Good news for desert’s bighorn sheep herds, once near extinction

There is little doubt that last year was a year to remember. Or perhaps forget.

While problems still abound, our national rhetoric now seems a shade lower than before. There is good news out there too, some little and some big, but these days you have to seek it out.

In this vein, I’m happy to report that our local bighorn sheep populations are holding their own.

Readers of this occasional column will recall that the Bighorn Institute of Palm Desert is our valley’s gatekeeper when it comes to monitoring the health and welfare of our woolly neighbors. There are three herds along the southern rim of the Coachella Valley, all of which were bordering on extinction just a few decades ago.

Thanks to 35 years of monitoring, captive breeding, careful science, and advocacy, all three herds are on the road to recovery. There are no guarantees, but it looks like we will continue to see this iconic species in our foothills for some years to come.

Recent surveys by the Institute indicate there are now 71 adult bighorn in the San Jacinto mountain range behind Palm Springs. The count includes a few more females (ewes) and males (rams), plus a half dozen cute little lambs having emerged during the spring breeding season.

Bighorn normally give birth during the spring, but at least one ewe saw fit to wait until recently to have her young. Three mortalities have also been recorded since April, a sobering but not atypical number. Still and all, this herd appears to be healthy and growing.