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Fish and Game may curb hunting in burned areas
By Matt Christensen
Times-News writer
JEROME - As firefighters at the nearly contained Murphy Complex fire in southern Idaho pack up their shovels, biologists from the Idaho Department of Fish and Game assess the carnage inflicted on wildlife across more than 650,000 charred acres.
The damage, wildlife officials say, is unlike any they've seen in southern Idaho, and the fire will likely have lasting effects on wildlife-management strategies, including hunting rules.
"This was definitely a serious event from a wildlife perspective," said Dave Parrish, director at Fish and Game's Magic Valley field office in Jerome. "We lost a lot of prime habitat for antelope, mule deer, sage grouse, elk. It was a blow to us, quite frankly."
Of particular concern to the department: sage grouse, a bird considered for placement on the endangered-species list. The Murphy fire torched about 75 grouse leks - mating grounds where the birds flock each spring. Several of the destroyed leks had been active for close to 100 years.
"Setbacks like this are particularly heartbreaking," said Randy Smith, a regional wildlife manager with Fish and Game. "The birds don't have a place to come back to."
Several of the leks burned in the Murphy fire were among the most prime in Idaho, Smith said. Though few birds died in the fire - this year's chicks can usually fly by this late in summer - grouse populations may suffer when birds accustomed to southern Idaho leks have to try their luck at unfamiliar mating grounds next spring.
The Murphy fire is especially disheartening to officials because grouse projects in the blaze's path have been a top priority for the department over the past six or seven years. "And it just takes one wildfire to set you back for a long time," Smith said.
It could take as many as 30 years before burned sage brush recovers and the leks are fully restored. Fish and Game will recommend restoration strategies to the Idaho Bureau of Land Management, which controls most of the charred areas.
But restoration efforts could be hindered by a particularly harsh fire season that's still far from over. An unusual number of major Western fires, particularly in Idaho, could cause a shortage of seeds used in fire-restoration projects. There is simply too much land to restore and not enough seeds to go around.
That could affect more than just grouse. Antelope, mule deer and elk habitat was also devastated in the Murphy fire. And unlike the grouse that could fly to escape the flames, many four-legged animals burned to death. The fire moved too quickly through ultra-dry brush for some animals to escape.
Fuel moisture content in southern Idaho is at an all-time low, Parrish said. "It didn't matter what was on the ground out there," he said. "With the conditions we were facing, everything burned. It couldn't be stopped."
Fish and Game conservation officers are on the ground assessing the fallout, and early signs indicate hunting may be restricted in areas near the fire. The department will likely have a better understanding of the blaze's effects and what that means for hunters in the next several weeks, though sage grouse rules likely won't be set until this winter.
It could be that long before the scope of the Murphy blaze is fully understood.
"From a wildlife perspective, this was the most significant fire I've ever seen," said Parrish, a Fish and Game veteran of more than 25 years.
By Matt Christensen
Times-News writer
JEROME - As firefighters at the nearly contained Murphy Complex fire in southern Idaho pack up their shovels, biologists from the Idaho Department of Fish and Game assess the carnage inflicted on wildlife across more than 650,000 charred acres.
The damage, wildlife officials say, is unlike any they've seen in southern Idaho, and the fire will likely have lasting effects on wildlife-management strategies, including hunting rules.
"This was definitely a serious event from a wildlife perspective," said Dave Parrish, director at Fish and Game's Magic Valley field office in Jerome. "We lost a lot of prime habitat for antelope, mule deer, sage grouse, elk. It was a blow to us, quite frankly."
Of particular concern to the department: sage grouse, a bird considered for placement on the endangered-species list. The Murphy fire torched about 75 grouse leks - mating grounds where the birds flock each spring. Several of the destroyed leks had been active for close to 100 years.
"Setbacks like this are particularly heartbreaking," said Randy Smith, a regional wildlife manager with Fish and Game. "The birds don't have a place to come back to."
Several of the leks burned in the Murphy fire were among the most prime in Idaho, Smith said. Though few birds died in the fire - this year's chicks can usually fly by this late in summer - grouse populations may suffer when birds accustomed to southern Idaho leks have to try their luck at unfamiliar mating grounds next spring.
The Murphy fire is especially disheartening to officials because grouse projects in the blaze's path have been a top priority for the department over the past six or seven years. "And it just takes one wildfire to set you back for a long time," Smith said.
It could take as many as 30 years before burned sage brush recovers and the leks are fully restored. Fish and Game will recommend restoration strategies to the Idaho Bureau of Land Management, which controls most of the charred areas.
But restoration efforts could be hindered by a particularly harsh fire season that's still far from over. An unusual number of major Western fires, particularly in Idaho, could cause a shortage of seeds used in fire-restoration projects. There is simply too much land to restore and not enough seeds to go around.
That could affect more than just grouse. Antelope, mule deer and elk habitat was also devastated in the Murphy fire. And unlike the grouse that could fly to escape the flames, many four-legged animals burned to death. The fire moved too quickly through ultra-dry brush for some animals to escape.
Fuel moisture content in southern Idaho is at an all-time low, Parrish said. "It didn't matter what was on the ground out there," he said. "With the conditions we were facing, everything burned. It couldn't be stopped."
Fish and Game conservation officers are on the ground assessing the fallout, and early signs indicate hunting may be restricted in areas near the fire. The department will likely have a better understanding of the blaze's effects and what that means for hunters in the next several weeks, though sage grouse rules likely won't be set until this winter.
It could be that long before the scope of the Murphy blaze is fully understood.
"From a wildlife perspective, this was the most significant fire I've ever seen," said Parrish, a Fish and Game veteran of more than 25 years.
