KUIU Leads Wildlife Conservation Through Action

Within the far-off hills of the San Antonio Mountain range, conservation volunteers from Kuiu, the Fraternity of the Desert Bighorn, and the Nevada Department of Wildlife gathered to complete a water conservation project they have been planning for years, and now the Robert W. Perchetti Guzzler is filling up, drop-by-drop.

Thanks to a group of over thirty volunteers the construction was tackled in just a day’s time. Rebar pegs were meticulously laid out and driven into the ground with sledgehammers. Then long metal support beams were fastened into place with U-bolts. The volunteers carried long and rigid metal siding that was then laid atop the support beams. All-in-all the catch system stretches out at a size of 40 ft. by 80 ft.

Then, the true heavy work began as five water bins were lugged into place. Soon, everything was connected properly. The five tanks installed will be able to store up to 11,500 gallons of rainwater at any given time.

At the bottom of the new catch system, more volunteers stacked stone, hauled concrete bags and poured pails of water.

The heavy metal structure that will act as the watering-hole needed to be set level, so volunteers set heavy stones and poured concrete to create a secure and natural-looking base. The hard-working conservationists even went as far as to put metal beam steps in place to ensure animals would be less likely to slip.

At the end of the day, Mike Perchetti, son of Robert Perchetti, was able to take off his gloves and put to words his heartfelt appreciation for the guzzler’s completion.

“What better way to give back to Nevada wildlife in the name of conservation and also pay tribute to my dad? It means a lot to me and I’m glad to be able to do it with some partners like the great team from Kuiu and the Nevada Department of Wildlife and the Fraternity of the Desert Bighorn. This is my dad’s legacy.”

Kuiu continues to be a great leader in wildlife conservation, and this project is just one of many. To learn more about conservation efforts from all three organizations that helped in this particular project, check the links below.

KUIU Conservation Direct

Wild Sheep Foundation: Fraternity of the Desert Bighorn

Nevada Department of Wildlife 

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