Desert Habitat

March 12, 2002

Bighorn Sheep
Ovis canadensis

Description: The bighorn is a thick-necked sheep with a creamy white rump. Rams weigh between 125 - 315 pound and stand 3 to 3 ½ feet high at the shoulder. Females are smaller than the rams, between 74 - 200 pounds and 2 ½ to 3 feet at the shoulder. Males support massive coiled horns that spiral back, out and then forward, forming a full curl. Females have shorter, thinner horns.

Diet: often eats grasses, but diet also includes significant amounts of shrubs and forbs.

Reproduction: Female usually produces one offspring. Gestation lasts about 180 days. Young are weaned in 4 to 6 months. Habitat may affect reproductive success. Males engage in serious butting contests in the fall. The sounds of crashing heads can be heard over a mile away.

Interesting and Unique: In the desert Bighorn can survive 10 or more days in summer without drinking. A Bighorn's hooves are well adapted to climbing on rock ledges and cliffs. They have a very hard outer layer with a straight outer edge, with a softer, almost rubbery inner section.