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50 °F 5 Day Forecast Friday, December 5, 2003 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | eSouthernOregon | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find a Rental Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Email Story to a Friend November 6, 2003 Sheep plan open for public comment Outdoor Journal By MARK FREEMAN Mail Tribune Oregon would continue transplanting bighorn sheep into historic habitat safe from disease under a draft plan meant to guide management of those animals into the next decade. The draft management plan calls for continued separation of California and Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep herds but also increases the number of times people can hunt sheep in their lifetime. The draft also include the option of creating separate ewe hunts when population levels dictate them. These and several other objectives are outlined in the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife’s draft plan for bighorn sheep and Rocky Mountain goat management. Current law allows hunters to draw one sheep tag in a lifetime. Changing the law to allow hunters to draw one ram tag and one ewe tag in a lifetime will help give some flexibility in how biologists might expand the use of hunting in herd management, biologist Don Whittaker says. Advertisement Whittaker, who manages the sheep and goat programs, says his agency has never issued a ewe tag and has no immediate plans to do so. "Theoretically, way down the road, there may be the potential for ewe hunts to be a population-control measure," Whittaker says. Studies show that disease outbreaks "become extremely problematic" when herd densities are high, so ewe hunts could become an option like cow elk or antlerless deer hunts help control deer and elk population. "It’s long-term planning," Whittaker says. The agency is taking public comment on the draft plan through Nov. 17. The Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission is scheduled to consider adopting the plan at its Dec. 12 meeting. The entire draft plan, as well as an executive summary, can be viewed at www.dfw.state.or.us on the Web. The ODFW’s management of Oregon’s sheep and goat herds is designed around the goal of getting these native but once extirpated species into most of their historic eastern Oregon habitat. Bighorn sheep disappeared from eastern Oregon in the 1940s, largely from fatal diseases picked up while intermingling with domesticated sheep. Seeded with animals transplanted from other states and Canada, Oregon sports about 3,700 California bighorns in 32 herds and an estimated 637 Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep in 12 distinct herds, according to the draft. The herds still cover a small percentage of their historic range, the draft states. Rocky Mountain goats are considered one of Oregon’s least recognized animals, mainly because they inhabit extremely rough and remote terrain. Gone before European settlers but chronicled in petroglyphs, goats now number about 400 split among three main herds. Reach reporter Mark Freeman at 776-4470, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2003 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback 3 WEEKS FREE! ADVERTISERS SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Real Estate Showcase Food for Thought Hike of the Week Wellness Connection Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Openings Prime Times