ON AN ADVENTURE

A bighorn sheep ram wanders past the Sanders County Fairgrounds and heads west near the Clark Fork River. Fish, Wildlife & Parks wildlife biologist Mike Ebinger said the mature male is likely a member of the St. Regis Cutoff Herd, which travels from the St. Regis area north toward Plains. Ebinger said bighorn sheep sometimes leave their core area on forays, and rams exhibit that behavior at a much higher frequency than ewes. He said that while forays themselves are not surprising, the time of year and location of this venture are interesting and long-term residents of the area called FWP to report the ram and the fact that they have never seen a ram in this area. The St. Regis Cutoff Herd is one of four herds in Sanders County. He said the largest is the Perma-Paradise Herd, which has 200-300 sheep. The Thompson Falls Herd and the Berray Mountain Herd (Bull River) are the smallest, with spring survey minimum counts of around 50 animals in each herd. The St. Regis Cut-off Herd had at least 70 sheep during the 2021 spring surveys. Ebinger said that the St. Regis Cut-off Herd (Hunting District 122) has been closed to hunting since 2015, but FWP is proposing to re-establish a hunting opportunity in the district this fall. FWP estimates there are 5,250 bighorn sheep in Montana.