In the spring of last year, The Sopris Sun published a report on the herd of bighorn sheep at Avalanche Creek. At the time, The Sun reported that the bighorn herd was in a precarious position due to a disease contracted from local domestic sheep, and Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) was considering different strategies to keep the bighorn population stable. Recently, The Sun contacted local wildlife officials and ranchers to obtain an Avalanche Creek bighorn status update and to see how the herd is faring.
2024 report
The Sun’s April 2024 coverage came in the wake of a presentation given to the Crystal River Caucus by District Wildlife Manager John Groves, in which Groves described the health condition of the bighorns and other local species.
According to Groves, the local bighorns — approximately 50-head at the time, compared to roughly 250 historically — were experiencing low lambing survival rates due to the proliferation of a bacterial pneumonia complex contracted through contact with domestic sheep.
The difficulty with managing the pneumonia complex is that, in most cases, fully grown sheep can remain healthy if infected. However, they will remain invisible carriers of the disease and, come springtime when ewes begin lambing, newborn lambs can contract and succumb to it.
In 2024, Groves mentioned the possibility of a “test and remove” or “test and cull” procedure. In this scenario, the bighorns would be caught, tested and carriers would be euthanized. Another potential strategy would be transplantation — bringing healthy bighorns from elsewhere to the area — which is a common practice in preserving and maintaining bighorn sheep herds across the United States.
Disease remains a threat
This spring, The Sun got in touch with CPW’s Northwest Region terrestrial biologist. Presently, the count of Avalanche Creek bighorns is about 40 to 50. While lambing rates are “low but not nonexistent,” the herd’s population is described as “relatively stable” — having not significantly changed since last year’s report.
After some consideration, CPW has opted not to employ the test and remove strategy because the risk of re-exposure to domestic sheep would still be a factor. Due to the social nature of bighorn sheep, just one infected bighorn can rapidly spread the disease to the rest of the herd.
Additionally, capturing and testing bighorns — infected or not — can place undue stress on the animals. This also means that accurate figures for transmission rates among the herd are not available, as CPW has only tested dead bighorns it has discovered.
Transplantation was also deemed impractical, as foreign sheep would likely become infected as well.
Therefore, the primary risk factor is continued interaction with domestic sheep. So long as contact is a possibility, neither test and remove nor transplantation strategies are deemed effective.
Domestic sheep mingling
The Sun’s 2024 report stated that domestic sheep had been removed from the area. However, as some citizens correctly pointed out on Facebook, there are still domestic sheep around the Crystal River habitat, including at the Avalanche Ranch Cabins and Hot Springs resort. So what gives?
Specifically speaking, by 2024, some but not all domestic sheep had been removed from areas where they would be liable to interact with wild bighorns. This is the case around Marble, where the Forest Service rescinded and no longer issues domestic sheep grazing permits for this very reason. By way of those historic grazing permits, domestic sheep were once able to intermingle directly with bighorns on public lands — the latter’s home turf.
More recently, CPW has been working with Avalanche Ranch to remove its domestic herd, deeming the sheep too dangerous to the local bighorns.
Molly Jacober owns and operates Avalanche Ranch along with her husband, Tai, who was appointed to the CPW commission in August of last year. Molly spoke with The Sun, stating that she has been working with CPW for the good of the bighorns. Avalanche Ranch won’t be breeding its flock again and sometime after lambing season will likely sell its whole herd.
However, exposure can continue to be a threat. According to CPW, at least one trail camera has captured an instance of a stray domestic sheep roaming the Crystal River area.
CPW urges citizens to report any instances of interaction between bighorns and domestic sheep and goats. Prompt reporting allows CPW to act quickly and prevent the spread of disease, keeping our bighorns as safe as possible.