Pronghorn Habitat Improvement Project

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The Arizona Game and Fish Department (AZGF), Arizona Wildlife Federation and Arizona Antelope Foundation have approached the Refuge to partner in increasing pronghorn survival on refuge lands. Consistent with the goals of the Habitat Management Plan, this project will work to reduce invasive mesquite in key areas allowing pronghorn to travel more extensively in a contiguous, uninhibited area. The open land will also help promote pronghorn survival by removing predatory brush cover used by coyotes. This project will entail hiring a fully certified chainsaw crew to cut mesquite within the designated area, and then treat mesquite with herbicide, pile mesquite into brush piles and/or haul the wood out of the area. The project will begin in October 2010 and, depending on crew availability, will continue through April 2010. The exact site for this project will be determined by Refuge management in consultation with AZGF, but approximately several hundred acres will be part of this project. There is a significant interest in this project among multiple non-profit organizations that support pronghorn management. This is a great opportunity for the Refuge to join with multiple local partners to accomplish such an outstanding wildlife related project.

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