Most of the range is public land administered by the federal Bureau of Land Management . It is very little human development in the remote region — cattle grazing and ranching are the primary human uses — but former mines at the McDermitt Caldera produced some of the largest amounts of mercury in North America in the 20th century . Public lands in the mountains are open to recreation but are rarely visited . Vegetation includes large swaths of big sagebrush in addition to desert grasses and cottonwood and alder stands . Sage grouse and mountain chickadee are two bird species native to the range , and common mammals include pronghorn and jackrabbits .