Caribou Gear

MT M/G/S results this week?

I don't know anything about goat issues, but yeah the sheep die off in unit 304 was due to Pneumonia, therefore they allowed those who applied in 304 to switch their app to another unit. Based on the fact that they were still gathering unit changes yesterday, I have a hard time believing sheep draws will be out today...
 
Oak said:
Mountain goats? Got a link I can read?
Click to expand...

There's a study going on in that area right now with mt goats and bighorn sheep. http://www.gyamountainungulateproject.com/index.html

There is no definitive answer that says whether or not goats are having a negative impact on bighorns, and I doubt there will an answer anytime soon.

I can say that I have seen sheep and goats occupying the same areas in the summer in that unit, but I can't imagine what factor would be causing the goats to out compete the sheep.

It would be interesting to study them in the winter, even though most of the bighorns winter down low, it sounds like some stay up high with the goats... Maybe there is competition then? I don't know.
 
MHMT said:
There's a study going on in that area right now with mt goats and bighorn sheep. http://www.gyamountainungulateproject.com/index.html

There is no definitive answer that says whether or not goats are having a negative impact on bighorns, and I doubt there will an answer anytime soon.

I can say that I have seen sheep and goats occupying the same areas in the summer in that unit, but I can't imagine what factor would be causing the goats to out compete the sheep.

It would be interesting to study them in the winter, even though most of the bighorns winter down low, it sounds like some stay up high with the goats... Maybe there is competition then? I don't know.
Click to expand...

I thought he was saying pneumonia from goats. I may have been mistaken. Was just curious. Mountain goats are behaviorally dominant to bighorn sheep, and some studies have concluded that competition with goats for resources could reduce sheep populations significantly. See Gross, J. E. 2001. Evaluating effects of an expanding mountain goat population on native bighorn sheep: a simulation model of competition and disease.
 
Oak said:
I thought he was saying pneumonia from goats. I may have been mistaken. Was just curious. Mountain goats are behaviorally dominant to bighorn sheep, and some studies have concluded that competition with goats for resources could reduce sheep populations significantly. See Gross, J. E. 2001. Evaluating effects of an expanding mountain goat population on native bighorn sheep: a simulation model of competition and disease.
Click to expand...

You don't by chance have a link to the whole article do you? I can only find the abstract, and don't have access to journals through MSU anymore.

In the areas that I have observed both sheep and goats in the Gallatin, it seems like there is more than enough forage for both species. Would they be competing for certain forage that would be less obvious? I could easily see competition being a problem in winter, but if they are on separate winter ranges it wouldn't be an issue would it?

Or am I looking at it wrong and would it goats pushing sheep out of the preferred areas and more vulnerable to predation? With the disease part, are there any diseases goats transfer to sheep?
 
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Buddy and I watched about a dozen goats mingle with as many dall sheep last fall. Seen goats and sheep on the same mountain many times in MT, but never saw them all bedded together like last fall.
 
MHMT said:
You don't by chance have a link to the whole article do you? I can only find the abstract, and don't have access to journals through MSU anymore.

In the areas that I have observed both sheep and goats in the Gallatin, it seems like there is more than enough forage for both species. Would they be competing for certain forage that would be less obvious? I could easily see competition being a problem in winter, but if they are on separate winter ranges it wouldn't be an issue would it?

Or am I looking at it wrong and would it goats pushing sheep out of the preferred areas and more vulnerable to predation? With the disease part, are there any diseases goats transfer to sheep?
Click to expand...

No link. I have a pdf I can email to you.
 
I think I've seen that study you're referring to, Oak. I just read it not long ago. Can't remember where though. I wanted to say it was on the Sheep foundation FB page, but couldn't find it. Could have been another one of the feeds I get. B&C maybe?
 
Bambistew said:
I think I've seen that study you're referring to, Oak. I just read it not long ago. Can't remember where though. I wanted to say it was on the Sheep foundation FB page, but couldn't find it. Could have been another one of the feeds I get. B&C maybe?
Click to expand...

Probably a reference to something newer? This one is over a decade old. The model used was based on goat and sheep habitat in RMNP.
 
I think, but might be wrong, that there was a 30% decline in their winter counts and they failed to see any mature rams in the unit. Never saw any information about whether they actually found any dead sheep or observed any with the typical pneumonia-like symptoms.
 
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