True, they’re not horses. But think of burros as our horses smaller, fuzzier, longer-eared distant cousins. Right now a herd of them in Southern California are facing relocation. As many as 150 wild burros roam the scraggly foothills of the eastern Mojave Desert near the town of Hesperia. The U.S. Bureau of Land Management plans to round them up using helicopters mid-January. The burros will then be put up for public adoption. Of course, there are only so many welcoming homes for feral burros, hence the outcry from local animal rights activists who worry about the little gray and dun-colored denizens of the desert.
According to the BLM, the burros are disturbing the natural habitat of the endangered desert tortoise. No one in the federal government seems to want the burros, either. The Park Service and Fish and Wildlife are not interested in managing burros. The creatures are banned from the national parks because they are not native and compete with native creatures for survival.
Beyond the roundup in the Mojave Desert, burros are creating another problem. In the Moreno Valley suburb of Riverside, Calif., burros have become a dangerous nuisance to vehicles winding their way through a rural corridor. A freeway that links several booming residential communities traverses the burros’ range. A UPS delivery truck struck a wild burro recently, prompting police to warn that the animals are an all-too-common threat to motorists. Last year, a 21-year-old woman was killed when her car collided with a burro in the road late at night. Though yellow street signs with the silhouette of a donkey are posted on roadways throughout the area, the animals continue to be a lurking problem.
So, what will happen with the burgeoning burro problem? Since the BLM has yet to adequately solve the dilemma of handling America’s feral mustangs, the fate of the burro remains cloudy.
Reduce the speed limit through the burro’s range, post more signs and get the local aware that like dear there are burros out there. And as for removing them thats the governmetn solution for everything involving wild horses or burros. They should be left alone or relocated, actually relocated not rounded up to be adopted, but relocated to a rual area away form dangerous area. And the government should start taking care of them and treating them as indigenous animals because they won’t go away (unless the government has something to say about it). They don’t have the right to exclude a free roaming animal from national parks. They could probally make more money by including them, because last time i looked people like seeing wild horses and burros roaming around in the wild.
Look, i’m really sorry about the woman who died,but a threat to Drivers? Honestly,more like the drivers are a threat to the burros!It’s not their fault this is happening!The drivers should be paying attention!
I agree with liz!Removing them is not, i repeat not the solution!It’s like the goverment wants to get rid of things of beauty,spirit,and fire like wild horses or i guess herds of wild burros.
Turing wild animals into domestic pets isn’t the solution. The government should alert the public in burro inhabited areas,put signs up, lower speed limits,station police to enforce the lower speed limits, put fences along the roads,have emergency phones on hand if an accident occurs, and set of areas in the burros habitat where they may roam untouched.In addition to that how many homes have room for a burro? Taking burros out of their home is not the answer.
Once again, the fate of a beautiful creation lies in the hands of a corrupt government. Cases like this serve as a call to arms for equine enthusiasts everywhere. If the BLM can’t effectively “manage” wild mustangs, what should make us believe that they can successfully do so with wild burros. “Feral” burros do not, and I repeat DO NOT pose a threat to the desert tortoise, or to motorists. As has already been said, it’s the motorists who pose a threat to the burros. Humans are the ones speeding through -their- habitat. As such, we need to be more careful.
Horsepeople, I urge you, contact the BLM and politely inform them of the merits of the wild burro, and his importance to the western landscape. Remind them that removing the burros will consequently lower their tour industry profits, as no one wants to visit a place where wild animals once roamed.
That’s awful! Nobody even likes tortises!there r plenty of tortises!besides, the burros arnt kiling the tortises, theyre just disturbing them, weras if u round up the burros, they will b traumatized and probably killed!and did it ever occur 2 any1 to just make a reserve?
IT’S A SHAME NO ONE WANTS THE BURRO, YOU CAN SEND A COUPLE TO ME. I HAVE A DONKEY NAME HARRY. HE IS LOVED BY MY GRANDCHILDREN. AND USE. HE GIVES YOU HUGGS. AND KISS. IF HE WANT’S TO. I HOPE THEY ARE ARE NOT KILLED OFF.