MISSOULA, Mont. — More than 23,000 acres of crucial range for elk, as well as a vital migration corridor for the second-largest mule deer herd in Nevada, is now protected under a voluntary conservation agreement (also known as a conservation easement) between the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation and a private landowner. A corresponding access easement across the property, managed by the Nevada Department of Wildlife (NDOW), provides new or improved access to 47,000 acres of checkerboard private and public land for hunting and other outdoor recreation.
Windermere Hills in Elko County is part of a working ranch named as a conservation priority for Pequop Mountains mule deer, part of the state’s Area 7 herd, in NDOW’s 2024 Nevada State Action Plan. The plan, issued under Department of the Interior Secretarial Order 3362, outlines projects for improving habitat quality in Western big game winter range and migration corridors.
Pequop Mountains mule deer pass through Windermere Hills twice annually during their seasonal migrations. The project contains two heavily used highway wildlife crossings—an overpass and underpass that allow mule deer, elk, pronghorns and other animals to avoid collisions with vehicles—on U.S. 93. The U.S. 93 wildlife crossings provide big game safe passage to additional crossings on Interstate 80 that lead to winter range at the southern end of the Pequop mule deer migration route. Research by the University of Nevada, Reno recorded more than 35,000 incidents of mule deer using U.S. 93 wildlife crossings during four years of monitoring migrations.
“The importance of Windermere Hills to both elk and mule deer cannot be overstated,” said RMEF President and CEO Kyle Weaver. “Without this habitat, the movement patterns big game animals rely on for survival would be disrupted. Thanks to cooperation from a conservation-minded landowner, NDOW and other partners, we’ve protected a property to ensure the future of multiple species and at the same time solved a complex public access challenge for hunters.”
Windermere provides sagebrush steppe, wet meadow and native grassland habitat, along with water sources in the form of numerous springs as well as intermittent and perennial streams. The property, located about 20 miles northeast of Wells, serves as range for not only elk and mule deer, but also pronghorns, greater sage grouse and other wildlife. The agreement protects habitat connectivity across more than 400,000 acres of private and public land in an area where RMEF previously completed numerous habitat stewardship projects.
“This project is yet another testament to the strong partnership between the Nevada Department of Wildlife, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation and private landowners working in lockstep toward conserving vital wildlife habitat, ensuring sustainable use and protecting open space in perpetuity,” said NDOW Deputy Director Caleb McAdoo. “The same open space that is necessary to operate family ranches is also paramount to thriving wildlife populations. Protecting them all together in a sustainable fashion is something we can all get behind.”
As a testament to the importance of the project, RMEF was awarded an $850,000 grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) through Walmart’s Acres for America program in support of conserving Windermere—the largest NFWF grant to RMEF to date. Other funding partners included the State of Nevada, NDOW and Nevada Muleys.
RMEF just released a four-part docuseries detailing the Windermere Hills project at YouTube.com/@RMEF. Narrated by RMEF OutdoorClass™ subject-matter expert and Nevada native Remi Warren, “A Win for Windermere” explores the special relationship between habitat, wildlife and people that exists on the property, and how RMEF works with landowners and other partners to further big game conservation.
About the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation
Now in its fifth decade of Conserving America’s Big Game,™ RMEF will extend its impact on habitat and public land access to 10 million acres by 2030. RMEF conserves and enhances habitat for elk and a variety of big game, opens and improves access for hunting and other outdoor recreation, conducts science-based wildlife research and ensures the future of our hunting heritage through advocacy, outreach and education. Members, volunteers and supporters nationwide help RMEF further its mission. Find out more and join the movement at rmef.org or 800-CALL-ELK.
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