I was hiking along the trail of Capitol Gorge in Capitol Reef National Park in southern Utah one cool sunny day when I heard some noises — and when I was treated to the sight of some bighorn sheep which were gathered together nearby, I snuck behind some brush to hide so that I can observe them and photograph them undisturbed.
Sunday Morning Photograph March 13 2022: Bighorn Sheep in Utah.
Native to North America and named for their distinctive large curved horns, as many as 200,000 bighorn sheep occupied the land from southwestern Canada to northwestern Mexico to as far east as the western parts of the states of North Dakota, South Dakota, and Texas — but their numbers had dwindled significantly over the decades due to such contributing factors as the destruction of their natural habitat, unregulated hunting of the animals, the overgrazing of rangelands, and diseases which were contracted from domestic livestock.
The population of bighorn sheep — of which three subspecies exist — has rejuvenated somewhat in recent decades to approximately 70,000 animals; but the numbers are nowhere close to those of 200 years ago. The subspecies shown in the photographs in this article are likely Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep. The males are rams, as the horns of ewes — or females — are shorter and have less of a curvature than the rams. A ram can weigh as much as 315 pounds.
Final Boarding Call
I enjoy watching wildlife in their natural habitat — and although attacks on humans by bighorn sheep are rare, they do happen…
…which is yet another reason why I wanted to keep my distance. I respect nature.
Please click here for a complete list of the Sunday Morning Photograph series of articles at The Gate.
All photographs ©2020 by Brian Cohen.
