Recent records of desert bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis mexicana) in eastern sonora and northwestern Chihuahua, Mexico

Abstract

The desert bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis mexicana) was extirpated from most of its range in northern Mexico and the southwestern United States by the 1980s. Several populations have been established through reintroductions in both countries, but none in the Chihuahua-Sonora border region, where we report here 3 recent records. These records suggest the possibility of reintroducing bighorn sheep in northwestern Chihuahua and northeastern Sonora to increase the long-term viability of the species in the region.