Sage Grouse and Fences GREELEY, CO (KUNC) - The U.S. Bureau of Land Management is telling its field offices to mark certain fences and wind-turbine guy wires to make them more visible to sage grouse, sharp-tailed grouse and lesser prairie chickens. Sage grouse are found in several western states including Utah, Wyoming and Colorado. Studies have shown that guy wires and barbed-wire fences can be deadly to birds that fly into them. Environmentalists are particularly concerned about the sage grouse, which has been petitioned for protection under the Endangered Species Act. An on-going study pointed to 146 instances sage grouse feathers and or carcasses on or near a 5 mile stretch of barbed-wire fence in Wyoming. A directive from the BLM in Washington, D.C. tells state BLM offices to evaluate fences for their risk to sage grouse and place markers where appropriate. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has until February to decide whether to protect the sage grouse under the Endangered Species Act. © Copyright 2012, KUNC