Bighorn sheep hunt on Antelope Island
kinzysdad
4/24/09 9:01am
ANTELOPE ISLAND, Utah (AP) -- Utah State Parks and Recreation officials are considering a proposal to allow the limited hunting of bighorn sheep on Antelope Island.
Jim Karpowitz, director of the Division of Wildlife Resources, says allowing the hunting of four or five older rams a year would help to thin the island's herd, which has reached 160.
Karpowitz said Thursday that overpopulation can make wildlife more susceptible to disease.
Nearly 40 bighorn sheep were introduced to the island that lies in the Great Salt Lake in 1998. The herd grew and 160 sheep were transplanted to other parks.
Karpowitz says issuing hunting permits for four rams would generate about $150,000 a year for the park.
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Information from: Standard-Examiner
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=6257983
IMO, I think this is great for the state. Unless I win the powerball I'll never be able to afford the tag. Great revenue for the DWR non the less.
Jim Karpowitz, director of the Division of Wildlife Resources, says allowing the hunting of four or five older rams a year would help to thin the island's herd, which has reached 160.
Karpowitz said Thursday that overpopulation can make wildlife more susceptible to disease.
Nearly 40 bighorn sheep were introduced to the island that lies in the Great Salt Lake in 1998. The herd grew and 160 sheep were transplanted to other parks.
Karpowitz says issuing hunting permits for four rams would generate about $150,000 a year for the park.
------
Information from: Standard-Examiner
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
IMO, I think this is great for the state. Unless I win the powerball I'll never be able to afford the tag. Great revenue for the DWR non the less.
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MuleyMadness
4/24/09 10:54am
I think it's a good idea. Only problem I see with this proposal is now people will want to hunt Mule Deer out there etc. But I'm not for a fan of opening it up to other species. We already had good hunts for deer, antelope, buffalo, etc.
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proutdoors
4/24/09 6:23pm
I doubt it will go through, and I hope it doesn't. Antelope Island is what it is because the animals can flourish there. Utah has 2 sheep herds that came from transplants from the island that are thriving, I think we should either keep adding to these herds or start more herds in new areas instead of shooting animals on an island where it is NOT a hunt.
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NONYA
4/24/09 6:42pm
If they have too many sheep there why did MT just send down 40 more?
http://fwp.mt.gov/news/article_7611.aspx
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hound_hunter
4/24/09 7:01pm
From what I can tell those sheep didn't go to the island Nonya. I could be wrong about where it's at, but I'm pretty sure Duchesne is about 2 hours or more from Antelope island. Thanks for the link though, I hadn't heard we got 60 sheep from Montana.
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killerbee
4/24/09 7:21pm
how big is "antelope island"?
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NONYA
4/24/09 7:34pm
I meant if they have too may sheep on their island breeding ground that they need to cull some why did we just send down more,why didnt they transplant their own sheep?
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proutdoors
4/24/09 8:42pm
The sheep on the island are California Bighorns and they enjoy terrain more akin to desert sheep that Rocky's. The sheep placed out by Vernal are Rocky's as that is the type of terrain over there. The difference is like the difference between Roosevelt elk and Rocky Mountain elk, same critter but they like different habitats.
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proutdoors
4/24/09 8:44pm
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