State leadership helps sage grouse stay off the endangered species list
The Governor joined the Secretary of the Department of the Interior Sally Jewell and Fish and Wildlife Director Dan Ashe for the announcement in Denver.
“I am pleased that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service made the right decision. This is the result of Wyoming and other Western states taking a proactive approach to the Greater sage-grouse - working with industry, agriculture and conservation groups and the federal government,” Governor Mead said. “Today’s decision recognizes Wyoming and other western states were successful. We can continue to create jobs and share our natural resources with the rest of the nation while the Greater sage-grouse thrives. I thank the Sage Grouse Implementation Team and the many others involved for their service and dedication to this important issue.”
Wyoming has aggressively worked for more than a decade to prevent the sage-grouse from being listed. In July, Governor Mead updated an earlier Executive Order that protects core areas of grouse habitat.
“Many diverse interests worked together and this was the key to our success,” Governor Mead said. "This plan should serve as an example for other states that face challenges with the Endangered Species Act.”
This year Wyoming Game and Fish Department personnel and other partners joined together to visit over 1,600 sage grouse breeding grounds, or leks. The effort was part of the annual count of greater sage grouse. Over 35,800 male sage grouse were recorded this year. The average number of male grouse per lek was up 66 percent in 2015 compared to 2014 as was the proportion of active leks.
“Our biologists and other partners out on the ground in Wyoming see firsthand that the sage grouse population is increasing the last few years. We are proud to be part of such an impressive effort to conserve the sage grouse and its habitat,” Director of Game and Fish Scott Talbott said.
More information about sage grouse is available on the Game and Fish Department’s website: https://wgfd.wyo.gov/Habitat/Sage-Grouse-Management
“I am pleased that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service made the right decision. This is the result of Wyoming and other Western states taking a proactive approach to the Greater sage-grouse - working with industry, agriculture and conservation groups and the federal government,” Governor Mead said. “Today’s decision recognizes Wyoming and other western states were successful. We can continue to create jobs and share our natural resources with the rest of the nation while the Greater sage-grouse thrives. I thank the Sage Grouse Implementation Team and the many others involved for their service and dedication to this important issue.”
Wyoming has aggressively worked for more than a decade to prevent the sage-grouse from being listed. In July, Governor Mead updated an earlier Executive Order that protects core areas of grouse habitat.
“Many diverse interests worked together and this was the key to our success,” Governor Mead said. "This plan should serve as an example for other states that face challenges with the Endangered Species Act.”
This year Wyoming Game and Fish Department personnel and other partners joined together to visit over 1,600 sage grouse breeding grounds, or leks. The effort was part of the annual count of greater sage grouse. Over 35,800 male sage grouse were recorded this year. The average number of male grouse per lek was up 66 percent in 2015 compared to 2014 as was the proportion of active leks.
“Our biologists and other partners out on the ground in Wyoming see firsthand that the sage grouse population is increasing the last few years. We are proud to be part of such an impressive effort to conserve the sage grouse and its habitat,” Director of Game and Fish Scott Talbott said.
More information about sage grouse is available on the Game and Fish Department’s website: https://wgfd.wyo.gov/Habitat/Sage-Grouse-Management
Game and Fish (307) 777-4600
