The Madison Transplant
Year Completed: 2015 | Project Cost: NA
Project Summary
The Taylor-Hilgard bighorn sheep herd continues to receive increased survey attention through statewide research with Montana State University (MSU) and a management transplant. This report is an amalgamation of data from radio-collars, a helicopter flight, and ground surveys.
Until the 2015 transplant, the winter ranges of bighorn in HD 302 were generally limited to Moose/Sun Creeks and Quake Lake/Slide Inn. Prior collar data from 2012-2014 suggested that bighorn rarely extended their summer range north of Expedition Pass. The January 2015 and February 2016 transplants moved 52 and 22 bighorn (respectively) into Wolf Creek, and we have noted subsequent extensions and explorations in summer and winter range. The sheep transplanted to Wolf Creek have now semi-established in Indian Creek, Wolf Creek, and Bad Luck Creek, though their distribution is still new and is constantly evolving.
We applied 10 new “Lifecycle” satellite GPS collars to ewes in 2015, and “recycled” 6 of these collars to new ewes in 2016. These collars transmit location data to a server approximately daily via satellite. Also in 2016, we placed rectangular orange hang-tags in the transplanted bighorns’ ears. These tags will help us evaluate how many non-collared bighorn returned to the Quake Lake site over the next few years.
