European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - January 4, 1986, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Saturday january 4, 1986 the stars and strip Page 17 wild hones have been protected by Federal Law since 1971. Geographic Polo America s wild horses a source of controversy by Mercer Cross National geographic a Skull. Few Miles up the Dusty rutted Ravine lies the rotting Corpse of a sorrel Mustang its Tael grimacing grotesquely in its hollow eyed they have to save the Range and they re Gellin rid of the wild horses that s All growls Lloyd to Flatt As he examines the carcass. No other reason. Just gel rid Olem till Ell is a Tough grizzled cattle rancher who has spent Allol his 65 years Riding the plateaus and gullies of Southern Montana not Lar irom Lovell Wyo. He saw the territory of the Mustangs become the Pryor Mou Nlaly wild horse Range the first at its Al id in the nation by edict of the . Secretary of the Interior in 1668. To this Day. Tullett detests the Interior department s Bureau of land management which manages the 46,800-acre Range and us varied wildlife Deer Elk Bear and Bighorn sheep As Well As horses. When they made a wild horse Refuge Oul of ii they had the bum take care of the horses he says. They be ust been trying to Hill  Tullett s Danu Callons do not go unchallenged at the blk. Jerome a Jack of Billings mont., the Bureau Sarea manager and the Man responsible for administering policies Lor the Pryor Range responds Ullh equal determination but far less vitriol. He dismisses tilled s charges of horse kill Long and defends the Bureau s management plan for the Pryor horses. I Don t Hank we would. Commit to their management if we had the intentions of trying to totally remove them because we have no intentions of doing that he insists. Of the carcass in he Gully Jack explains thai it was one of about 30 horses non of hem from the Pryor Range Thel had died alter being rounded up and processed for adoption in a Coral. Oul of the 1,600 head processed Over a 20-Monlh period he said thet s less than a two percent  moreover Jack adds he expects the bum management plan for the Pryor Range a boat Alful Remote area of High grasslands and deep Limestone canyons to succeed. In my own  he says i feel very proud to be Allie rated with he horse Range  in Washington John Boyles Chloel of the blk s division of wild horses and Burros says the Bureau has never advocated gelling rid of them. In fact All of the planning that we be been doing and Are Gong to be doing Between now and 1988 takes into account wild horses and Burros As a  Tullett s antipathy probably does t Tylly the attitude of the average resident of Lovell about 13 Miles South of the Border Sleadd Long wild horse Range a tourist attraction in is sparsely populated area. But the same kind of criticism thai till Ell directs Al the blk in Billings is heard Al a National level much of it from animal Protection groups and for altogether different reasons from livestock growers the principal target of the Protection Lyls ire is the Bureau s goal of reducing the number of America s wild horses and Burros now estimated at Aboul 56,000, to Between 2s.ooo and 30,000. The animals Graze on 47.s million Ecres of Public land in 10 Western Stales. An estimated 155 Mustangs roam the Range in three separate bands. According to the blk plan that number should be Cut to 121. Thom figures say the Bureau represent the optimum number of the animals thai can be allowed to roam freely on Federal lands without disrupting the Overall environment picture nonsense say the opponents who dispute not Only the Bureau s population estimates and the use of us lands but its methods of disposing of what if Calls excess horse and Burros. They take i from the poll of View in our opinion Hal thai land out there belongs to the ranchers says Joan Blue preside no of the american horse Protection association. We Don l believe it does. Ii belongs 10 All americans. It s Public land. We Start from the premise that the blk is in the pocket of the ranchers and the cattle  to which Boyles responds we obviously have got a Job to do and part of it does involve livestock. Part of it s wild horses and part of it s habitat Lor wildlife. So in a Way you could say the blk is in the pocket of All Hose  Ronald a. Mac hell director of natural resources Lor the National cattlemen s association scolds at Blue s allegation. It we had that kind of poll Cal Power he says obviously there would l be a need Tor a 8lm and a Forest service. We d take care of the lands ourselves. It s pretty obvious that we Don t have that sort of control Over pm. I think what we do have is some rights out there that we exercise wild horses chief natural enemy is Man. Threatened by few predators the Hardy animals increase rapidly. Tiie Elm estimate is 15 to 20 percent a year a 1982 study by the National Academy of sciences concluded thai the rate is 10 percent or less How is the rapidly expanding horse and Burro population to be held Down since 1973, under the Blu s adoption program More than 61,000 animals have been sold to individual americans. As a result of Early abuses of the animals the program has been modified in several ways including a Limoll of Lour animals to a single adopter. Only old sick and lame animals May legally be put to death. The Bureau has had a moratorium since 1982 on the Deal Duclion of healthy horses. In fiscal year 1985, which ended sept 3d. 1ho blk spent $16.7 million on the horse and Burro program Congress has not yet Sot a Ligure for the current fiscal year. Meanwhile Aboul 10,000 captured animals Are awaiting adoption. Legislation has been drafted but not introduced thai would Ormil the blk to auction Oil Over a three year period a maximum of 15.000 excess wild Moroea and Burros. Such a Bill would touch of an immediate outcry from animal protect ton groups because ii inv liable would consign some of the animals to Pei Lood plants and glue factories ii to id be construed As a huge backward step from the Law passed in 1971 to protect the horses and Burros. Joan Blue s organization disapproves even of the ensling adopt lion program because in so Many cases in s just \ disaster Walling to happen she says. There s a tremendous amount of cruelty and negligence on their the blk s  on the other Side of he argument is Mac hell of the cattlemen s association. Some action must be taken Lolo ver the numbers he says and if it requires destruction that s what it ought to  Soyles is caught in the Middle. I m satisfied Ullh the program he says. I guess the Only portion thai i m dissatisfied with is the disposition of healthy excess animals once you have to Lake pm off the Range. How do you dispose of pm i Don t think we be got in adequate answer. I m nol saying it ought to be Sale and i m the Lasi Guy who wants to be branded a horse killer. Bui pure and simple. The program we be got now just can i handle