Alaska Should Transplant Sheep Again?

[Kisaralik]

Long time lurker, and maybe it’s my winter boredom that's initiating this post.

I grew up in bighorn sheep country and watched state agencies establish sheep herds in various areas via relocation. Then I moved full time to AK as statewide sheep began to decline. There’s a lot of doom to listen too, and lots of directions to point fingers, but is there any conversation happening at ADFG or WSF about proactively establishing new sheep areas?

While ADFG attempted sheep transplants on Kodiak in the 1960’s, it failed likely due to coastal winter snowpack. It seems to me that this concept, at least for sheep, was prematurely abandoned. Maybe more suitable mountain ranges should be considered to increase sheep hunting opportunities for the future? (https://www.adfg.alaska.gov/static/...ife/research_pdfs/game_transplants_alaska.pdf)

For example, the Togiak National Wildlife Refuge/Wood Tikchik State Park is void of sheep. In my opinion, this seems like a waste of prime sheep habitat. The mountains are far from the coast so the snow pack can’t be worse than anywhere else in the state.

Yes, I can understand the argument that transplanting sheep from declined populations would not help immediate recovery. However, I’d argue on the statewide spectrum it would be beneficial to diversify opportunities for the longterm. Seems that carrying capacity is diminishing in the Chugach from the creeping alder line and mycoplasma ovipneumonia is showing up in some zones too.

 

[wildwilderness]

I would be all for it. Ideal spot would be to take sheep from the National Parks that can't be hunted anyway. Other option that will never happen would be to raise a stocking herd like Sonora Mexico does for Desert BH that has been very successful.



Part of the declining population problem might be there are too few sheep left in a range to come back. There may be a minimum population density necessary to actually have successful lamb recruitment. Otherwise too few ewes get bred, or are able to overcome the focused predation on the few remaining sheep. Who knows, but what we do know there is a problem.

If the only talk is to restrict hunting (which only affects supposedly excess rams) Then nothing will really help the herds.

The main issue is, that they always use as an excuse is the weather. Then they say there is nothing they can do about it. Of course you can't change the weather but there are thing you can do to mitigate the consequences of a weather event, an not hope it recovers by itself in 10+ years! Look at the West Brooks range, how many decades since it had a viable population to hunt?

 

[WalterH]

Lack of suitable habitat is not the problem. Lack of animals is.

Many thousands of square miles of ideal and historic sheep habitat is currently inhabited by few remaining, or in some cases, no sheep. In theory, the animals that remain are occupying the best habitat and have less competition for food and survival than in years past.

Taking animals from already diminished populations and spreading them thinner in unfamiliar places that they haven't grown up exposed to seems counterproductive given the current state of the population. If Alaska had one highly productive sheep zone that wasn't currently suffering significant decline to pull from, transplanting could make sense, but that is not the case.

Now if someone wants to grab up a few conex loads of sheep from the Yukon or NWT and cut them loose up here, we might be onto something.

 

[GoatBoat218]

The way it's been explained to me is that WSF is willing to do or fund about anything to help recover sheep populations in the state. The problem is that it's not up to WSF, it's up to ADFG to come up with the plan. WSF can not come up with a plan for ADFG to use to help sheep due so some state regulations apparently.

I am not a biologist but I can think of many things the state could be doing to help sheep populations and none of them are new.

Just take a look at what they've been doing for all the other species of sheep in other parts of North America.

They are putting out minerals for stone sheep and it's great for ewe and lamp survival which is more important for populations.
They are relocating bighorns all over the lower 48 to grow numbers. Nebraska, Washington, North Dakota, and more.

WSF has been dumping money into bighorns, stones, and deserts with success. It's not that they don't care about dall sheep it's just that the state isn't coming up with anything to fund.

Seems like ADFG is way behind the times for sheep conservation and the they can't seem to get out of their own way. The knowledgeable people don't want to work there anymore because they're restricted and the pay sucks. Too much politics, regulation, and oversight is what I'd guess.

I haven't been around as long as many others have but it seems to me like some sheep areas in the state are too far gone for natural hunt able recovery in the next 5 to 10 years. I think the best thing we can do is supply minerals to help lamb recruitment and start building a healthy population to eventually transplant sheep from to areas where they will soon be near nonexistent as hard as it is to say.

 

[Kisaralik]

Ideal spot would be to take sheep from the National Parks that can't be hunted anyway.

Haha exactly. Lake Clark isn't far from the Togiak nwr. Or better yet, transplant the stone sheep that step across the border into gmu 1 since we can't hunt that unit anyways - talk about an economic incentive for the state! haha

If Alaska had one highly productive sheep zone that wasn't currently suffering significant decline to pull from, transplanting could make sense, but that is not the case.

Yes, it seems that statewide we're experiencing a net-negative decline in sheep numbers. Most ranges are predominantly down, but if you look at some recent aerial surveys a few count areas are actually up from previous decades. Point being, it's not all bad.

Seeding a handful of sheep from some areas to grow and hopefully establish a new population would hardly be noticeable on a macro scale. My theory is that by having a wider sheep distribution the likelihood of having statewide sheep growth is increassed. Wider distribution, less chance of widespread winter kill - especially when adding isolated mountain ranges into the mix.

 

[MountainBoat]

They are putting out minerals for stone sheep and it's great for ewe and lamp survival which is more important for populations.
They are relocating bighorns all over the lower 48 to grow numbers. Nebraska, Washington, North Dakota, and more.

This is really interesting. Providing mineral licks seems like a very low risk intervention.

The current situation with dall sheep has absolutely nothing in common with the overhunting and destruction of habitat that lead to the extermination of bighorn sheep. It's a nice thought though.

 

[MountainBoat]

Seems that carrying capacity is diminishing in the Chugach from the creeping alder line and mycoplasma ovipneumonia is showing up in some zones too.

I can't find any information about pneumonia being present in Chugach sheep, can you send me the source for this?

 

[GoatBoat218]

This is really interesting. Providing mineral licks seems like a very low risk intervention.

The current situation with dall sheep has absolutely nothing in common with the overhunting and destruction of habitat that lead to the extermination of bighorn sheep. It's a nice thought though.

I feel like supplying mineral to sheep struggling in the winter is one of the few ways we could actually make a difference. You could argue that it would concentrate sheep so they'd be more susceptible to predation and disease but doing nothing obviously isn't working either.

I agree its not apples to apples with bighorns and dall sheep. I'm just saying if the population did get whiped out in an area there's hope it could be repopulated. That's if we had a population of sheep to transplant from.

 

[alexanderg23]

Drop minerals and blast wolves, coyotes and eagles. Or just let us do it.

 

[Redmammut]

Long time lurker here as well.

At this point, any idea is a good idea. The department would quibble about the cost of relocation (WC is flush with money), and also the logic...."What good is relocating animals to a range where they are already habitat limited?" And if sheep were relocated from federal lands, I can't imagine the pile of paperwork that would take.

From the BOG meetings and online sheep lectures I listen too, I gather that the Department's attitude is just "Thou shalt not questions Full curl management-- sheep will bounce back."

Not every mountain range (nor mountain) is created equal with regards to habitat. So we do need more range specific research. And a lot of the ideas on this thread fall under Intensive Management (dietary supplements, and predator reduction), but my understanding is sheep aren't an IM species. That should change.

 

[MountainBoat]

Not every mountain range (nor mountain) is created equal with regards to habitat. So we do need more range specific research. And a lot of the ideas on this thread fall under Intensive Management (dietary supplements, and predator reduction), but my understanding is sheep aren't an IM species. That should change.

You sound like you're educated in this area. What are the different tiers of management that game are managed under, and what point do you think dall sheep would be escalated to intensive management? I'm also curious what range specific information we would be looking for if you could elaborate on that.

 

[Hausser]

The state of Alaska cannot manage the fish or wildlife. Alaska has failed to maintain fish populations around the state, they have failed to maintain the Nelchina Caribou population and failed on the porcupine heard.

 

[Jason Snyder]

What physiological issues require the mineral supplements?

 

[Kisaralik]

I can't find any information about pneumonia being present in Chugach sheep, can you send me the source for this?

Sorry for confusion & I can't PM yet. I believe the disease has been found in Talkeetna's in sheep and Kenai's in goats. It's just a matter of time before it has an 'outbreak'. And with consideration of other new climate factors on some populations too...

 

[ColeyG]

Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae in Alaska's Domestic Sheep and Goats

Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae in Alaska's Domestic Sheep and Goats

dec.alaska.gov

Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae (M. ovi) in Alaska Wildlife: Answers to Frequently Asked Questions, Alaska Department of Fish and Game

Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae (M. ovi) in Alaska Wildlife: Answers to Frequently Asked Questions

www.adfg.alaska.gov

 

[Kisaralik]

At this point, any idea is a good idea. The department would quibble about the cost of relocation (WC is flush with money), and also the logic...."What good is relocating animals to a range where they are already habitat limited?" And if sheep were relocated from federal lands, I can't imagine the pile of paperwork that would take.

Oh I'm sure they'd squabble. But as mentioned, many other states have found the funds and it honestly wouldn't be hard to get WSF donors behind it with the money that's in sheep hunting.

Key would be to relocate state land to state land or fed land to fed land (like Lake Clark NP to Togiak NWR). I'm sure all us hunters would prefer to give the feds as little oversight as possible though...

 

[Kisaralik]

"Best time to plant a tree (or transplant sheep) was 20 years ago. The second best time is now." - George Washington, probably.

The state of Alaska cannot manage the fish or wildlife. Alaska has failed to maintain fish populations around the state, they have failed to maintain the Nelchina Caribou population and failed on the porcupine heard.

It's extremely easy to get this view based on Alaska's management history - and it's not incorrect. If ADFG is anything, they're absolutely not proactive.

Listen to the Tundra Talk ep #159 with Wayne Heimer if you haven't. It was eye opening on a lot of factors.

He talks about how the commissioner is the actual decisive manager for wildlife and supposedly follows the enabled statutes "to maintain, enhance, EXPAND and protect the natural wildlife resources of the state..."

The concept of transplanting/seeding sheep to the sheepless areas might be a very literal interpretation of the 'expand', but it would be great to see the dept actually do something proactive for once. And creating new sheep/guide areas adds a longterm economic incentive to remote communities.

I'll leave ya'll too your mineral lick talk. But first, check out this google image of the beautiful and sheepless Wood River Mountains near Tikchik that I fly over every summer... seems like it needs some white critters.

 

[MountainBoat]

The state of Alaska cannot manage the fish or wildlife. Alaska has failed to maintain fish populations around the state, they have failed to maintain the Nelchina Caribou population and failed on the porcupine heard.

Salmon management isn't perfect but it's an extremely complicated issue with tons of competing financial interest and undercutting regulations by other countries, not to mention the effects of climate change. Caribou populations boom and bust beyond our management abilities. What do you propose we do about it?

 

[MountainBoat]

"Best time to plant a tree (or transplant sheep) was 20 years ago. The second best time is now." - George Washington, probably.


It's extremely easy to get this view based on Alaska's management history - and it's not incorrect. If ADFG is anything, they're absolutely not proactive.

Listen to the Tundra Talk ep #159 with Wayne Heimer if you haven't. It was eye opening on a lot of factors.

He talks about how the commissioner is the actual decisive manager for wildlife and supposedly follows the enabled statutes "to maintain, enhance, EXPAND and protect the natural wildlife resources of the state..."

The concept of transplanting/seeding sheep to the sheepless areas might be a very literal interpretation of the 'expand', but it would be great to see the dept actually do something proactive for once. And creating new sheep/guide areas adds a longterm economic incentive to remote communities.

I'll leave ya'll too your mineral lick talk. But first, check out this google image of the beautiful and sheepless Wood River Mountains near Tikchik that I fly over every summer... seems like it needs some white critters.

View attachment 683613

I see what you mean now. That looks like some dreamy sheep country

 

[Billy Goat]

What physiological issues require the mineral supplements?

Selenium is important in tissue building and repair.

Many areas are Selenium deficient, but I don't know how that plays into wild sheep populations.