Photo credit: Shutterstock
Nevada desert bighorn sheep are some of the most majestic animals in the U.S. Thanks to projects that protect and enhance habitat, provide watering stations, and create boundaries between desert bighorns and their domestic counterparts, current populations are 2,400 strong. This is because of the dedicated link hunters appreciate between wildlife management and harvest; effort is required for both to flourish.
The Nevada Department of Wildlife (NDOW) wildlife biologists and conservation officers collaborate with countless organizations to keep populations sustainable and healthy. This is especially true in the Carson City U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) districts, which, according to the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Fund, is where the best desert bighorn sheep populations within the state thrive. More than 350 rams have been harvested by hunters in this area – and 83 hunters will get a chance at one this year.
While many sportsmen and sportswomen have worked alongside NDOW officials and other organizations like Nevada Bighorns Unlimited and Mineral County Sportsmen, volunteering time to help construct fences to keep wild herds divided from domestic sheep or helping improve or expand habitat, there is another way to help that can push federal dollars where they are needed.
There is a current call to action to push BLM to add an additional 200,000 acres in the Excelsior Range and the Gabbs Valley Ranges for desert bighorn sheep. If you are interested in voicing your support of including this additional acreage in the final Resource Management Plan for the area, please go HERE and let your voice be heard.