Sierra Nevada Bighorn Sheep Recovery

This past week I attended the Sierra Nevada Bighorn Sheep Recovery Implementation Team meeting in Sacramento. The team is composed of biologists, researchers, and land managers with responsibilities affecting recovery of the endangered species. I learned a lot and it was humbling to be in a room with so many experts in the field.

Recovery Plan for the Sierra Nevada Bighorn Sheep (pdf)

Inspired by the meeting, I took a hike up into Pine Creek Canyon where I heard that bighorns had been seen at lower elevations. On the way back down from the mill, we spooked a group of nine Sierra Nevada bighorns: three rams, three ewes, and three young. After scrambling a ways up a cliff face, the sheep felt safe enough to allow us to watch them while they fed. It was an amazing encounter with this highly endangered species.