Jon Anderson wrote, re Sagebrush Flat : Better yet - Tell you what. Why
don't we wait until the WDFW folks have completed their study, analyzed
their data, prepared their report, had it reviewed by their peers, and then
see what it says? Then, we can have some information upon which to base
our judgments, rather than rejecting their management out of hand. Or,
will the information have to conform to what we already "know"?

Sagebrush Flat is one of three sites in the state with Pygmy Rabbits. It
is hardly pristine, having suffered from 100 years of grazing, fire,
erosion, and farming around its edges. The rabbits have persisted along
with Sage Grouse, Sage Thrashers and a variety of other shrub steppe
species. Grazing was permitted under DNR ownership because the law
requires that DNR raise money for schools. Now that F&W has undertaken
managership there will be an actual attempt to look at cow/rabbit
interactions. The rabbits are being censused annually and a plan calls for
fencing the area into thirds: one third with moderate grazing, one with
light grazing and one third with no grazing. Although it seems
counterintuitive, one alternative hypothesis suggests that cows in
moderation might be beneficial to the rabbits since the cows eat grass that
competes with sagebrush, the preferred food of the rabbits.

Having visited the area several times this past year it is my impression
that the biggest problem the rabbits face are coyotes and badgers that dig
out the burrows.

For those interested in the ecology of western lands I suggest a visit in
the Spring so that you can see for yourselves.

Herb Curl


h.curl at hazmat.noaa.gov "You may be only young once but you can be
Hazmat/NOAA, 7600 Sand Pt. Wy., NE immature the rest of your life."
Seattle, WA 98115-0070
(206) 526-6272