DALL’S SHEEP

Dall’s sheep live in parts of the Yukon, Northwest Territories and the extreme northwestern corner of BC.

Clinging to sheer rock faces or sedately grazing at the tree line, thinhorn sheep are a true mammal of the mountains. There are two subspecies of thinhorn sheep, Dall’s sheep (Ovis dalli) and Stone’s sheep (Ovis dalli stonei), both of which are native to North America. Both subspecies live in the subarctic areas of Canada’s northwest, residing in close vicinity to rougher terrains for protection from predators. Dall’s sheep live in parts of the Yukon, Northwest Territories and the extreme northwestern corner of British Columbia. Stone’s sheep occur throughout northern British Columbia and the Yukon. Where the two ranges meet in southern Yukon and parts of British Columbia, interbreeding has resulted in the fannin sheep, which are classified as Stone’s sheep.

Dall’s sheep are pure white while Stone’s sheep are a darker slate color. Both subspecies have thick, curved horns that are yellowish in color. A ram’s horns may grow up to 122 cm from base to tip, while ewes never grow longer than 25 cm. The ram’s horns are roughly triangular in cross section and grow throughout life. The horns grow rapidly in the summer and slowly in the winter; this difference in this seasonal growth rate produces a ring, known as “annuli” that reveals the animal’s age.

The diet of a Dall’s sheep consists primarily of snow-covered grasses and sedges, but will also include newly sprouted willow and poplar leaves in the spring and early summer. When the first vegetation shows in the spring, Dall’s sheep will descend as low as 1200 meters to natural openings like stream sides, rock slides, grasslands, small avalanche tracks and burns. Thinhorn rams are much larger than ewes and will vary in weight from 100 to 240 lbs (45 to 110 kg).

Species to Hunt in BC

ROCKY MOUNTAIN BIGHORN SHEEP

In late summer and autumn, bighorn sheep have a brown coat with a contrasting ivory-white rump patch, a white muzzle and white trim on the

MOUNTAIN GOAT

Mountain goats have the thickest and longest pelage of any North American ungulate aside from the muskox. Despite its name a mountain goat (Oreamnos americanus)

CANADA MOOSE

Moose are herbivores that need to eat up to 20 kg of vegetation a day to fuel their nearly 10,000 calorie diets. In North America,

WHITE-TAILED DEER

White-tailed deer are tan or reddish-brown in the summer, and grayish-brown in the winter. The white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virignianus) is the most widely distributed of

NORTH AMERICAN BISON

Bison can weigh more than a ton and stand up to 2 meters tall. Bison (Bison bison), also known as buffalo, are very large animals

COUGAR (MOUNTAIN LION)

The cougar mainly preys on deer, but may also prey on bighorn sheep, mountain goats, elk, moose, beaver, porcupine, mice, rabbits and birds. Cougars (Felis

MOUNTAIN CARIBOU

Mountain caribou live in areas where the snow is too deep to dig through and eat the tree lichen of old forest growth for eight

CALIFORNIA BIGHORN SHEEP

The horns of a California bighorn have more of an outward flare than those of the Rocky Mountain bighorn. California bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis sierrae)

DALL’S SHEEP

Dall’s sheep live in parts of the Yukon, Northwest Territories and the extreme northwestern corner of BC. Clinging to sheer rock faces or sedately grazing

STONE SHEEP

The Stone sheep is somewhat larger and chunkier than the Dall’s sheep, with a larger and relatively wider skull, and heavier, darker-colored horns. A mature

SHIRAS MOOSE

This huge animal has very long legs, a large hump on its shoulders, and massive palmate antlers. The Shiras moose (Alces alces shirasi) has the

MULE DEER

Mule deer are brownish-gray in color, have a white rump patch, and a small white tail with a black tip. Mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) are

BLACK BEAR

Black bears can be distinguished from grizzlies by their facial profiles, shoulders, smaller size and shorter claws. Black bears (Ursus americanus) are the most widely

ROOSEVELT ELK

Roosevelt elk meat is leaner and higher in protein than both chicken and beef. Of the four subspecies of elk found in North America, two

BLACK-TAILED DEER

Black-tailed deer occur along the entire coast of British Columbia Black-tailed deer are a smaller subspecies of mule deer. Their coat is slightly darker in