Another example of the left just not getting it. Hunters will probably end up having to kill some of these sheep as the population expands.
1/31/2005
Division of Wildlife BIGHORN SHEEP RETURN TO PARK RANGE
Bighorn sheep are back in the Mount Zirkel Wilderness Area west of Walden and northeast of Steamboat Springs.
The Colorado Division of Wildlife (DOW) has transplanted Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep to Red Canyon at the foot of the Mount Zirkel Wilderness. This area is located in the Routt National Forest west of Walden and northeast of Steamboat Springs.
"This is traditional habitat for the bighorn and it's great to take part in bringing them back to the area," said DOW Area Wildlife Manager Susan Werner.
A group of 26 bighorn sheep was captured on the Forbes Trinchera Ranch in the San Luis Valley. The sheep were transported and released on Friday, Jan. 28 on private land in the Red Canyon area.
"We are pleased to have captured and released nine rams as part of this first group of sheep," said DOW District Wildlife Manager Kirk Snyder.
Several of the sheep were equipped with radio-transmitting collars, which will monitor the herd's movements. DOW biologists will use both air and ground surveillance to track the sheep as they move to higher ground within the Routt National Forest during the spring and summer months.
DOW biologist Jim Hicks noted that bighorn sheep were abundant in the Park Range and Mount Zirkel Wilderness Area until European settlers arrived. Subsistence hunting, habitat changes and disease finally eliminated the bighorn sheep in the area in the mid-1900s.
"The Ute Indians historically burned most of the Park Range until the 1880s," said Hicks. "Lack of fires since that time allowed open terrain to become timbered, reducing sheep habitat and closing migration routes."
1/31/2005
Division of Wildlife BIGHORN SHEEP RETURN TO PARK RANGE
Bighorn sheep are back in the Mount Zirkel Wilderness Area west of Walden and northeast of Steamboat Springs.
The Colorado Division of Wildlife (DOW) has transplanted Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep to Red Canyon at the foot of the Mount Zirkel Wilderness. This area is located in the Routt National Forest west of Walden and northeast of Steamboat Springs.
"This is traditional habitat for the bighorn and it's great to take part in bringing them back to the area," said DOW Area Wildlife Manager Susan Werner.
A group of 26 bighorn sheep was captured on the Forbes Trinchera Ranch in the San Luis Valley. The sheep were transported and released on Friday, Jan. 28 on private land in the Red Canyon area.
"We are pleased to have captured and released nine rams as part of this first group of sheep," said DOW District Wildlife Manager Kirk Snyder.
Several of the sheep were equipped with radio-transmitting collars, which will monitor the herd's movements. DOW biologists will use both air and ground surveillance to track the sheep as they move to higher ground within the Routt National Forest during the spring and summer months.
DOW biologist Jim Hicks noted that bighorn sheep were abundant in the Park Range and Mount Zirkel Wilderness Area until European settlers arrived. Subsistence hunting, habitat changes and disease finally eliminated the bighorn sheep in the area in the mid-1900s.
"The Ute Indians historically burned most of the Park Range until the 1880s," said Hicks. "Lack of fires since that time allowed open terrain to become timbered, reducing sheep habitat and closing migration routes."
