Sage grouse team to meet in Reno

According to a recent press release from the Nevada Division of Wildlife (NDOW), Governor Kenny Guinn's statewide Sage Grouse Conservation Team will hold its next meeting on Sept. 13-14 in Reno.

The team, formed this past June, held its first meeting on Aug. 8-9.

The Sage Grouse Conservation Team includes representatives from a broad spectrum of groups, including NDOW, various state and federal public land agencies, county governments, state and local conservation groups, private landowners, public utilities, ranchers, miners, Native American tribes and scientists.

It is hoped that the team will be able to pro-actively address a decline in sage grouse populations, statewide.

In Nevada, NDOW estimates the breeding population of sage grouse to be about 25,000 birds. Peak populations levels from past decades are not known but sage grouse still live everywhere in Nevada, except in Clark County.

Sage grouse have been petitioned for listing under the Endangered Species Act in the states of Colorado, Utah and Washington.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which is charged with implementing the Endangered Species Act, has not yet made decisions regarding sage grouse listings in other states, such as Nevada.

The Nevada Division of Wildlife anticipates that a petition to list the species as endangered could soon appear in Nevada.

The team goal is to avoid the extreme of an Endangered Species Act listings.

The team would like to work pro-actively to develop and implement conservation plans statewide which will benefit the sage grouse

For information, Call the Nevada Division of Wildlife at 688-1500 during business hours.