iStockphoto / Austin Dornbush
Colorado wildlife officers recently captured 20 bighorn sheep in order to relocate them and create a new herd in a mountainous area south of Pueblo as part of the state’s conservation efforts. Footage of the Colorado bighorn sheep being captured has gone viral and you’ll soon see why.
If, like most people, you have never devoted any brain power to pondering ‘who would a Colorado Parks and Wildlife officer capture a herd of bighorn sheep?’ then (1) you are not alone because millions of us have never thought about this and (2) the answer is a ‘a really big net.’ Had I not seen the video below I might’ve assumed they would tranquilize the bighorn sheep using either darts or food additives but no, ‘enormous net causing all out chaos’ is the answer.
This operation took place earlier this month with members of Colorado Parks and Wildlife using the net to capture the 20 bighorn sheep. They lured the sheep underneath, drop the net, and then over a dozen wildlife officers rushed in to subdue the sheep as they fought to escape the net. Everything happens in an instant but this is how I’d imagine the WWE Royal Rumble to unfold if a group dropped a net on the ring attempting to sabotage the match. Check it out:
The video has also gone viral on TikTok, which is where I first saw it, and the top comment resonates with me. Someone wrote “my guidance counselor never even suggested this in school!” … For real though, nobody told me I could make a living trapping bighorn sheep in Colorado and relocating them to safer areas. That would’ve been an ideal career path for me.
In order to capture the portion of the wild herd, wildlife officials used hay and apple to lure them under the net. Apparently that’s all it takes to nab 20 bighorn sheep if you are willing to throw your body on top of them and possibly get kicked in the heat or bitten. I’m slightly surprised that none of the participants were wearing a helmet. You can never be too safe.
After the sheep were captured, they were blindfolded and their legs were bound together so they would remain calm as they were being transported to the mountains south of Pueblo. And for those wondering ‘why now? why are they doing this?’ the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Department have been rebuilding herds across the state since 1944…
I guess that begs the question: is it a good sign they are still doing this after 81 years or is it indicative of Colorado’s robust wildlife population that they constantly need to shift around the prey of apex predators in order to preserve species? I don’t know the answer to that but I’d be curious to learn more.