The 122-acre Wegert Property is located in the City of Gunnison and provides an important open-space buffer for adjacent public open space properties that include an active Gunnison Sage-grouse “lek,” the term for the area in which animals engage in courtship displays. The land consists of sagebrush shrublands, irrigated meadows, and riparian habitat along nearly a mile of Antelope Creek. Habitat is also provided for bald eagle, ferruginous hawk, greater sandhill crane, northern leopard frog, bighorn sheep, black bear, elk, mountain lion, and mule deer.
Located within the city’s urban growth boundary, the property is near existing small lot subdivisions. The Wegerts reside on the property and manage it for hay production and livestock grazing. The easement was supported by Natural Resources Conservation Service and Gunnison Valley Land Preservation Fund, and was completed in partnership with Gunnison Ranchland Conservation Legacy.
The protection of properties that are located close to or contain Gunnison Sage-grouse leks is critical for the survival of the birds. Many of these properties are too small or have already been built out, making them unfit for a conservation easement. The Wegert property contains enough acreage to make the property feasible for conservation, protecting critical Sage-grouse habitat along with it.