Bible Springs Complex Wild Horse Roundup Reports

Welcome to our roundup reporting page for the Bible Springs Complex in southwestern Utah, where you will find eyewitness reports, photographs, and videos from the field as the Bureau of Land Management conducts a major helicopter roundup.

The Bible Springs Complex includes the Bible Spring, Four Mile, and Tilly Creek Herd Management Areas, along with the Blawn Wash Herd Area. According to the BLM’s current national schedule, the operation is planned for August 1 through August 22 and targets approximately 800 wild horses for capture and permanent removal. None are currently scheduled to be treated with fertility control or returned to the range.

This operation will affect wild horses across several distinct public-land areas, separating family bands and sending captured animals into the federal holding system.

Our field observers will attend whenever access is provided to witness helicopter drives, monitor horse welfare, document roundup conditions, and provide the public with transparent, independent reporting.

This page will serve as a living record of the Bible Springs Complex roundup. Throughout the operation, we will publish daily totals, photographs, videos, and firsthand observations so the public can follow events as they unfold across the complex.

We hope these reports bring visibility to the scale and consequences of this removal and strengthen the call for humane, science-based management that protects wild horses and preserves viable herds on public lands.

08/03/26

Animals Gathered: 26 (8 Stallions, 10 Mares, and 8 Foals)

Animals Shipped: 0

Animals Released: 0

Deaths: 0

- Sudden / Acute: 0

- Pre-existing / Chronic: 0

Operations were back at Blawn Wash HA which is no longer managed for wild horses. Observers were placed about half a mile from the trap and they could see part of the entry wing and the trap, but not the approach which was out of view due to the terrain. Our observer was one of three onsite.

As the helicopter came closer, a lone bay stallion ran off to their south in the opposite direction. A bit later during another run, a gray stallion broke off from a group and ran in the opposite direction.

During a run, 6 horses went into the trap including a foal. Three riders went out and roped two more foals that had run by the trap. One rider got off his horse and walked behind one of the foals until they reached the trap.

During the next run at approximately 10:50am, 3 horses went in. The wranglers then loaded their horses into a trailer and drove out to the helicopter. Observers were unable to see what was happening due to a hill. At 11:22am the trailer arrived back at the trap and they unloaded a foal and walked it into the trap.

A total of 4 foals were roped today and it was unclear if they were falling behind or separated by the terrain due to lack of visibility of the approach.

Operations ended after the last group of 3 went in at 1:16pm. The temperature reported by BLM was 94 degrees.

Observers could not tour the trap site, as they were once again tearing down to move the trap. They did travel about 15 miles to temporary holding where the horses had food and water and were calm. The foals that had been roped were marked with red so they would know which ones to monitor. They were doing well. Body scores appeared to be a BCS 4.

08/02/26

Animals Gathered: 19 (11 Stallions, 5 Mares, and 3 Foals)

Animals Shipped: 0

Animals Released: 0

Deaths: 0

-Sudden / Acute: 0

-Pre-existing / Chronic: 0

Observers were placed about three-quarters of a mile from the trap, with a view of the wings and the entry of the trap. Our observer was one of three present.

The horses being gathered were on the outskirts of the Blawn Wash HA and they were only able to capture 19 horses.. The last group of three - a stallion, mare and small foal - split and ran as they approached the wings. They reunited and disappeared into the trees.

With temps reaching 90 degrees, they called it for the day and began tearing down the trap to move it to a new location.

Observers were allowed to visit temporary holding. The horses were noted to have a body condition of 3-5, with most at a 4. The horses had food and water and were generally calm.