General Information: Desert Bighorn Sheep (Ovis canadensis) are large sheep of desert mountains with a tan coat and white rump. Adult males are recognized by their large, curled horns. Females and young males have smaller, straighter horns. Adult males weigh about 140–180 pounds, while females are somewhat smaller, weighing about 90–150 pounds. They stand about 2-1/2 to 3-1/4 feet at shoulder.

Taxonomy: Order: Artiodactyla (Even-toed Hoofed Mammals); Family: Bovidae (cows, sheep, goats, and similar mammals).

Breeding: Males and females gather to breed in the fall (November, December). Males leave the females and young to form separate bachelor herds during the summer. Males fight by bashing heads. Females breed at age 2-1/2 years.

Diet: Vegetation; browse on shrubs, grasses, and forbs.

Range: Southern Rocky Mountains in Canada south into Mexico throughout mountainous regions from California to Wyoming.

Where to Find: Bighorn are fairly common in the mountains around Las Vegas. Good places to look for them include the cliffs around Willow Springs Picnic Area at Red Rock Canyon NCA, crags along Highway 172 (Hoover Dam Access Road) near Hoover Dam, and Hemenway Park in Boulder City.

Comments:

Bighorn scat in the Arrow Canyon Range. These scats are not fresh; fresh scat would be blacker, shiny, and smoother on the surface. This pile is fairly large, most piles are smaller.

Bighorn scat is oblong and about 1/2-inch long. They are similar to Mule Deer pellets, but a bit larger, and rabbit pellets are smaller and round.