Crews Stop Fire From Burning Idaho Sage Grouse Habitat

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — A 3-square-mile wildfire burned through important sage grouse habitat in south-central Idaho but nine aircraft and a local fire protection association stopped it from reaching the bird's primary habitat. The sage brush habitat that burned north of Glenns Ferry is in an area between two wildfires from previous years. U.S. Bureau of Land Management dispatcher Mark Rich says crews stopped the fire from climbing Bennett Mountain where critical habitat exists for the bird that's being considered for federal protections.