I love the wildlife in the Rocky Mountains and one of my favourites to photograph is the Bighorn Sheep.
These stunning wild sheep look their best during winter when their fur is nice and thick. The rams are famous for their big curled horns. The ewes on the other hand have small horns that don’t curl.
We came across this herd at Abraham Lake in Alberta, and they didn’t mind posing for photos.
Male big horn sheep, also called rams, with their large curled horns
You are supposed to be able to tell the age of a bighorn sheep by counting the ‘black rings’ on their horns and adding 1 1/2 year. I am no expert but I would say the ram in the picture above is 5 1/2 years old minimum as I believe I can see at least 4 distinct rings on the horns.
The female bighorn sheep, ewes, only develop small horns
Bighorns are the largest of the North American wild sheep. Adult rams weigh up to 135 kg (300 lb.) while the ewes are much smaller, averaging 70 kg (150 lb.).
Also the younger Bighorn sheep make great models – just look at this adorable juvenile! Without being a biologist I would assume this is one of last years lambs.
Are you looking at me?
Thank you for reading. Comments are much appreciated, I would love to hear what you think about my photo series on the Bighorn Sheep!
They are beautiful these sheep of the Americas
I thank you for them to discover us.
Congratulations on the photograhe.
Have a nice day.
Thanks Hervé! These bighorns are quite beautiful yes. It was fun getting so close to them:)
very enjoyable seeing them in the wild. Jim
It is for sure Jim! We have met them several times, but it is not always there are so many rams and such nice horns! It was a pleasure taking these pictures:)
Amazing photos, I love all of them. It must have been so nice to see them in their natural home 🙂
Thanks Takami! I must have taken 100 pictures of these amazing wild bighorns so it was difficult picking out my favourites. It was a great experience getting so close to them and taking these pictures. They are very beautiful.
Absolutely amazing. Love those faces. Would love to see these animals in person some day.
Thanks Phil – a trip to Alberta and you are almost guaranteed seeing them:) It is very special to met them in the wild.
Beauties!
Thanks Ron! They are for sure:)
Nice and docile looking sheep, though I think they can head butt one when needed 🙂 The photos are nice – you must be having fun with your adventures in the Rocky Mountains
Yes, they might look docile in these pictures but they can absolutely be aggressive. I have read stories about hikers meeting them high up in the mountains where the bighorns might not be used to seeing people and the hikers have had to fight them of with bear spray! 🙂 We are loving the Rockies!
Beautiful photos of the amazing animals. The background was perfect for the shoot.
Thanks for the generous comments on the photos! The Bighorns are beautiful. We see them quite often here in the Rockies, but not very often we come this close:) During summer they usually draw higher up in the mountains and we see them laying in snow to cool down/get away from the insects.
Nicely done, Inger. I’ve had lots of good photographic luck with Abraham Lake sheep. Wonder if it’s just one herd that hangs out near the road there?
Thanks Frank! They didn’t mind people at all so it was a pleasure photographing them. It is probably the same herd. Like the one that you can always find around Lake Minnewanka:)
Amazing photos Inger. Thanks for sharing such a wonderful moment with us. 🙂
Thanks Alison for your nice comment! I really appreciate the moment when I am photographing wildlife:)
Are they docile creatures or did you had to keep a respectable distance?
These ones were pretty calm, but they can be aggressive as well. I once read about a hiker having to fight one off using bear spray:)
Love your photo, looks like the sheep in my banner. The one that I can’t remember the name of. Funny we both featured these animals this week
Yes what a coincidence to feature the bighorn the same day:) But they are a big part of the Rockies. We see them very often when we go in to Banff and Jasper. We actually didn’t see them in Golden I think…. or that is, we saw them on the road to Golden if I remember correctly.
I think your photo series is astounding…jaw dropping….stunning! Wow!
Thanks Sue – it is truly a great please for me to photograph wildlife. And especially when you come home with a load of nice photos!
Nice photos.
Thanks, appreciate it:)
I’ve had many enjoyable moments photographing these creatures – glad you enjoy them too. I hope to see them again in a week.
Hi Lyle – we have met these amazing creatures lots in the Rockies. I am just as happy every time we see them, and I hope so see them many times more! 🙂
Very nice gallery ! I love the juvenile 🙂
Thanks, much appreciated! The juvenile is quite adorable, I agree:) I once saw one that had to be recent born as it still had its umbilical! 🙂 It was even more adorable, if possible!
I love the last image so much! Great photos 🙂
Thanks Indah! I am very fortunate to see this stunning bighorns often when we go to the Rockies, but not every time I get this close up to grab photos:)
These are such awesome shots ~ powerful creatures, yet so agile and calm. There is nothing quite like the winter-coat, and while the kids are great looking ~ there just isn’t much that can compare to a big ram. Cheers!
Thanks Randall – appreciate your generous comments on the photos. The bighorns are fascinating, especially when you come across rams with impressive horns! And the kiddos are off course always very adorable:) Thanks for stopping by.
Wow, what a beauty! Gorgeous shots! <3
Thanks Lucy, appreciate you comment! They are quite impressive for sure, and the youngsters are very cute. I am always happy to come across these in the Rockies. They are actually quite numerous here so we do come across them often, but I love it every time.
There was a shot my partner took once upon a time…2 bighorn sheep mating. I told him: ” Do we really need this photo?” Men…
Hehe..agreed, but guess it is part of nature! 🙂
Oh my gosh…. that little one is the absolute cutest. They are magnificent animals. I’ve been fortunate to see them at the Grand Canyon and Rocky Mountain National Park. Always a treat and fantastic photos 🙂
Thanks Ingrid – I agree, the youngest one was soon cute! Especially with hear sticking up between the small horns. A cutie! We have seen the bighorn several times in the Rockies as they are quite numerous here, but this time was a bit special as we got so close and there were so many rams in the herd. A great moment!
Immagini meravigliose è un piacere guardarle. Ritornerò volentieri. Ciao Piero
Thank you so much for your generous comment Piero, much appreciated. Happy you visited my blog, welcome back any time!
Great photo series! It’s always a treat to see these guys! ~ Jeannie :))
Thanks for your sweet comment Jeannie! We see them quite a lot here in the Rockies, but they are not always posing willingly as they did this day.