Contentious NV wild-horse roundup ends

RENO, Nev. (AP) — Federal land managers have concluded a major roundup of wild horses from the range north of Reno.

U.S. Bureau of Land Management officials today said 1,922 mustangs were removed from the Calico Mountains Complex.

Agency spokeswoman JoLynn Worley says an estimated 600 horses remain in the complex, which is within the “appropriate management level” of 600 to 900 set for the area.

She says the agency had planned to remove about 2,500 horses, but many mustangs roamed out of the complex after the roundup began Dec. 28.

Activists unsuccessfully sued to halt the roundup, branding it as unnecessary and inhumane.

The BLM maintains the roundup was necessary because an over-population of horses is harming native wildlife and the range.