YOUR AD HERE »

Wildlife officials transplant bighorn sheep from Basalt to Gore Canyon

Leia Larsen
llarsen@skyhidailynews.com
OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA
Staff Photo | Colorado Parks and Wildlife

The population of a western wildlife icon just got a boost along the Upper Colorado River.

Bighorn sheep, the official Colorado state animal, once roamed the rugged slopes of Gore Canyon and hilly rangeland near Radium, but herds have seen a sharp decline statewide since the early 1900s. Wildlife officials say the animals faced competition with domestic animals brought by human settlers. Herds also took a hit from being over-hunted.

As early as 1945, wildlife workers have tried to boost bighorn populations by trapping wild sheep and relocating them to establish new herds or supplement existing ones. In 2009, Colorado Parks and Wildlife upped its efforts to grow bighorn populations, developing a 10-year management plan.



“Ecologically speaking, there was a niche missing,” said Lyle Sidener with the CPW office in Hot Sulphur Springs.

“For all states with bighorn sheep, they’re an important resource and important to the public.”
Lyle Sidener
Colorado Parks and Wildlife

In February 2009, CPW released 14 bighorns in Gore Canyon. Bighorns breed once a year, with ewes generally having only a single lamb, but by 2013 the local herd had doubled. On Jan. 3, wildlife officials brought an additional 13 bighorns to the area, bringing the total population to 41.



The new transplants included one ram, seven ewes and five lambs. There’s no longer a domestic sheep industry in the area, and hunting regulations protect the animals, but Sidener said the bighorns still face threats from disease. To ensure the local herd stays healthy, both groups of bighorns were transplanted from the Basalt State Wildlife Area.

“It’s important to get sheep from same area so disease background is the same,” Sidener said. “We have to be very careful of how we move sheep, we can’t get them willy-nilly from other areas.”

Like the 2009 transplants, the 13 new bighorns were brought by truck in horse trailers. Wildlife officials gave them a light dose of tranquilizer to ease them through the handling process and to administer “booster shots” to further help the animals fight disease. CPW will track the sheep with radio collars and ear tag transmitters to record their progress.

According to Sidener, the goal is to ultimately restore a healthy, sustainable population that provides a chance for wildlife viewing and an opportunity for future hunting.

“For all states with bighorn sheep, they’re an important resource and important to the public,” he said.


Support Local Journalism

Support Local Journalism

Readers around Glenwood Springs and Garfield County make the Post Independent’s work possible. Your financial contribution supports our efforts to deliver quality, locally relevant journalism.

Now more than ever, your support is critical to help us keep our community informed about the evolving coronavirus pandemic and the impact it is having locally. Every contribution, however large or small, will make a difference.

Each donation will be used exclusively for the development and creation of increased news coverage.