Harvest Management of Mountain Sheep in North America

Bighorn ( Ovis canadensis ) and thinhorn sheep ( Ovis dalli ) harvest management use different strategies to achieve localized and regional goals and objectives. After bighorns were extirpated from a large portion of their historical range, conservation-focused regulations and efforts eventually recovered bighorn populations to sustainable levels in many areas, thereby providing quality hunting opportunities. This recovery was a conservation success story, and for many years, conservative male-harvest regulations have been implemented by most jurisdictions. As managers face challenges associated with disease epizootics and habitat loss, however, it is incumbent upon resource professionals to develop innovative harvest strategies that improve our ability to manage and sustain mountain sheep into the future. Our objective is to review harvest strategies for mountain sheep in North America. The general-open-season harvest strategy, focusing on mature males, is a conservative approach that will likely continue, except where harvest pressure results in conservation concerns. As observed in some locales, the need to implement a draw-hunt has led to reductions in open-season hunt opportunities. Alternative harvest strategies will require more research on abiotic and biotic factors affecting productivity and recruitment. Public interests will continue to be researched and monitored to assist with allocation of hunting opportunity, and to assess approval of new regulatory actions. Because thinhorn population trajectories are primarily influenced by factors outside of management control (e.g., weather), focusing on the resilience of population dynamics in an uncertain future will assist with adaptive and innovative harvest management options.