Antelope Roundup South, Day 7

The incident began on July 9.  Results through July 15:

• Scope: Antelope, Antelope Valley HMAs
• Purpose: Pest control, resource enforcement, rancher protection
• Target: Horses
• Type: Planned
• Method: Helicopter
• Category: Cruel and costly*
• Better way: Poison mares with ovary-killing pesticides*
• Captured: 631, up from 391 on Day 5
• Average daily take: 90.1
• Capture goal: 1,107
• Removal goal: 1,107
• Returned: 2, up from 1 on Day 5
• Deaths: 5, up from 3 on Day 5
• Shipped: 533, up from 320 on Day 5

The figures above are based on the daily reports, not the totals posted by the BLM.

A mare died of a fractured neck on Day 6, probably due to impact on a pipe panel.

A foal was lost on Day 7 because of an umbilical hernia.  The report did not indicate euthanasia.

The death rate is 0.8%.

The capture total includes 197 stallions, 286 mares and 148 foals.

Youngsters represented 23.5% of the animals gathered.

Of the adults, 40.8% were male and 59.2% were female.  These proportions don’t look they came from a simple random process centered at 50% males / 50% females with a sample size of 483.

A birth rate of 23% per year corresponds to a growth rate of 18% per year.

Land managers often use growth rates of 20% per year to predict herd sizes and management actions.

Body condition scores were not provided.

The location of the trap site was not disclosed.

The HMAs and surrounding lands are subject to permitted grazing.

*According to advocates.

Day 7 ended with 91 unaccounted-for animals.

Mares treated with fertility control pesticides will be returned to the area at a later date.

Other statistics:

• Forage liberated to date: 7,548 AUMs per year
• Water liberated to date: 6,290 gallons per day
• Forage assigned to livestock: Unknown
• Horses displaced from area by permitted grazing: Unknown
• True AML: Unknown
• Stocking rate at new AML: Unknown
• Horses removed because of drilling and mining: Ask the advocates

Overpopulation means more horses than allowed by plan, not necessarily more horses than the land can support.

RELATED: Antelope Roundup South, Day 5.