Ovis canadensis

Description

The bighorn weighs 115 to 280 pounds (with an average of 198 pounds), and is 5 to 6½ feet long. Rams are larger than ewes.

The summer coat is dark brown, but the color fades somewhat in the winter. Both sexes have a white belly, rump patch, muzzle, and eye patch; the backs of the legs are also white.

Rams have massive horns that curve around the back of the head past the neck. Ewes also have horns, but they are much smaller and only slightly curved. The horns are divided into concentric rings, with each ring representing one year's growth.

Distribution and Habitat

Bighorn are found throughout the Rocky Mountains from southern Canada to the Mexico border. It inhabits alpine meadows, grassy mountain slopes, and foothill country, in proximity to rugged, rocky cliffs and bluffs. It requires drier slopes where annual snowfall is less than about sixty inches a year, and the vegetation must be sparse enough to allow for an unobstructed view. In lives at an elevation of 2,500 to 5,000 feet in the winter; at 6,000 to 8,500 feet in the summer.

Diet