Wild Pronghorn Fencing and Seasonal Migration

Pronghorns cannot jump fences and depend on gaps to complete their seasonal migrations. Fence modification programs directly improve welfare for migrating individuals.

Key Facts

Pronghorns travel up to 300 miles seasonally between summer and winter ranges, one of the longest land migrations in North America
Unlike deer and elk, pronghorns evolved without significant barrier obstacles and lack the ability to jump
Standard cattle fencing blocks pronghorn migration, causing animals to pace fence lines until they find a gap or die
The Wyoming Pronghorn Initiative has modified thousands of miles of fence to include bottom-wire lifts enabling passage
Migration corridors have been maintained for millennia; development is fragmenting these ancient routes

Welfare Considerations

Pronghorns blocked by fences during seasonal migrations experience acute stress, exhaustion from fence-line pacing, and sometimes death from inability to reach seasonal habitat. Individuals that cannot complete migration are separated from nutritionally essential winter or summer range, causing poor body condition and reproductive failure. The welfare harm of fence barriers is direct and measurable: animals observed pacing along fence lines for hours or days in obvious distress. Fence modification programs create passage gaps that allow migration to resume, providing immediate welfare relief at relatively low cost. The simplicity and effectiveness of fence modification makes it one of the most cost-effective wildlife welfare interventions available.

What You Can Do

Support Wyoming Migration Initiative and BLM fence modification programs
Advocate for fence modification requirements on federal land leased for livestock grazing in pronghorn habitat
Learn about pronghorn migration routes in your region to build local advocacy capacity
Report pronghorn fence entanglements or mortality to wildlife managers for documentation