SALT LAKE CITY — The Bureau of Land Management’s Salt Lake field office is set to begin removing excess wild horses from the Cedar Mountain Wild Horse Herd Management Area in western Utah on Saturday, weather permitting.

Approximately 600 to 700 horses will be rounded up, and of those, 200 to 300 adoptable-age horses will be removed. The rest will be returned to the management area after roughly 200 are treated with the fertility control vaccine porcine zona pellucida -22.

Members of the public are welcome to view the daily operations. Participants should meet at the Flying J gas station located at I-80 Exit 99 at 1605 E. Saddleback Blvd. in Lake Point, where tours will depart at 5:30 a.m.

Participants must provide their own transportation, water and food. The BLM recommends footwear and clothing suitable for harsh winter conditions. Binoculars and four-wheel drive, high-clearance vehicles are also strongly recommended. Public restrooms will not be available once the tour begins.

The management area, which encompasses approximately 197,275 acres, is located about 50 miles west of Tooele and is home to an estimated 960 wild horses. The BLM says the appropriate management level is 190 to 390 horses.

Recreationists and visitors should be aware that there will be low-flying helicopters and should avoid recreational use of drones within the area. Brief road closures may also be needed to allow movement of horses during operations.

Animals taken from the range will be made available for adoption through the BLM Wild Horse and Burro Adoption Program. Those that are not adopted will be cared for on off-range pastures, where they retain their protection under the 1971 Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act.