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A COMPILATION OF PAPERS PRESENTED AT THE 14TH ANNUAL MEETING, APRIL 7-1 1, 1970, AT BISHOP, CALIFORNIA. Edited by Jim Yoakum (Chairman, Charles Hansen, Norm Simmons, William Graf, Steve Logsdon and Ray Brechbi l l Copies available by writing the Desert Bighorn Council, 1500 N. Decatur Blvd., Las Vegas, Nevada 89108 Special Contributor: U. S. Public Health Service; southwestern Radiological Health Laboratory, B ioenvi ronmental Research Program, Las Vegas, Nevada TA;KE OF COIrTENI-S Page STATUS OF DESERT BIGHORN IN INYO MOUNTAINS . Vernon Burandt A PROGRESS REPORT ON BIGHORN HABITAT MANAGEMFNT IN THE SAN BERNARDINO NATIONAL FOREST . Jerome T. Light TONGUE COLOR IN DESERT BIGHORN . Charles (2. Hansen HELICOPTER OBSERVATIONS OF BIGHORN SHEEP ON THE SAN ANDRES NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE . John H. Kiger SUMMARY OF NECROPSY FINDINGS IN DESERT BIGHORN SHEEP . Jack B. Helvie and Donald D. Smith THE 1969 SHEEP TRAPPING AND TRANSPLANT PROGRAM IN NEVADA . Nick J. Papez and George K. Tsukamoto ON THE HOME RANGE FIDELITY OF BIGHORN RAMS . V. Geist NEVADA'S 1969 BIGHORN SHEEP HUNT . George Tsukamoto PROBLEM ANALYSIS OF HABITAT MANAGEMENT FOR DESERT BIGHORN SHEEP . Benny R. Albrechtsen and Jerry B. Reese BIGHORN HABITAT EVALUATION IN THE HIGHLAND RANGE OF SOUTHERN NEVADA . Gary J. Ferrier and W. Glen Bradley THE ROLE OF PUBLIC LANDS AND THE BLM IN BIGHORN HABITAT MANAGEMENT IN NEVADA . Lewis H. Mryers SCABIES IN DESERT BIGHORN SHEEP OF THE DESERT NATIONAL WILDLIFE RANGE . Jerome V. Decker HEMATOLOGY OF DES ERT BIGHORN SHEEP: A PRELIMINARY REPORT . W. Glen Bradley and Mohamed K. Yousef WHITEY THE UNIQUE BIGHORN . Lanny 0. Wilson SURVEY OF BIGHORN SHEEP IN CALIFORNU . Jerry L. Mensch STATUS OF BIGHORN SHEEP POPULATIONS AND HABITAT STUDIES ON THE INYO NATIONAL FOREST . David J. Dunaway RECENT SPRING WORK IN DEATH VALLEY NATIONAL MONUMENT . , . Paul A. Fodor USE OF DRUGS AS A CAPTURE TECHNIQUE FOR DESERT BIGHORN SHEEP . H. Steven Logsdon STATUS OF DESERT BIGHORN SHEEP AND RECEN? HABITAT DEVELOPMENTS IN UTAH . Mayo W. Call and Carl Mahon STATUS OF BIGHORN IN EiAJA CALIFORNIA . Jose R. Oliver and Jose S. Sanchez ARIZONA DESERT BIGHORN SHEEP STATUS REPORT . George W. Welsh WATER CONSUMPTION OF DESERT BIGHORN SHEEP . Jack C. Turner OFFICERS, COMMITTEES, MEETINGS, AWARDS . INSTRUCTIONS FOR CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE DESERT BIGHORN COUNCIL TRANSACTIONS . All drawings courtesy of PAT HANSEN DESERT BIGHORN COUNCIL 1970 TRANSACTIONS Vernon Burandt California Department of Fish & Game Lone Pine, California Abstract. Over a period of 15 years information on desert bighorn sheep in the Invo- Mountains was obtained while on routine patrol and reconnaissance. Evidence of bighorn remains were found in mining camp dumps. Bighorn tracks and beds were found distributed, generally, along the entire range with the greatest number in the southern part which appears to be the best habitat. Sightings were few with a preponderance of rams noted. Deer, elk, domestic cattle and burros inhabit parts of the Inyo Range. Some competition exists where ranges over lap. INTRODUCTI ON A population of desert bighorn sheep (0vis canadensis nelsoni) exists in the Inyo Mountains. Finding animals in this- inaccessible and rugged range is diificult. To date no study has been made of this population and little is known of their ecology and not enough information exists on which to base a realistic population estimate. Numerous excursions and backpacking trips were made into the Inyo range from 1954 to 1970. More time was devoted to the area south of New York Butte. Several extended backpacking trips along the Inyo crest to learn something about bighorn were made in 1956, 1959, 1962 and 1968. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Much valuable information was obtained from Mrs. Lona Burkhardt, Independence ranchwoman who for 7 years has had a cattle grazing allotment in the northern Inyos. Mrs. Mary DeDecker assisted in positive plant identification; miners, William Bonham and William Tonkin contributed valuable observations gathered over a period of 30 years; and Leland Loder, County of Inyo for the benefit of his observations in San Lucas Canyon; thanks to Richard L. Graham of Westminster, California and Ben Bonham of Lone Pine for their New York Butte information. To mining engineer Paul Skinner of Lone Pine who accompanied me on various trips, and to my backpacking friends who accompanied me, my sincere thanks. DESERT BIGHORN COUNCIL 1970 TRANSACTIONS METHODS Information for this paper was gathered from field notes and diaries compiled during 15 years of patrolling Inyo County in the capacity of a Fish and Game Warden and routine patrols of deer and sheep habitat, both in and out of seasons, consisting of checking complaints of violations, license checks, etc. At various times personnel of the Department of Fish ,and Game were accompanied on range reconnaissance and game censusing projects. Data presented here were obtained by personal observation and are not presented as a technical study. Other information is from dependable observers, who over the years have been found accurate and reliable, The Inyo Mountains are a typical fault-formed range, being the western-most of the range and basin type that extend eastward through Nevada. Basically this range is composed of old sedimentary material with granitic intrusion. Erosion has carved deep canyons along the entire range. This is characteristic of the rougher eastside. Geologically, this range arose in recent times. The Inyo Mountains are approximately 50 miles long and from 6 to 16 miles wide and range in elevation from 5,000 to 11,100 feet. Climate is variable over short distances, The lower elevations receive much less precipitation than the crest, where a snowpack may exist for a time and in wet years affect winter foraging of big game animals. The southern part of the Inyo range has one road crossing at Cerro Gordo that connects with San Lucas Canyon on the eastside. Several poorly kept dirt roads end at the southern base of New York Butte. A recently built mine road ends at the spring south of the Big Horn Mine. From New York Butte to a flat north of Seep Hole Springs exists a roadless area approximately 20 miles long. Here deer (Odocoileus hemionus) and sheep live in a wilderness condition, The northern Inyo range has numerous roads, one from Mazourka Canyon crosses Badger Flat and ends short of Waucoba Peak. The flatter area of the northern Inyos have a number of wood roads. The Eureka Valley road crosses the Inyos out of Big Pine as does the Westgard Pass road which is commonly accepted as the division of the Inyo and White Mountains. Historv The ancient Indian Petroglyphs certainly are a sign that man has been interested in bighorns for a long time. If there were a link with the past some very interesting things might be learned. Petroglyphs are found at many springs in the Inyo Mountains eastside and on the low mesa west of Saline Lake. DESERT BIGHORN COUNCIL 1970 TRANSACTIONS Some thoughtless individuals have removed some of this ancient art, also road bui lding activities around Saline Lake have destroyed the sheep petroglypfis , If someday petroglyphs can be deciphered, it would be of value to have these ancient recordings that are now forever lost, Early day mining activities had several detrimental effects on bighorn sheep. First the need for great amounts of water necessitated the placing of operations near water supplies or piping the water, sometimes, from great distances. Just such an operation was Cemo Gordo, in the Southern Inyos in the late 1870's. Records say that there were 2,000 people at this encampment and that water was piped from Miller's, Cemo Gordo, and Mexican Springs, Early day prospectors and mountain men also killed sheep for food at every opportunity. The impact of this operation on bighorn and its habitat must have made an immediate and drastic reduction in the sheep populations, There is little documentary evidence of what happened nearly 100 years ago. However, by examining the middens of some of these old camps, bighorn remains can be found, Generally, the larger and heavier horn sheath of rams are found. This doesn't mean that ewes and lambs were not utilized but that they decomposed more rapidly. At an unnamed spring on the westside of New York Butte the writer found an interesting mining camp in April 1964, There were two arastras, an animal powered ore crushing device, at this water supply. Willow growth had almost completely concealed the old operation. In scratching through the mine dump the horn sheaths of 6 good-sized rams were found, A pepper sauce bottle with an 1878 date was found at this site and other artifacts, hence a conclusion as to the time of this operation, Bighorn remains have been found at Mexican and Cerro Gordo Springs, And bottle diggers find sheep remains in Cerro Gordo dumps, At Burgess, on New York Butte, old sheep remains together with some that appear of recent origin have been found. On a backpacking trip in 1956 same sheep horns were found in the scrap piles of Cove Springs and the mining site of Beverage. The charcoal operation that supported the Cerro Gordo smelter was widespread. Every timbered canyon had campsites where charcoal was made. The midden piles of these dry camps contain sawed up bones of all types of domestic animals including horses, It's quite certain if a bighorn were ever found around one of these encampments he would shortly be reduced to camp meat, DESERT BIGHORN COUNCIL 1970 TRANSACTIONS Distribution of bighorn appears to extend along the entire range with the greatest number being found fiom Cerro Gordo Spring to Barrel Spring. From Barrel Spring north to Westgard Pass there is little sign and only rare sightings recorded.