Nevada
Nevada’s state animal may face die-offs, relocation due to drought
A symbol of the persistent spirit of life in the American West, bighorn sheep have long made their home in the country’s driest desert.
Far before white settlers reached Las Vegas, these hearty animals enjoyed Southern Nevada’s bountiful water sources alongside the Nuwu, or Southern Paiute Native Americans. Tribes viewed their lives as intertwined with the sheep’s lives, hunting them but honoring their sacrifice.
But today, as the nation’s driest state grows more arid, the animals face a dire dilemma: a lack of water needed to survive. With more than 200 days of no measurable rain in the Las Vegas Valley and counting, the clock is ticking as the dry streak threatens to cut off their food source and potentially warrant relocation out of state.
“You can provide as much water as you want to, but it’s going to eventually get to the point where there’s not enough groceries on the ground — or vegetation,” Joe Bennett, the Nevada Department of Wildlife’s southern region game supervisor, said in an interview Friday. “I don’t know when we’ll reach that threshold.”
Bennett joined his wildlife department colleagues at a Nevada Board of Wildlife Commissioners meeting last week, emphasizing the need for officials to pay attention to bighorn sheep populations in the coming months.
“If we don’t take action, there definitely will be hundreds of animals that will die,” Mike Cox, the state’s biologist over bighorn sheep and mountain goats, told commissioners in his report.
Huge water guzzlers not enough
Biologists believe the precarious future of Nevada’s beloved desert bighorn sheep is predicated on climate change.
Southern Nevada’s future is a hotter and drier one, Cox said.
The last two decades have brought more intense periods of drought with higher temperatures and longer days without rain, he said. Instead of three out of 10 years under drought conditions, it’s more like five or six dry years out of 10.
“We’re not going in the right direction in terms of our climate,” Cox said. “I started my career in Las Vegas, and I remember the consistent monsoonal patterns.”
The populations most at risk right now reside in the Muddy Mountains and Arrow Canyon Range near Moapa, McCullough Range on the outskirts of Henderson and the southern Spotted Range near Indian Springs, Cox said.
Boulder City’s beloved herd that mingles alongside humans at Hemenway Park in the River Mountains isn’t on that list, largely because of its proximity to Lake Mead and plenty of year-round grazing.
Extreme drought last hit the bighorn sheep populations from 2020 to 2022, when biologists saw herds move eastward in the Muddy Mountains. That shift in population density has strained water resources even more, Cox said.
In times of extreme dryness, the state wildlife department will conduct water hauls to so-called water guzzlers, or 9,000-to-11,500-gallon tanks that provide drinking water. The state has access to remote sensing technology that shows water levels at each guzzler, and officials said they are planning another water haul this month.
“They’re having to stay on these guzzlers longer,” said Bennett, the game supervisor. “They’re not able to move off of them and use resources that are further away that they would normally use during the winter months.”
Solutions still in the works
It’s not clear yet what route wildlife officials will take to reduce deaths among bighorn sheep in Southern Nevada.
Even with available water, dried-out vegetation isn’t cutting it — and officials aren’t aware of any proven solutions to artificially supplying food sources.
Trans-locating some of the most affected bighorn sheep to either Northern Nevada or out of state to Utah is an option they are considering, Bennett said.
One drawback is that several of the sub-populations suffer from pneumonia strains — an emerging challenge the department has been tracking for at least a decade. Officials don’t want to spread disease, and each herd has its own circumstances, he said.
“We just have to make sure, wherever we likely move them, that we’re not putting them in a bad situation,” Bennett said.
The state wildlife department, along with non-governmental organizations focused on bighorn sheep, will meet and formulate a plan to best manage bighorn sheep populations in the near future. Officials said a more official plan will be presented at the next board meeting scheduled for March 7 and 8.
While no immediate intervention is necessary to sustain the populations, this challenge of drought and disease is one that biologists across the West will grapple with for decades to come.
“That’s the balancing act that we biologists have to play,” Bennett said.
Contact Alan Halaly at ahalaly@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlanHalaly on X.
After getting shut out by Liberty on Tuesday, the Desert Oasis baseball team bounced back with an 11-4 victory Wednesday over the visiting Patriots.
With the win in the regular-season finale, the Diamondbacks secured the Desert League’s No. 2 seed in the 5A Southern Region playoffs, which start next week.
“All year, they’ve responded after we’ve lost games,” Desert Oasis coach Paul Buboltz said. “This is an experienced group of guys that are hungry, and they knew what was at stake today.”
The Diamondbacks (21-9-1, 6-4 Desert) didn’t waste any time getting on the scoreboard Wednesday. After Liberty (15-16, 5-5 Desert) jumped to a 1-0 lead in the first inning, Desert Oasis came out swinging.
Senior third baseman Brody Griffith got it started by driving home sophomore second baseman Jayson Marquez to tie the game. Then junior left fielder Ryan Roshak launched a fastball over the wall in right-center for a three-run homer, giving the Diamondbacks a lead they didn’t relinquish.
“That early momentum meant everything for the team,” Roshak said. “It takes a lot of pressure off the guys.”
The Desert Oasis bats made life easier for senior pitcher Crue Smith. After getting into early trouble, Smith kept a potent Patriots lineup at bay for most of the afternoon. The right-hander yielded four runs — one earned — on five hits and two walks while striking out three in 5⅓ innings.
“I think this win will boost our confidence and give us more motivation going into the playoffs,” Smith said.
The Diamondbacks continued to tack on early runs — three in the second inning, off a bases-loaded walk to senior center fielder Aidan Smith and two more on a single from senior designated hitter Ashton Kidd — to go up 7-1.
Liberty crept back into the game, thanks to solid relief pitching from senior Cayden Rodgers-Ramirez. The Patriots added two runs in the sixth, off RBI singles from Rodgers-Ramirez and senior Austin Pepe, to get within 8-4. But the Diamondbacks answered with three runs in the bottom of the inning.
Marquez went 2-for-4, driving in a run and scoring twice. Desert Oasis batters drew seven walks, including two each by senior catcher Landon O’Dell and freshman right fielder Sebastian Mansell.
Junior center fielder Nevan Chandler led Liberty’s offense, going 3-for-4 with two RBIs.
Nevada’s List of Excluded Persons — the notorious “Black Book” filled with names of people forever banned from the state’s big casinos — is expected to change over the next few months as the Nevada Gaming Commission on Thursday will consider the addition of the 39th person to be listed and a petition from a person already listed to be removed.
The five-member commission will consider the inclusion of San Juan Capistrano, California, resident Mathew Raymond Bowyer, who pleaded guilty to federal charges of running an illegal gambling business, money laundering and filing a false tax return. He took sports bets from an estimated 700 gamblers, including Ippei Mizuhara, the former interpreter and de facto agent for Los Angeles Dodgers baseball superstar Shohei Ohtani.
Thursday’s commission meeting begins at 9 a.m., an hour earlier than when the panel normally gathers. The meeting is in Las Vegas and is livestreamed on the Nevada Gaming Control Board’s YouTube channel.
Bowyer served about five months of a one-year, one-day sentence that began in October. He was released from a federal prison in Lompoc, California, to a halfway house in March and will be on supervised probation for two years.
Won’t fight inclusion
In a February telephone interview with the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Bowyer indicated he does not expect to fight inclusion to the list, citing the expense of hiring an attorney to represent him. As of Tuesday, there was no indication from Gaming Control Board representatives that Bowyer would attend the hearing, although he has been notified of it.
But in his interview with the Review-Journal, Bowyer expressed his disdain for being considered for inclusion in the book, which lists the worst of the worst criminals that regulators say should be banned from Nevada casinos for committing crimes that hurt the gaming industry and could bring a bad reputation to the state.
“I think it’s absolutely ridiculous that they are telling me I can’t set foot in a licensed gaming property in the state of Nevada,” Bowyer said in the interview. “I mean, I understand that they don’t want me to be able to gamble again, but to tell me I can’t take my 4-year-old boy to Circus Circus or go have dinner at Javier’s at Aria to me is the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard of.”
Fall guy
Bowyer said he believes he is “the fall guy for everything and everybody in this situation.”
He said the day before the RJ interview that he was visited by two Control Board agents who notified him of his nomination to the list and explained his options for fighting inclusion. But he doubts he’ll fight it because he said he can’t afford the legal representation needed to make his case before the commission.
In the wake of Bowyer’s case, three casino companies have been disciplined by the Gaming Commission and fined.
Bowyer’s name has come up in three previous disciplinary actions taken in 2025 involving fines of $10.5 million assessed to Resorts World Las Vegas and its parent company, Genting Berhad, in March; an $8.5 million fine against MGM Resorts International in April; and a $7.8 million fine against Caesars Entertainment Inc. in November.
Those actions involved the second-, fourth- and fifth-highest fines ever assessed in a gaming disciplinary matter.
Nicole Bowyer
There’s still unfinished business before the Gaming Commission for Bowyer’s wife, Nicole Bowyer.
More than a year ago, on Jan. 30, 2025, the Gaming Commission delayed action on a complaint against Nicole Bowyer, who worked as an independent agent for Resorts World Las Vegas.
Nicole Bowyer faced at least a five-year ban as an agent who encourages a gambler to play at a specific casino and is paid a commission from the casino based on the player’s losses.
Commissioners put off a decision on a stipulation for settlement with her because they wanted to see her hit with stiffer penalties. Commissioners separately said they wanted to see Nicole Bowyer fined or possibly have her agent status revoked for life.
Mathew Bowyer alleges that Resorts World never trained his wife about money-laundering compliance, saying casino operators “never did one ounce of AML (anti-money-laundering) training.”
“That was something that was supposed to be done,” he said. “I found out later because I knew nothing about being a casino host and nor did my wife because they were so hungry for our business. They clearly were OK with that. But the fact that they did zero training. I feel like it’s just completely, you know, unfair would be the best word I could use.”
Since Resorts World was fined, Genting has made several moves to bolster AML compliance, including applying for and receiving licensing for two board members, former Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval and former Gaming Control Board Chairman A.G. Burnett.
If approved for inclusion on the list, Bowyer would become its 39th member, after commissioners unanimously approved the inclusion of Newport Coast, California, resident Wayne Nix as No. 38 in February.
Nix, a former minor league baseball pitcher, is an illegal bookmaker whose casino play at MGM Grand, The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas and other MGM Resort properties led to former MGM Grand President Scott Sibella pleading guilty to failing to report to federal officers about illegal gamblers playing at the casino when he worked there in 2018.
Prospective removal
While Bowyer’s inclusion would add to the list, commissioners also will consider the unprecedented removal of a living person from it.
Scheduled right before the Bowyer hearing is discussion of a petition for the removal of Francis Citro Jr., 80, whose attorney asked in November for a hearing on the matter.
A popular entertainer at Las Vegas’ Italian American Club, Citro is hoping his removal from the list would enable him to perform his collection of bebop music, Italian folk songs, jokes and stories about Las Vegas’ mob past in a casino lounge setting some day.
Las Vegas attorney Michael Lasher submitted the 10-page request to be removed from the list in November saying Citro has changed his life since he was placed on the list Nov. 21, 1991.
In a hearing in January, Lasher said, “In the decades that have passed, petitioner’s character and reputation have become stellar. He is a reformed man, doing good for his community by charity fundraising as an entertainer.”
In January, commissioners opted to delay a hearing by a month and then Citro asked for a further delay until April in order to prepare his case.
No decision Thursday
At Thursday’s hearing, commissioners aren’t expected to render a decision on removal, but to decide whether to schedule a comprehensive hearing on Citro’s request. If commissioners vote against it, the matter would be considered resolved and Citro would remain on the list. If a hearing is set, Citro could bring witnesses to testify to his character before a decision on removal is considered.
If successful, Citro would be the first living person ever removed from the list.
The Gaming Commission routinely peruses the list to remove people who have died over the years. Currently, there are at least two people on the list who have died in recent years.
Contact Richard N. Velotta at rvelotta@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3893. Follow @RickVelotta on X.
TOP FINES
Here’s a list of the top 10 fines imposed by the Nevada Gaming Commission for disciplinary action against casinos.
1. Wynn Resorts Ltd., $20 million, 2019.
2. Resorts World Las Vegas, $10.5 million, 2025
3. Steve Wynn, $10 million, 2023.
4. MGM Resorts International, $8.5 million, 2025
5. Caesars Entertainment, $7.8 million, 2025
T6. CG Technology (then known as Cantor G&W Holdings), $5.5 million, 2014.
T6. Wynn Resorts Ltd., $5.5 million, 2025.
8. The Mirage, $5 million ($3 million fine, $2 million compensatory payment), 2003.
9. Stardust, $3 million, 1985.
10. Santa Fe Station, $2.2 million ($1.5 million fine, $700,000 compensatory payment), 2005.
LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — UNLV turned its student union plaza into a push to save lives as Nevada faces a need for organ donors.
University police and Nevada Donor Network hosted “Dogs, Donuts and Donate Life,” using K9 meet-and-greets and free donuts to get students and staff to stop by, learn about donation, and sign up on the spot.
“Partnering with police agencies, our first responders, is important here during Nationals April’s Donate Life Month because we can spread awareness about organ, eye, and tissue donation together as a trusted community source and also answer any myths or misconceptions, questions people might have about the donation process here in our community,” said Samantha Savalli of Nevada Donor Network.
MORE ON FOX5: Nevada Donor Network achieves record-breaking year for organ transplants
People can register at the DMV.
According to Nevada Donor Network, more than 100,000 Americans are waiting for an organ transplant right now including more than 700 people in Nevada. More than 1.6 million Nevadans are already registered as organ donors, but the need is still urgent.
For more information about organ, eye and tissue donation, visit www.nvdonor.org .
Copyright 2026 KVVU. All rights reserved.
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