OOS 2-1
The unconventional approach to wildlife management at Hart Mountain National Antelope Refuge, Oregon
In 1994, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service approved a publicly-vetted programmatic management plan at Hart Mountain National Antelope Refuge. The Refuge, encompassing a quarter-million acres of semi-arid desert in the northwestern Great Basin, was established in 1941 for the conservation of pronghorn (Antilocapra americana), other native wildlife, and their habitats. The plan identified the sub-optimal ecological condition of upland and riparian wildlife habitats as the primary limitation to reaching refuge goals and attributed this condition primarily to the combined chronic effects of livestock use and fire suppression. The approved alternative called for removal of grazing and increased application of prescribed fire as principal actions required to attain long-range objectives for restoration of ecological condition, increased biological diversity, and improved quality of habitat for pronghorn and other wildlife. This decision was based on appraisal of the Refuge’s unique establishment purposes and mission of the National Wildlife Refuge System; public comments and professional assessments of scientific consultants; historic records of land management; and results of contemporary studies of wildlife requirements, the ecological condition of wildlife habitat, and the effects of different management practices on ecological condition.
Results/Conclusions
The decision record acknowledged the critical importance of follow-up systematic monitoring during plan implementation to test habitat management assumptions, evaluate outcomes, and provide a sound basis for decision-support. Accomplishment of the Refuge’s restoration objectives will require substantial and sustained commitment of the Service and its conservation partners because of the landscape-scale extent of restoration need; the relatively slow rate of recovery (e.g., 25-100 years or more) following application of restoration treatments; and the limited understanding of long-term ecological responses to this particular suite of treatment types.