BIOLOGIST’S CORNER by Kevin Hurley Vice President for Conservation
TEST AND REMOVE: WHAT’S THAT ALL ABOUT?
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ike many disciplines, professional wildlife biologists rely heavily on published literature, advice and counsel from their peers, and their own curiosity, inquiries, and experiences. Wild sheep managers fall into this category and learn much from their colleagues, as each jurisdiction deals with its own unique, but sometimes shared, wild sheep management challenges. Over the past four-plus decades, I’ve tried to stay current on research findings, technical reports, published manuscripts, project summaries and other summary documents, as wild sheep researchers, managers and advocates strive to “Put and Keep Wild Sheep on the Mountain®.” Anymore, it’s a luxury to find time to read scientific journals, trying to glean some pearls of wisdom from so many talented wildlife professionals. But, it is an important component of this profession. In the wake of our January 2022 Sheep Show® in Reno, many state, provincial, territorial and tribal/First Nation wildlife departments captured and sampled hundreds of wild sheep during winter 2021-2022, with particular focus on capturing and testing animals for the troublesome respiratory pathogens that continue to plague wild sheep populations, across the West. Based largely on work pioneered in Hell’s Canyon along the Idaho/ Oregon/Washington borders over the past several years, then replicated in Custer State Park in western
20 WILD S HEEP® ~ SPRING 2022
South Dakota and other locations, wild sheep managers, university researchers, wildlife veterinarians and wild sheep volunteer conservationists continue to investigate different options, to identify, then hopefully reduce or eliminate Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae (Movi) from infected bighorn sheep herds. A June 2021 daylong ZOOM workshop attended by nearly 200 interested persons facilitated information and data sharing from case studies in several jurisdictions that had repeatedly captured and sampled individual wild sheep with known markings (e.g., radiocollars, eartags), and that had an established pathogen profile from prior capture work. Based on what is known, what has been published, and what has been shared in the wild sheep community, there seems to be growing consensus that intentional removal of chronically-Movi-infected wild sheep from various bighorn sub-herds has led to an apparent “bump” in survival and recruitment of young lambs. Like many other things, time will tell if that boost in lamb survival is ephemeral, or can be sustained over multiple years. Great investigative, hands-on work is being conducted along the Fraser River in southern British Columbia, where a multi-year effort is sampling hundreds of bighorn sheep. In the tri-state region of Oregon, Idaho, and Washington, more than 250 bighorns have been captured/sampled
this winter across a wide geographic span, from the lower Salmon River, to at least five herds in Oregon, and additional herds in central Washington. Project results are being analyzed, shared and published, as wildlife veterinarians, academic researchers and state, provincial and tribal/First Nation managers try to expand their collective tool-box, all in an effort to enhance wild sheep herd health. It may sound harsh to some, but removal of a few chronically-infected animals may very well improve overall herd health in struggling bighorn populations. Thanks to all the wildlife professionals taking part in these studies and thanks to all the wild sheep conservation organizations that are helping sponsor this work! Speaking of wildlife professionals, I want to take this opportunity to acknowledge, congratulate and thank three of our WSF award recipients during Sheep Show® 2022. Recognizing their career accomplishments to date, Dr. Frances Cassirer of Idaho Department of Fish & Game was presented the “State Statesman Award”, Dr. Mary VanderKop of the Yukon Territory received the “Federal Statesman Award”, and Dr. Helen Schwantje of British Columbia was inducted into the WSF Wild Sheep Biologist’s Wall of Fame. Congrats to these three outstanding wildlife professionals! WS
