Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep
Ovis canadensis canadensis
Summary 3
The Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep (Ovis canadensis) is a species of sheep in North America named for its large horns. These horns can weigh up to 30 lb (14 kg), while the sheep themselves weigh up to 300 lb (140 kg). The bighorn sheep lives in rugged mountainous habitats of western North America. They live at high elevations on rocky slopes in the summer but may migrate to lower elevations during the winter. They can be distinguished from their sheep cousins, the desert sheep, by larger body size and horns, a darker coat, and differing habitats. Their coates are brownish tan with a dark belly and white rump. Winter coats may become a grey color as hair gets longer. Males have a large characteristic horn that curles as it grows and are never shed and re-grown. Females are called ewes and grow small horns up to 10" long but seldom curl and are smaller in body size than the males, or rams. Bighorns are herbivors and their diet consists of a variety of mountain plant species and lichens. The population and range of this species has been greatly reduced from its native habitat due to human encroachment and domestic livestock diseases. Bighorn sheep can be found in Utah in the Wasatch Mountains, Antelope Island, Book Cliffs, Newfoundland Mountains, and the Nine Mile/Range Creek area. They are not found in Iron County.
Sources 4
http://dwrcdc.nr.utah.gov/rsgis2/Search/Display.asp?FlNm=oviscana
Sources and Credits
- (c) Dan Dzurisin, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-ND), http://www.flickr.com/photos/8987884@N07/2641090652
- (c) ericbaler, all rights reserved
- Adapted by ericbaler from a work by (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ovis_canadensis_canadensis
- (c) ericbaler, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA)
