Bighorn Sheep in Hells Canyon:
Historical Background and the Hells Canyon Bighorn Sheep Restoration Project

by Tim Schommer

Originally published in the summer 2002 issue of Wild Sheep Magazine, the official publication of the Foundation for North American Wild Sheep.

Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep were native in much of the mountain and canyon country, which currently comprises northeast Oregon and western Idaho. Historical accounts indicate that bighorns were numerous in and around Hells Canyon, main Salmon River, and the Wallowa Mountains. The Nez Perce Tribe has written that bighorns were the most plentiful large animal in the big river canyons of northeastern Oregon and west Idaho prior to European settlement.

The archeological records in Hells Canyon shows that the Nez Perce people had an extended and extensive history of using bighorn sheep. We know they constructed stone corrals for the capture and containment of bighorns and stone blinds for hunting. They used the animals for their meat, hides for warmth, and the horns for spoons (ewes) and bow making (rams). Most petroglyphs and pictographs in Hells Canyon depict scenes of hunters and bighorn sheep. Bighorn sheep were a significant ungulate food item as well as of great cultural value to the Nez Perce Tribe in Hells Canyon.

As European people settled the west, many of the activities either directly or indirectly had a negative impact on native bighorn sheep populations. In Hells Canyon, settlers quickly claimed every flat area with good soil, especially near the water. They brought with them flocks of cattle, horses, and domestic sheep. The flat areas were irrigated and turned into hay fields, while large gardens and orchards were adjacent to their homes.

Domestic herds grazed most of the year on adjacent “Unclaimed Lands” (now mostly public lands). The mild climate in Hells Canyon usually provided year-round grazing. Most homesteaders greatly increased the size of their flocks to take advantage of free grazing and increase revenue. Grazing soon became out of control and severely damaged soil, vegetation, and water quality. One settler wrote in 1901 that if he was not the first one to get to the grass after the snowmelt, they got none there the rest of the year (Langston, 1995). Range wars were common, especially between cattle and sheep producers. By the turn of the century, the situation demanded desperate measures. In 1905, Teddy Roosevelt convinced Congress to establish the National Forest Reserves. The main purpose of the reserves was to stop uncontrolled grazing and timber harvest, and improve and sustain quality soil and water conditions. Also in 1905, the Wallowa Cheifton reported there were over 300,000 domestic sheep in Wallowa County (northeast Oregon), most of which grazed on National Forest.

Slide#4 The main purpose of the reserves was to stop uncontrolled grazing and timber harvest, and improve and sustain quality soil and water conditions. Few people today realize how extensive domestic sheep overgrazing once occurred on our public lands. There were cattle and domestic sheep allotments on every acre of Hells Canyon, except the few extremely steep areas. For comparison, in 1911 there were 870,000 animal unit months grazing on the Wallows-Whitman National Forest, today thee are 110,000 (Schommer, 1991).

Unregulated hunting, competition for forage with domestic livestock, and parasites and diseases introduced by domestic livestock were all factors which lead to the elimination of bighorns in Hells Canyon. Today, research has shown that pneumonia caused by a biotype of bacteria called Pasteurella, which is transmitted from domestic sheep to bighorns, was the principal reason for the disappearance of bighorns in Hells Canyon and throughout most of the western United States (Martin et. al., 1996).

In the period of 1920 to 1945, the era of wildlife conservation began. Intensive farming continued, but numbers of livestock steadily declined as grazing systems were implemented on public land and sheep markets declined. Advances in irrigation systems on private land improved vegetation for ungulates. Rules and regulations concerning hunting gained acceptance by locals. Law enforcement began to be more prevalent. A poison called 1080, which was designed to kill most predators, was widely distributed in Hells Canyon. Wildlife such as deer and elk flourished under these conditions. Bighorns however, never recovered, primarily due to diseases from domestic sheep.

By the mid 1960's, the demand for lamb and wool had greatly declined. Retaining herders for domestic sheep allotments was difficult. Profits decreased as operating costs increased. By 1965, only about 28,000 domestic sheep remained in Hells Canyon.

Reintroduction of bighorn sheep to Hells Canyon

Beginning in the 1970's, the reintroduction of bighorn sheep to Hells Canyon began by visionary biologists Vic Coggins and Lloyd Oldenburg. Some of these reintroductions flourished, while others failed. At this time, we did not know about the potential for disease transmission between domestic and bighorn sheep. In the very hard winter of 1983/1984, both domestic and bighorn sheep were concentrated along the Snake River. The two species were seen mixing at Sand Creek on the Oregon side and Sheep Creek in Idaho. Both herds of bighorns experienced a massive all age die off. This was when we realized we now had a very serious problem with domestic sheep.
Dr. Bill Foreyt at Washington State University began co pasturing trials, which combined several different species of domestic and wild animals with bighorn sheep. After 10 years of these trials, it was concluded that every time domestic and bighorn sheep experienced nose to nose contact, almost all of the bighorns died from pasteurella pneumonia in a short period of time. This incompatibility between the two species has lead to major bighorn die offs in every western state containing bighorns (Marten et. al., 1996).

Bighorn reintroductions continued in the 1980's in Hells Canyon. Biologists attempted to maintain large buffers between the two species. However, they were not always were successful, and a few die offs continued. Simultaneously, domestic sheep allotments were continuing to decline. By 1990, only three allotments remained; Temperance Creek and Mudd Duck on the Oregon side and Sheep Creek in Idaho.
The Hells Canyon National Recreation Area (HCNRA) Act was enacted in 1975. This was basically approved to stop Hells Canyon from being completely replace by dams. The legislation from the act, however, said that grazing and timber harvest could continue as long as these activities were compatible with the objectives of the Act. Wildlife was one of those principal objectives. In 1993, the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest made a decision to terminate the last of the domestic sheep allotments. This was based primarily on the incompatibility of the HCNRA Act. After a long 9th circuit court case in Portland, the National Forest was upheld in 1994. This led to the removal of the last domestic sheep allotments.

Since these allotments were in the heart of Hells Canyon, it opened up a tremendous amount of area for reintroductions of bighorn sheep. This set the stage for the 10 year, multi-agency, Hells Canyon Initiative. It’s primary objective is to restore bighorn sheep to self-sustaining population levels. The restoration plan outlines four areas of work: Transplants, Monitoring of movements and survival, Habitat Improvement and Acquisitions, and Disease Research. We have a goal of reaching 2000 bighorns by 2007. Our work will continue.

• Bighorn Sheep in Hells Canyon