Preservation of America's Wildlife

Tag: nature

  • The Wild Horse and Burro BLM Provides Evidence of Highly Questionable Population Estimates Again

    … But Worse

     Inflated Numbers, Vanishing Herds: The Data Crisis in America’s Wild Horse Program

    Kathleen Gregg and Michele Anderson, Environmental Researchers
    May 10, 2025

    Wild Horse Photo by Leslie Sterling

    Again, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) annual population data exposes questionable inconsistencies including:

    #1 Thousands of missing wild horses and burros from their legal home ranges

    #2 Biologically impossible population increases

    #3 Zeroing out and/or robbing the wild horses and burros from legally designated lands

    Ten years ago, we started closely following the BLM’s annual published wild horse and burro population estimates; and have this data back even to 2005. What was found each and every year tells a troubling and often unbelievable story: population growth rates that defy biology and data that suggests the disappearances of thousands of wild horses and burros with no explanation. While the BLM claims to act in the animals’ best interest, its own records suggest a different narrative—one where numbers are manipulated, transparency is lacking, and the fate of thousands of wild horses and burros remains unknown.

    Examples Below:

    FORT SAGE Herd Management Area (HMA). BLM shows a 65% decrease in ONE year. During that one-year period, BLM reported no legal environmental assessment (EA) for any roundup of horses on this HMA and no legal roundup since September 1998. And yet the Fort Sage HMA is MISSING 283 of our wild horses this past year without any legally required notice (EA) to the public. These are our horses by congressional law and were SUPPOSED to be under the BLM’s protection.

    FLANIGAN Herd Management Area (HMA). BLM shows a 59% decrease in ONE year. During that one-year period, BLM reported no legal environmental assessment (EA) for any roundup of horses on this HMA and no legal roundup since annuary 2012. And yet the Flannigan HMA is MISSING 337 of our wild horses this past year without any legally required notice (EA) to the public. These are our horses by congressional law and were SUPPOSED to be under the BLM’s protection.

    MONTGOMERY PASS Herd Management Area (HMA). BLM shows a 90% decrease in ONE year. Although a massive capture was planned for May of 2025, during that one-year period of March 2024 to March 2025, BLM reported no legal environmental assessment (EA) for any roundup of horses on this HMA and no legal roundup since September 1998. And yet the Montgomery Pass HMA is MISSING 666 of our wild horses this past year without any legally required notice (EA) to the public. These are our horses by congressional law and were SUPPOSED to be under the BLM’s protection.

    BEATYS BUTTE Herd Management Area (HMA). BLM shows a 35% decrease in ONE year. During that one-year period, BLM reported no legal environmental assessment (EA) for any roundup of horses on this HMA and no legal roundup since June 2016. And yet the Fort Sage HMA is MISSING 232 of our wild horses this past year without any legally required notice (EA) to the public. These are our horses by congressional law and were SUPPOSED to be under the BLM’s protection.

    CHEMEHUEVI Herd Management Area (HMA). BLM shows a 46% decrease in ONE year. During that one-year period, BLM reported no legal environmental assessment (EA) for any roundup of burros on this HMA and no legal roundup since August 2018. And yet the Chemehuevi HMA was MISSING 634 of our wild burros in 2020 without any legally required notice (EA) to the public. These are our burros by congressional law and were SUPPOSED to be under the BLM’s protection.

    BIG SANDY Herd Management Area (HMA). BLM shows an 83% decrease in ONE year. During that one-year period, BLM reported no legal environmental assessment (EA) for any roundup of burros on this HMA and no legal roundup since August 2020. And yet the Big Sandy HMA was MISSING 1896 of our wild burros in 2023 without any legally required notice (EA) to the public. These are our burros by congressional law and were SUPPOSED to be under the BLM’s protection.

    KIGER Herd Management Area (HMA) BLM shows a 140% increase in ONE year. This would require the herd of 224 horses to produce 314 successful foals in one year, meaning every single horse – including the stallions – have more than one surviving foal in one year. Biologically impossible

    CIBOLA-TRIGO Herd Management Area (HMA) BLM shows a 699% increase in ONE year. This would require the herd of 279 burros to produce 1951 successful foals in one year, meaning every single burro – including the jacks – have more than six surviving foals in one year. Biologically impossible

    CENTENNIAL Herd Management Area (HMA) BLM shows a 666% increase in ONE year. This would require the herd of 56 burros to produce 373 successful foals in one year, meaning every single burro – including the jacks – have more than six surviving foals in one year. Biologically impossible

    BULLFROG Herd Management Area (HMA) BLM shows a 367% increase in ONE year. This would require the herd of 250 burros to produce 917 successful foals in one year, meaning every single burro – including the jacks – have more than three surviving foals in one year. Biologically impossible

    FOUR MILE Herd Management Area (HMA) BLM shows capturing 162 wild horses in 2021/22 followed by zeroing out the entire herd in 2024 due to fire although the Appropriate Management Area (AML) is still 37-60 and none have been returned to their legal land.

    DIVIDE BASIN and SALT WELLS Herd Management Areas (HMAs) are being changed to Herd Areas (HAs) by BLM. Changing the designation from HMA to HA will allow the BLM to zero out all the wild horses. Furthermore, the captured and removed 2,485 wild horses will lose their legal protection as provided and stated in the 1971 Wild Horse and Burro Act.

    STONEWALL Herd Management Area (HMA), NV. BLM shows 95 wild burros in March 2023 but then a year later March 2024 ALL burros were missing but the public was not notified and no legally required environmental assessment (EA) for capture was done by BLM resulting in zero burros on their legally land.

    Legalities and Analysis:

    Since 1971, the Wild Horse and Burro Act provides for the legal protection for these wild animals on specific acres of public lands. Because population estimates drive nearly all management decisions pertaining to wild horses and burros, accuracy is important. The National Academy of Science (NAS) report cited two chief criticisms of the Wild Horse and Burro Program: unsubstantiated population estimates in herd management areas (HMA), and management decisions that are not based in science (NAS, 2013). 

    The annual population statistics published by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), which have been the subject of public alarm, were officially reported on two separate occasions in recent years to the United States Office of the Inspector General (OIG). According to the office’s own guidelines, individuals with knowledge of fraud, waste, abuse, misconduct, or mismanagement involving the U.S. Department of the Interior are encouraged to contact the Office of Inspector General, yet in both instances, the Department declined to initiate an investigation and did not provide any explanation or justification for its decision.

    The discovery of these questionable tactics by BLM raises serious issues regarding transparency and accountability. As demonstrated in the examples above, the data inconsistencies appear to have occurred over an extended period, suggesting a pattern that goes beyond isolated clerical errors.

    Certain BLM statements presented regarding population increases and decreases appear to be inconsistent with available data, potentially leading to misunderstandings by Congress and the public. These discrepancies may raise concerns under federal statute Title 18 (18 U.S.C. § 1001), which addresses the prohibition against making false or fraudulent statements in matters within the jurisdiction of the federal government.

    Specifically, 18 U.S. Code § 1001 outlines that knowingly and willfully falsifying, concealing, or covering up material facts, or making materially false statements in any matter within the jurisdiction of the executive, legislative, or judicial branches of the U.S. government, is a federal offense punishable by fines or imprisonment of up to five years. Additionally, such conduct may be at odds with the standards set forth in Executive Order 12674 on ethical behavior, which emphasizes the importance of integrity and public confidence in the actions of all federal employees.

    Conclusion:

    WHY is this evidence of BLM fraud so important? Because these deceitful statistics and maneuvers are provided by BLM to the public and delivered to Congress when BLM is requesting funding for wild horse and burro capture and management plans.

    The discovery of

    #1 Thousands of missing wild horses and burros from their legal home ranges

    #2 Biologically impossible population increases

    #3 Zeroing out and/or robbing the wild horses and burros from legally designated lands requires serious investigation.

    We all need to voice our concerns by contacting the BLM and OIG. We must also continue to share this BLM dishonesty with our Senators and Representatives and the media and your friends – spread the word.

    References:

    2025 Wild Horse and Burro Population Estimates (blm.gov) https://app.box.com/s/n4anbas6y43ugb1rr5skComplaints & Requests | Office of Inspector General, U.S. Department of the Interior (doioig.gov)

  • Animal Abuse and Psychopaths

    Written by: John W. Cox, M.A. C/M

    We see a lot of animal abuse, ongoing, in government, industry, and hunting trapping situations. We see an extremely high murder rate in the United States, and incarceration of Psychopaths very high in prisons, due to data telling us, very prevalent, the murder rates inclusive of a foundation of animal abuse, animal torture, and all around cruelty to animals — this is inclusive to Wildlife also, and we must pay attention to this type of behaviors, as important — rather than be swept under the rhetorical rug of we do not give a shit, unless it happens to us or our family member!.

    Hunting, and people going into our Natural Environments are simply going to have to be regulated better, and guns and modern weaponry the same. The lies, the perpetuation of them all, stem from Psychopathic Behaviors, and we now see many of these that fit into a Psychopathic Dysfunction level, are making these types of decisions — placed in decision making situations in government and in Law Enforcement.

    As a society and a culture, we are going to have to look at this, within a truthful perspective, is all — and resolve the apparent issues of cruelty and abuse to all type of animals ongoing today.

    Psychopaths and PPTS Scales of Recognition / Identification

    “We have a problem today with animal abuse, yes, but many of us have not been aware, fully, of animal abuse and psychopathy . . .  Yes, it is studied, but within the past few years, is becoming studied and researched more than previously — data gathered for public perusal as well, for identification purposes..  Yes, it is ignored.  Swept under the carpet, so to speak.  Hunters, trappers, ranching, or dairy, government agencies such as the Bureau of Land Management, the USDA Wild Life Services, USDA Forestry, among others, do not like to discuss this situation at all.

    It is attributable to much of the shootings we see today, directly and indirectly, and mass shootings, of people.  We cannot ignore the Murder Rate statistics either.  Under the guise of government taking our weapons, as well as under the cloak of secrecy, and allowing some information to penetrate society as valid information, and other information muffled, or, forced into subordination for other less valued and less effective information.  Ownership of animals, or subordinating an animal to such a point where the cruelty can be subordinate to a necessity of value to do so, becomes merely Acceptable Abuse, despite the ethical boundaries that no longer exist, to protect the animal. . . Laws do exist, but often for purposes of conversation, rather than being enforced.

    Today, this will simply outline further, traits, from gathered information and within a data base, from the Psychopathic Personality Traits Scale (PPTS: Boduszek et al., 2016) and the Boat Inventory on Animal Related Experiences (Boat Inventory; Boat, 1994).

    Here is the interesting aspect of knowing some of this information, is the fact we can acknowledge and compare the psychopathy scores (using the PPTS) among those who have a history (i.e. as a base of evidence records) of hunting, torturing, or killing of an animal. .  

    We see such government organizations, and their behaviors, and yet, do not know how to classify obvious Psychopathic behaviors – until now.

    The parameters within the PPTS show, who had hurt an animal, tortured, and did kill the animal or animals, and scored much higher than those who killed an animal without torture, et al.  More importantly, a history of abusing animals was a significant predictor of PPTS score.

    The results also provided descriptive data about the abuse, finding that dogs and cats were by far the most abused animal (at least the most available to those keeping track) of abuse occasions, and wildlife, although secondary, indeed is starting to come into the light of day, and a data increase become obvious, as scores escalated robustly, of killing animals in a cruel methodology, torturing them while doing so, and e.g. happily or sadistically bragging about the kill hatefully, and at times, robustly.  

    Profoundly, and as we see within the killing and torture of wild horses, wolves, coyotes, bear, and cougar (i.e. government employees and hunters – trappers alike) speak of the necessity of killing them, and the excuse for torturing them while killing them. The most popular abuse, which leads to further abuse with increased cruelty, and increased occasions happening over time – methodology starts out as hitting, beating, or kicking an animal, often which are also domestic pets.

    Identify Local authorities and others who are Psychopathic

    The following behaviors are consistent within the parameters of an Animal Abuser, which we can classify as a Psychopathic Dysfunction, from their direct actions of abuse, with more to come.

    (1) superficial charm;

    (2) absence of delusions;

    (3) absence of nervousness;

    (4) unreliability;

    (5) untruthfulness;

    (6) lack of remorse and shame;

    (7) antisocial behavior;

    (8) poor judgment and failure to learn by experience;

    (9) pathological egocentricity;

    (10) poverty in affective reactions;

    (11) loss of insight;

    (12) unresponsiveness in interpersonal relations;

    (13) fantastic and uninviting behavior;

    (14) suicide rarely carried out;

    (15) impersonal sex life;

    (16) failure to follow any life plan.

    “Psychopathic individuals are a considerably small part of the United States population.  For instance, estimates have placed the prevalence of psychopathy in the general population at 1%,  (institutions go as high as 16% but not discussed here) of non-institutionalized men over the age of 18 (Kiehl & Hoffman, 2011). Kiehl and Hoffman (2011) used data obtained from the 2010 Census Bureau to estimate that number to be around 1,150,000 psychopathic people in the U.S. population, et al. . .”

    We can now acknowledge, and qualify and by obtaining further information if a person has a need to do so, from many sources, I will list later.  For now, without a doubt, we can qualify many in the government, as well as hunters, trappers, ranchers, et al, and people in not just Wild Horse Advocacy groups, but in the general population.  For example, if all 16 points listed above fit one person, and they are known to have tortured an animal, a wildlife species, or domestic animal, then they need to be turned in to the FBI or other Legal entities. REFERENCE MATERIAL UPON REQUEST” — John Cox, M.A. C/M