Wild horses roam across more than 23 million acres of public land in Nevada, more than twice the range of any other western state. According to Bureau of Land Management estimates for 2025, the state’s wild horse and burro population now exceeds 35,000 animals, while the land is estimated to sustainably support about 12,800.
Bureau of Land Management Assistant Field Manager for the Stillwater Field Office Jim Mazza updated Churchill County Commissioners on several fronts on Dec. 17, including wild horses in Churchill County. He addressed BLM plans for a census flight in the Desatoya Mountain Range east of Fallon to determine how many horses are on the range and whether those numbers exceed what the land can sustain.
Presently, there are well over 2,100 horses in Churchill County. The BLM has determined the area can sustainably support 1,348 animals. This excludes the North Stillwater herd, which is part of the East Pershing Herd Management Area, which at the end of 2024 contained 2,875 horses, roughly six times more than the recommended 345 to 555.
To determine how many horses or burros a Herd Management Area can support, the BLM evaluates land conditions and sets an Appropriate Management Level, or AML. Factors include available water and forage, rangeland health, soil stability, wildlife habitat needs, authorized livestock grazing, climate conditions such as drought, and long term sustainability of the land.
When wild horse populations exceed appropriate management levels, forage and water supplies can be depleted, leading to declining herd health and damage to rangelands. In Nevada’s high desert, where water sources are scarce and often seasonal, those impacts can escalate quickly, placing wild horses and native wildlife in direct competition for limited water. To address these conditions, the BLM gathers and places as many animals as possible into the wild horse adoption program.
According to the BLM, gathers are conducted to prevent overgrazing and long term damage to rangelands. “Overgrazing native bunch grasses can lead to the loss of the grasses, depriving wild horses and other grazing animals of the forage that they require to survive,” the bureau states.
In the past year, the BLM announced plans to gather wild horses from the 9,687 acre Lahontan Herd Management Area, located about 35 miles east of Carson City and directly south of Lahontan Reservoir, including portions of Churchill and Lyon counties. Aerial surveys estimated 518 wild horses in 2023, with herd numbers rising annually. The Appropriate Management Level is set at just 7 to 10 animals, according to BLM Stillwater Field Manager Zach Reichold, far above available resources.
In addition to the planned Lahontan gather, BLM spring census flights will assess wild horse numbers in the 162,000 acre Desatoya Herd Management Area, located about 70 miles east of Fallon and spanning Churchill and Lander counties. The AML for the area is 127 to 180 horses.
In 2023, the BLM conducted a roundup in the Desatoya Herd Management Area. The bureau gathered 59 wild horses, removed 12 excess animals, released 14 stallions back onto the range, and treated 33 mares with GonaCon, a fertility control vaccine.
“We conduct gathers like this to maintain the current population of wild horses within the appropriate management level,” said Kim Dow, Carson City BLM district manager, following the gather. The management approach is intended to protect habitat for native wildlife species such as sage grouse, pronghorn antelope, mule deer, and elk by balancing herd size with what the land can support.
The planned roundup for wild horses in the Lahontan Herd Management Area is not currently on the agency’s schedule. Any decision on a Desatoya HMA gather will depend on the results of the upcoming herd count.
Separate from planned management actions, the BLM also conducts emergency gathers in response to wildfire and drought conditions. The 104,000 acre Jakes Fire emergency wild horse gather began Jan. 26 around the Snowstorm Mountain and Little Humboldt Herd Management Areas within the Owyhee Complex.
BLM monitoring showed the fire significantly reduced available forage, leaving insufficient feed to meet the nutritional needs of the remaining wild horse population. The gather resulted in 180 horses being transported to off range corrals north of Winnemucca, where they receive veterinary care and are prepared for the BLM wild horse adoption program.
While the BLM aims to manage wild horse populations in Nevada, animal rights groups continue to oppose roundups and the holding of wild horses and burros in off range corrals. On Jan. 26, 2026, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit upheld a decision by the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada in favor of the BLM’s approval of a new off range corral near Winnemucca designed to hold up to 4,000 horses. The court found the BLM did not violate federal law or policy guidelines.
Wild horse management remains one of Nevada’s most debated land use issues. With drought expected to affect several herd management areas, additional gathers may occur as the BLM works to balance wildlife habitat, desert ecosystem health, livestock grazing needs, and ongoing legal and advocacy challenges.
Comment
Comments