In troubling news for the state’s wildlife, The Wyoming Game and Fish Department is reporting a disease outbreak in the Devil’s Canyon bighorn sheep herd northeast of Lovell.
Corey Class, wildlife management coordinator for the Cody Region said that Since Oct. 14, Game and Fish has documented 37 bighorn sheep mortalities in the Devil’s Canyon herd, which is about 10 percent of the population. The majority of deaths have occurred in ewes and lambs.
Game and Fish was alerted of the die-off by a report from a landowner and a mortality signal from a GPS collared bighorn sheep in the herd.
A strain of a bacteria was detected in samples from the sheep known to cause lethal pneumonia. The source of the infection is unknown.
All bighorn sheep carcasses are being disposed of to decrease spread of the disease and biologists are monitoring the herd.
The Devil’s Canyon bighorn sheep herd (Hunt Area 12) is located in the northwest portion of the Bighorn Mountains. This population is estimated at 250-300 individuals.
