450 wild horses face a roundup in Eastern Sierra as feds proceed with contested plan

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Set us as preferred Federal officials have set a date to round up and relocate 450 wild horses they say are damaging Mono Lake’s famed limestone tufas and posing a threat to drivers, a move hailed by environmentalists but heartbreaking for tribes and horse lovers who have fought to stop it.On July 8, the Inyo National Forest will begin rounding up horses from the Montgomery Pass herd roaming beyond the roughly 200,000 acres designated for them along the California-Nevada border, according to a recent news release.

The horses will be taken in trailers to a corral in Modoc National Forest, where they’ll be readied for adoption.Contractors will use helicopters and other vehicles to drive the horses into a large catch pen with holding corrals.

Officials say the use of helicopters is humane and carried out with measures to protect the horses, while many animal welfare advocates claim it can lead to injury and even death.A federal bill introduced last year seeks to ban the practice.The operation is planned for one to two weeks, but may finish sooner.

The announcement comes more than a year after the U.S.Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management approved a plan to remove hundreds of horses that had wandered beyond their designated territory.

In 1971, there were 50 horses within the area.As of 2024, a federal census found there were roughly 700 — more than three times what officials say the land can support — with most of them outside the territory.The Forest Service reports the herd’s origins are unknown, noting it may be linked to mustang drives between Owens Valley and Nevada.

But other sources suggest they descended from mustangs lost in the High Sierra in 1871 during a wrangler’s trek from Stockton to Texas.In August, a documentary filmmaker, primary care physician and wildlife ecologist sued the government ove...