Blue Range Wilderness

Blue Range Wilderness
IUCN category Ib (wilderness area)[1]
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Location	Catron County, New Mexico, US
Nearest city	Reserve, New Mexico
Coordinates	33°24′0″N 108°56′0″W
Area	29,304 acres (11,859 ha)
Established	1980
Governing body	United States Forest Service

Blue Range Wilderness, along with Aldo Leopold Wilderness and Gila Wilderness, is part of Gila National Forest. It is located on the western border of New Mexico and west of U.S. Route 180 between Reserve and Glenwood. The wilderness is crossed by the Mogollon Rim. It became part of the National Wilderness Preservation System in 1980.^[2]

It is home to wildlife species including black bear, pronghorn, bald eagle, peregrine falcon, elk, white-tailed deer, osprey, mule deer, bobcat, spotted owl, cougar, Mexican wolf,^[3] gray fox, white-nosed coati, collared peccary, bighorn sheep, and wild turkey.

The adjacent and larger Blue Range Primitive Area of Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest in Arizona was also recommended for Wilderness status in 1971, but only the New Mexico portion has been acted upon by Congress.^[4]

References

1. Protected Planet Website- Retrieved March 28, 2023
2. Blue Range Wilderness at wilderness.net
3. "New Mexico Game Commission Rejects Federal Releases of Endangered Mexican Wolves in Gila National Forest".
4. "Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests - Blue Range Primitive Area - Alpine District Parcel". www.fs.usda.gov. Retrieved 2016-11-13.