at the Florence Wild Horse and Burro Training and Off-Range Corral in Florence, Arizona, through the Wild Horse and Burro Adoption Program. Those that are not adopted will be cared for in off-range pastures, where they retain their “wild” status and protection under the 1971 Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burro Act.
Background
The Cibola-Trigo HMA is in southwestern Arizona, north of Yuma. The area parallels the eastern shoreline of the Colorado River for approximately 60 miles from Yuma to Ehrenberg. The estimated population for this HMA as of March 2020 is approximately 616 wild burros and 275 wild horses based on various analytical population count data and reports.