Wildlife cloning is already happening — and it is happening both in illegal circumstances and sanctioned by the government.
Watch my special report on wildlife cloning.
The Marco Polo sheep, one of the world’s most iconic wild sheep species, is now at the center of a debate that raises urgent questions:
• Is wildlife cloning helping conservation—or harming it? • Who regulates cloning endangered animals?
• What happens when science moves faster than ethics and law? This video explores the dark side of wildlife cloning, conservation risks, genetic manipulation, and the long-term impact on biodiversity.
If you care about endangered species, conservation science, or animal ethics, this is a conversation we need to have.
Check out the video and watch till the end and share your thoughts—should wildlife cloning be banned, regulated, or embraced?
Chester Moore
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A Montana man has been charged with trafficking and conspiracy under federal law for cloning a Marco Polo sheep as well as breeding and selling its offspring and DNA across several states.
The defendant, Arthur “Jack” Schubarth, entered into a plea agreement with federal officials for one count of Lacey Act trafficking and one count of conspiracy to violate the Lacey Act.
According to Forest Legality, the Lacey Act, initially enacted in 1900, is a United States law that bans the trafficking of fish, wildlife, or plants that are illegally taken, possessed, transported, or sold.
Schbarth and five others, who federal officials labeled in court documents as Persons A-E, were allegedly involved in various activities. Three are from Texas, one from Montana, and another from Minnesota.
The cloned Marco Polo Sheep – “Montana Mountain King” at a USDA facility.
Court papers cite the following claims:
*On or about January 25, 2013, Person A entered the United States with biological tissue from a Marco Polo argali sheep that had been hunted in Kyrgyzstan. Person A did not declare the animal parts upon entry.
*On or about January 31, 2013, Schubarth entered into a “Cell Storage Agreement” with a corporation for storage and preservation of the above-referenced tissue from a male “Marco Polo” sheep named “Rocky.”
*On or about October 6, 2015, Schubarth entered into an “Ovine Cloning Contract” to clone an unspecified number of Marco Polo sheep from the tissue. He provided a deposit of $4,200 for the cloning.
* On or about November 22, 2016, Schubarth received 165 cloned Marco Polo embryos at the Schubarth Ranch.
*On or about May 15, 2017, a pure Marco Polo argali sheep male was born from the cloned embryos Schubarth named “Montana Mountain King.”
*Starting in 2018 at the latest, Schubarth harvested semen from M1\.1K to inseminate ewes via LAP-AI to create Marco Polo argali hybrid offspring.
Other notes from the case involved sending semen straws from MMK to Texas as well as transferring its offspring to Texas.
This is the first criminal case involving wildlife cloning, and it has potentially significant implications across several areas of the wildlife world.
Cloning At The Highest Levels
While cloning wildlife might be a shock to many within the hunting community, it has been a reality at the highest levels in the world of endangered wildlife management for several years.
On December 10, 2020, “Elizabeth Ann,” a black-footed ferret, was cloned from the frozen cells of “Willa,” a specimen that lived in the 1980s as part of a U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service project that involved scientists at Revive & Restore (a cloning conservation group), ViaGen Pets & Equine, San Diego Zoo Global, and the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.
“The Service sought the expertise of valued recovery partners to help us explore how we might overcome genetic limitations hampering the recovery of the black-footed ferret, and we’re proud to make this announcement today,” said Noreen Walsh, Director of the Service’s Mountain-Prairie Region.
“Although this research is preliminary, it is the first cloning of a native endangered species in North America, and it provides a promising tool for continued efforts to conserve the black-footed ferret.”
“Maintaining and increasing wild populations and suitable habitat continues to be essential for black-footed ferret recovery and will remain a priority for the Service. Successful genetic cloning does not diminish the importance of addressing habitat-based threats to the species or the Service’s focus on addressing habitat conservation and management to recover black-footed ferrets.”
In 2024, Service and its genetic research partners announced the birth of two more black-footed ferret clones – known as “Noreen” and “Antonia” both cloned from the same frozen specimen as Elizabeth Ann, who is alive and thriving at the ferret program’s headquarters in Fort Collins, CO.
Service officials said the application of this technology to endangered species addresses specific genetic diversity and disease concerns associated with black-footed ferrets.
“The Service views this new potential tool as one of many strategies to aid species recovery alongside efforts to address habitat challenges and other barriers to recovery.”
In February 2023, a cloned Przewalski’s horse, a native of Mongolia, was born at the ViaGen Pets & Equine cloning facility in Texas and was moved to the San Diego Zoo Safari Park.
According to San Diego Zoo officials, “Ollie” is a clone of a male Przewalski’s horse stallion whose living cell line was cryopreserved over 40 years ago in the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance Biodiversity Bank’s Frozen Zoo.
“The world’s first cloned Przewalski’s horse, Kurt, also living at the Safari Park, is the genetic twin of the foal, as he was born in August 2020 from the same stallion’s living cell line.”
And although ferret cloning is groundbreaking in several ways, it is not the first wild animal cloned at a governmental level. It happened with wild sheep back in 2015..
According to The Guardian, Iran’s Royan Institute researchers cloned a wild Isfahan mouflon using a domestic sheep as a surrogate mother.
“We have been working on the project for around four years,” project head Mohammad Hossein Nasr-Esfahan, told the Guardian.
“Conservation of wildlife is an important concept in developing countries, and so far, a few successful projects involving the birth of wild animals by interspecies cloning have been achieved worldwide.”
It’s Not Just Cloning
Cloning should not be considered a stand-alone technology leap when it comes to wildlife. In my journalistic pursuit of the topic, it keeps overlapping with gene editing.
Gene editing allows scientists to modify the DNA of wild animals with precision. By employing tools such as CRISPR-Cas9, researchers can target specific genes within an organism’s genome, enabling them to insert, delete, or alter genetic material.
The process begins by identifying the genetic traits that need modification. DNA sequences are then precisely cut and altered, a task facilitated by CRISPR’s ‘molecular scissors.’ These edits can be designed to emulate genetic variations lost to time, essentially rewilding species with traits that once allowed them to thrive.
Once the desired genetic changes are made, the edited cells are cultivated and used to create embryos, which can be implanted into surrogate mothers, much like the process of cloning.
Theoretically, in the context of wildlife, gene editing holds the promise of conserving endangered species and restoring genetic diversity. An example would be the aforementioned black-footed ferret, where officials have openly discussed disease resistance as a potential target of gene editing.
If it works with ferrets, could it be used to help fight Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae in wild sheep or chronic wasting disease in deer, elk, and moose?
No one knows for sure.
Interestingly, on the sheep front, USDA officials have been involved in genetic improvement programs for various livestock, including sheep, focusing on disease resistance.
With deer species and CWD in particular, there have already been discussions about the potential to research the use of this technology.
But there are huge concerns, some of which have never been published until now.
A Two-Edged Sword
Gene editing has largely been presented to the public in the context of eliminating disease potentials and genetic bottlenecks in rare species.
But there’s more, and it involves “gene drivers.”
Gene drivers are genetic systems that increase the likelihood of a particular gene being passed onto offspring. They can spread genetic modification rapidly through a population and can also be tinkered with through gene editing.
The Wyss Institute at Harvard University has been working on this about rats and has published several statements.
“Since the 1940s, researchers have thought of using gene drives to eradicate populations of pests and disease vectors and to reduce or eliminate invasive species that wreak havoc on natural ecosystems.”
“Deployed willfully in human intervention efforts, a propagated dominant gene modification could, for example, by biasing the production of one sex over the other over many generations, force a deleterious disease vector to decline and lose its dangerous potential.”
The key example is editing genes for females only to produce males so that, eventually, populations are eliminated. Wyss Institute officials have done research on this in relation to harmful insects, but it is already being discussed in the realm of invasive rat populations on islands.
Patrice Kohl, an assistant professor at UCF’s Nicholson School of Communication and Media, was the lead author of a study about public opinion on gene editing and wildlife published in Conservation Biology.
The study analyzed data from a nationally representative survey of 1,600 U.S. adults between December 2016 and January 2017. Here are a few outtakes
*Overall, respondents significantly perceived the risks of gene editing wildlife as outweighing the benefits.
*More than 80 percent of respondents believed gene editing in wildlife to be at least somewhat risky to nature and humans.
*Between 55 and 63 percent of respondents thought gene editing would benefit nature and humans.
*Individuals who strongly believe in the authority of scientific knowledge perceived gene editing in wildlife as more beneficial and less risky.
*Respondents found gene editing to help species survive more morally acceptable than using it to reduce or eliminate species.
*Despite skepticism about the technology, respondents might still support gene editing for wildlife management.
In an article published by the University, Kohl asked an intriguing question.
“What if you introduce a gene-edited rat to reduce their populations on an island, and then that rat escapes the island, and you drive that rat species extinct?” Kohl says.
“That has consequences for everyone across the entire planet.”
Implications For The Future
Just like artificial intelligence has changed the world radically in a short span, cloning, and gene editing will experience similar leaps in advancement and be employed even more in wildlife management.
In reality, cloned Marco Polo sheep on ranches would on the surface present no more of a threat to wild sheep for example than dozens of different domestic varieties or species like aoudad. If importing these sheep and someone propagating them for hunting had been legal and done under specific guidelines, there wouldn’t be a story here.
But what happened here takes us into entirely new territory.
Is it possible that unchecked cloning could make cloned specimens and their offspring inadvertently more susceptible to health issues that spread to native wildlife?
If the illegal cloning of wild sheep started in 2015, what about gene editing of herds of various animals?
Are there herds that have gene-edited specimens that might cause them to grow larger horns, grow more quickly, or have better reproduction but also have negative side effects that could impact wild sheep that come in contact with them?
When I first started investigating this story, I contacted Texas Parks & Wildlife Big Game Program Director Mitch Lockwood and asked about the legality of cloning wildlife in Texas.
“TPWD does not have regulatory authority over exotic wildlife, but cloning white-tailed deer and mule deer is prohibited,” Lockwood said.
That means exotic stock like red sheep, axis deer, or markhor, all of which are successfully propagated in a thriving exotic hunting market, could be cloned or have gene editing done.
Technology is neutral. What is done with it can either do great good or completely the opposite.
Whether we like it or not, cloning and gene editing are now part of the equation of wildlife, and it has already involved wild sheep.
We’ve entered a brave new world where, for the first time in my career, a story seems more like science fiction than reality, so I find it proper to end with something Steven Spielberg, director of Jurassic Park, said about cloning during the film’s media promotion.
He called cloning of wildlife “A science of eventuality.”
Anthropologist Hendrik Poinar more recently said, “I laughed when Steven Spielberg said that cloning extinct animals was inevitable. But I’m not laughing anymore…”
If a man from Montana can spend a few thousand dollars and send argali tissue to Mexico and get cloned embryos sent back to his ranch, what other wildlife has already been cloned?
What impact could it have on native wildlife?
That’s the question we need to be asking.
Chester Moore
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The Wild Sheep Foundation (WSF) hosts its 46th annual Convention and Sporting Expo “The Sheep Show” Jan. 12-14 at the Reno-Sparks Convention Center and the Peppermill Resort Spa & Casino.
“Every year we bring the sporting community together to celebrate outdoor traditions and raise money for the conservation and management of wild sheep,” said WSF President & CEO Gray N. Thornton. “It’s the largest celebration of mountain game hunting and conservation in the U.S. This year we’ve expanded the Expo to include three halls filled wall to wall with exhibits featuring the finest guides, outfitters, gear, taxidermy, art, firearms, optics and other outdoor essentials from North America and around the world.”
Higher Calling Wildlife will have coverage of the show on our Facebook and Instagram and a wrap-up here next week.
The Show features hundreds of exhibitors, educational seminars, youth events, drawings, hunt giveaways, raffles, and banquets. Nightly auctions feature more than $3 million in outdoor adventure trips and more special conservation permits than any other convention or hunting expo.
Money raised is used to enhance wild sheep populations across North America and internationally through disease research, herd monitoring, habitat improvements and other initiatives.
The Sheep Show is open to the public Thursday through Saturday, Jan. 12-14, at the Reno-Sparks Convention Center. Show hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Thursday and Friday and 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday. Daily admission is $25. Paid attendees are entered daily for floor credit drawings from $1,000-$5,000. Free seminars from experts on mountain hunting in North America, Europe, and Asia include topics such as wildlife conservation, travel, outdoor skills, backcountry fitness and nutrition, wild game preparation and cooking and hunter safety.
The Expo also features a free Youth Wildlife Conservation Experience open to the public at the convention center Saturday, Jan. 14, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The youth event offers fun educational activities focused on conservation, outdoor skills and nature.
A complete schedule of events, pre-registration and other details are available at www.wildsheepfoundation.org.
Daily passes are available at the Reno-Sparks Convention Center on convention days. Five-dollar discount coupons are available at Sportsman’s Warehouse, Cabela’s, Scheels, Reno HUNTNHOUSE, Mark Fore & Strike (Reno), Bass Pro Shops (Sacramento), Gun World & Archery (Elko) and Honey Lake Firearms (Susanville).
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Well, if there was, much restraint went into keeping them that way.
As the wild and domestic sheep disease documentary Transmissionwrapped up and director and producer Jesse Bone approached the podium for questions, there was a palpable sense of urgency.
It was like the previous day’s viewing of Team Bighorn, which showed the Herculean efforts to capture, collar and test wild sheep for pathogen/disease in Idaho.
According to movifree.org, Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae (M. ovi) is a bacterial species commonly found in the nasal cavity and sinuses of apparently healthy domestic sheep and goats.
It is transmitted to wild sheep and goats (bighorn sheep, thinhorn sheep, and mountain goats) via nose-to-nose contact and, less commonly, aerosol/droplet transmission. In bighorn sheep and very likely thinhorn sheep, M. ovi has been associated with large all-aged die-offs due to pneumonia, which is often followed by years of lower lamb birth and survival rates that can have devastating population impacts.
The two films were rallying cries at a two-day summit of the Wild Sheep Foundation (WSF) and its Chapters and Affiliates in San Antonio, TX.
Hosted by WSF Affiliate, the Texas Bighorn Society (TBS), the goal was to galvanize, organize and strategize wild sheep conservation.
“Leaders and delegates of our chapter and affiliate network convene every year in a one-tent, one-campfire gathering to address challenges and opportunities for wild sheep conservation across North America and internationally,” said Gray N. Thornton, President, and CEO of WSF.
Froylan Hernandez addresses the attendees on the status of bighorns in Texas. (Photo by Chester Moore)
Experts from around the country discussed many items, ranging from fundraising to engaging use of social media, but was M .ovi was front and center.
From capture and removal plans to testing and treatment of domestic sheep herds in bighorn country, speaker after speaker tackled this topic.
Froylan Hernandez, Desert Bighorn Sheep Program Leader with the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department (TPWD), shared the latest on sheep in the Trans-Pecos.
That included drought-related issues and research showing non-indigenous aoudad carry M. ovi and are a growing threat to bighorns and other wildlife through food and habitat competition.
Taking a practical approach that considers the needs of private landowners as well as bighorns, TPWD is engaging the issue directly.
Other issues are impacting sheep as well. Thinhorns are feeling the impacts of climate change in Alaska and Canada. Migration corridors are being looked at and predation always looms as a growing threat.
Dall sheep have experienced die-offs in several ranges in Alaska due to climate change-related issues. WSF recently concluded a thinhorn summit in the Yukon to address these and other issues facing Dall and Stone Sheep. (USFWS Photo)
The challenges are obvious, but discussion and actions taken at the summit were urgent and optimistic.
Despite recent die-offs, Texas is still just below historic (1800s) level desert bighorn populations thanks to the efforts of TPWD, TBS, WSF, and others.
New Mexico has seen a big shift in numbers to the positive over the last few decades and Mexico is experiencing a renaissance of sorts in desert bighorn sheep conservation and hunting.
Upgrade is the goal, but challenges continue to rise.
“We’re going to face those challenges and dare to do epic stuff,” Thornton said.
“We’re going to continue the legacy of putting and keeping wild sheep on the mountain and collaboratively we can make it happen in a big way.”
That was exemplified at the wrap-up dinner and auction that saw thousands of dollars raised for TBS water projects in West Texas.
A particular herd of desert bighorns has taken residence in a remote area near the Mexico border. And with current and historic drought an issue there, these projects could be lifesaving.
But that wasn’t all.
Just before the night was over, Thornton announced The Iowa Chapter of WSF sought to fund a special project in Nebraska.
Rocky Mountain bighorns in Nebraska were the recipients of funding generated from a call to action issued the last night of the summit. (Photo by Chester Moore)
A small but impressive herd of Rocky Mountain bighorns lives in the northwestern corner of the state and the goal is to translocate some to another area with suitable habitat.
With disease already an issue there, the hope is to spread healthy animals into other areas and expand the population.
More than $100,000 was raised with a $50,000 donation from WSF and the rest pledged from numerous chapters and affiliates.
It was an inspiring way to end an event that saw selfless dedication to a wildlife resource highlighted from the Yukon to Colorado and from Arizona to Wyoming.
From Stone sheep to California bighorns, no species or subspecies was left unmentioned, and each chapter and affiliate seemed focused on not only maintaining but growing sheep populations in their state.
This event was a major victory for hunter-conservationists.
It was evident without the interests of hunters and the funding that comes through WSF, its chapters, affiliates, and state/provincial/tribal sheep tags, these animals could easily slip into obscurity.
And that is inspiring because the commitment from everyone in the room was real and passionate.
And that’s a major victory for wild sheep.
For animals facing so many threats, it will take zeal and commitment to see them through.
And those two forces were alive and well at the summit.
Conservationists from the United States, Canada, and Mexico left inspired for the cause of wild sheep.
There’s much work to do but there’s a powerful group of allies to make it happen.
Southern Nevada in particular is in the grips of one of the worst droughts in decades, along with much of the Western United States.
While researching the drought for a series of articles on about its impact on wildlife, I noticed something.
The area I photographed this beautiful desert bighorn in Jan. 2020 for our Sheep Scrapbook Project was facing some of the worse conditions. Having a love for that part of the world, I dug deeper.
A desert bighorn ram (with an ear tag) photographed by the author in Nevada in 2020.
What I found out is the drought conditions are so bad in fact, officials with the Nevada Department of Wildlife are dropping water from helicopters to “guzzlers” set in the desert for bighorns and other wildlife.
Guzzlers collect water from rain and concentrate it in a water trough for animals to use during particularly arid conditions.
The following are my questions about the project and answers from Doug Nielsen, Public Affairs/Conservation Education Supervisor with the Nevada Department of Wildlife.
A herd of bighorns at a guzzler. (Photo Courtesy Nevada Department of Wildlife)
(Chester Moore) How much water was brought to the guzzlers?
(Doug Nielsen) Between June 2 and July 14, the department hauled 71,846 gallons of water to 20 different water developments or guzzlers. Most of those are in the extreme Southern Nevada area, but a couple are near Tonopah in the Central part of the state. In 2020, that number was 167,000 gallons and it was distributed among 30 guzzlers.
How was the water put into the individual guzzlers?
Basically, the water is ferried by helicopters using a Bambi Bucket like those used to fight wildland fires. The helicopter pilot dips the bucket into a portable water storage tank and then flies the water into the remotely located guzzler. At the guzzler, the pilot drops the water into a fol-da-tank and from there it is pumped into the storage tank of the guzzler. In past years the water was dropped onto an apron, but this new method saves water and is much more efficient.
A water drop at a guzzler in the southern Nevada desert. (Photo Courtesy Nevada Department of Wildlife)
How many sheep in the area could potentially be impacted?
The hardest hit area at the time was the Muddy Mountain-Black Mountain complex. Between the two ranges there are approximately 900 sheep, the largest concentration of sheep in the state.
A big desert bighorn ram visits a guzzler. (Photo Courtesy Nevada Department of Wildlife)
How does this drought compare to the 1996 drought there and the ones in 01-02 timeframe?
I spoke with Pat Cummings, field biologist in the Southern Region, and he said the two years of severe back-to-back drought are far worse than that of 1996. We had no monsoonal weather flow in 2019 or 2020, and any other rain storms were almost nonexistent. Though we had some monsoonal moisture in July, he said it is premature to consider Southern Nevada as being out of the drought. Some recharge of the water developments and springs has taken place, but there are still areas of significant concern. Those include the Hiko, Specter, Bare and McCullough mountain ranges.
In 2020 we went 240 days without measurable precipitation. So far in 2021, we have had only 13 days with rain and 2.8 inches of rain.
(Thanks to Doug for providing us with the great information and photos.)
This is the U.S. Drought Monitor’s drought map as of Aug. 12. You can see most of the West is in extreme drought. The dark red portions are considered “significant drought” which is above the extreme phase. Get full details here.
This is truly a monumental conservation effort and if the drought in Nevada continues, more water drops will certainly be necessary. Desert bighorns can drink up to a gallon a day and then you factor in other wildlife’s water demands and you can see the tremendous problem drought is causing in the wild lands of the American west.
The Nevada Department of Wildlife is doing all they can to conserve wild sheep under these challenging conditions as are other states facing similar scenarios.
We can do our part by supporting groups that offer support like The Wild Sheep Foundation and Nevada Bighorns Unlimited who help support sheep through funding, research and manpower efforts that aid state, federal and tribal agencies.
These are special animals and during this trying time all of who have a heart for them need to do our part to ensure their survival in all areas.
Chester Moore
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“Social-distancing” is a term most hope disappears from the lexicon soon. While the concept of keeping a safe distance during the COVID-19 pandemic is wisdom, losing the connection to others is challenging for humanity. For wild sheep, social-distancing is essential.
Domestic sheep and goats can transmit a pathogen that is a setup for pneumonia and other aliments to bighorn and thinhorn sheep that is devastating to herds. It is so devastating that more than two million that existed at the time of Lewis & Clark’s expedition declined to around 25,000 by the early 1900s.
“Wildlife agencies and conservation groups have done a remarkable job of bringing them back to around the 150-175,000 range, but there is still a major problem with exposure to domestic sheep. Die-offs are occurring in pockets right now in states like Oregon and Utah,” said Chester Moore, an award-winning wildlife journalist and founder of Higher Calling Wildlife.
Photo by Chester Moore
Higher Calling Wildlife seeks to raise awareness of mountain and forest wildlife conservation. It also mentors young people dealing with critical illness and traumatic loss to use media for conservation purposes.
One of those young people is Reannah Hollaway, who, through the program and the generosity of the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department, got to take part in a desert bighorn capture and relocation in 2019.
“I have cystic fibrosis, which affects the lungs, and have had to take special precautions during COVID-19. This gives me a unique understanding of the need for keeping wild sheep and domestic sheep apart. This kind of social-distancing can save bighorns,” she said.
Reannah Hollaway helps put a tracking collar on a desert bighorn at Elephant Mountain Wildlife Management Area courtesy of the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department and Higher Calling Wildlife.
Hollaway is a student at Texas Tech and studying to work in the field of wildlife management.
She chose this degree after a wildlife encounter through Higher Calling Wildlife’s mothership, Wild Wishes. This outreach grants wildlife encounters to young people with a critical illness or the loss of a parent or sibling.
To raise awareness of the need for sheep social distancing, Higher Calling WIldlife has begun the Sheep Scrapbook project, which seeks photos taken of wild sheep throughout North America.
“It’s our way to get people of all backgrounds to think about wild sheep, and the response has been tremendous,” Moore said.
“We’re hoping that when people focus their cameras on sheep, whether in one of our national parks or a hunting or fishing expedition, they can take time to realize these animals are facing a real problem with pneumonia. It’s time all of us who love wild sheep do more to support organizations and agencies searching for ways to keep wild sheep social-distanced from their domestic cousins.”
Pneumonia has spread into the Northeast Oregon bighorn sheep herd.
Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) and the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) have determined that the same strain of bacterial pneumonia that caused a die-off in the Lookout Mountain bighorn sheep herd in early 2020 has spread to the Burnt River herd.
The author photographed this bighorn at 12,000 feet in an area where grazing is restricted but these sheep don’t stay here all the time. Moving into grazing areas is highly dangerous. (Photo by Chester Moore, Jr.)
ODFW officials reported this is the first-time bacterial pneumonia (caused by the organism Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae) has been identified in the Burnt River herd.
While I-84 normally separates the herds, bighorn sheep have been known to try to cross the highway. The Lookout Mountain herd ranges north of I-84 and west of Brownlee Reservoir, about 10 miles from the Burnt River Canyon herd, which is south of I-84.
Most concerning of all is that all lambs in the Lookout Mountain herd have died although adult mortality has tapered off.
This latest spread of pneumonia in wild sheep which is caused by exposure to domestic sheep is why I believe the least covered wildilfe tragedy (at the national level) in America is this pandemic.
Exposure to domestic sheep can be deadly for wild sheep as they can transmit a pathogen that can end up being deadly.
And it is a pandemic-at least at the level of existing in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
It is what killed nearly two million wild sheep in the 1800s and continues today. Domestic sheep transmit a pathogen that is a setup for pneumonia and other aliments for wild sheep.
Local news coverage and hunting-based conservation groups are the only ones to touch this topic. When is the last time you saw something about this on a major wildlife television network?
Since wild sheep are managed by many different state, provincial and tribal agencies, few are aware of the myriad outbreaks of pneumonia happening right now.
Even in the Internet age, it can be challenging to know what’s happening in the Yukon for example when you live in Texas.
Alaska’s Dall sheep population has long been seen as bulletproof so to speak due to vast contiguous habitat and strict management.
In 2018 officials however, found bacterial pneumonia in four Dall sheep within a sample of 136 and in two of 39 mountain goats.
Dall sheep have been found with deadly pathogens in Alaska. Although most are in remote areas some do come into contact with domestic sheep.
“The Dall sheep testing positive for M. ovi were all in Game Management Unit 13A; all were taken by hunters and appeared healthy. The mountain goats were live captured and released in Southeast and on the Kenai Peninsula and showed no sign of illness; only samples from goats on the Kenai tested positive,” according to officials with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.
“Our initial research has confirmed M. ovi in a small number of Dall sheep and mountain goats in relatively isolated areas of the state,” said Division of Wildlife Conservation Director Bruce Dale.
There have been no reported die-offs but the finding is concerning, especially when you look at what has happened recently in Oregon.
We will continue coverage of the sheep pandemic and also show recovery efforts that have taken sheep numbers far above where they were by their all-time low early in the 20th century.
It’s an important issue and in our corner of the world it will remain at the top of the priority list.
Chester Moore
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The Wild Sheep Foundation’s (WSF) annual “Sheep Show” in Reno, NV was cancelled due to COVID-19 like every other sporting expo this winter.
So, instead of throwing in the towel, they came up with what should be the most extensive and unique online wildlife event ever and they’re calling it “The Experience”.
For $50, attendees get access to a week’s worth of live seminars, giveaways, auctions and film premieres along with cutting-edge web-based interaction with vendors from the mountain hunting and conservation community.
Plus, the bulk of this will be archived and accessible for attendees into February.
I was fortunate to attend my first “Sheep Show” last year and was looking forward to the 2021 edition. As a wildlife journalist with a deep interest in wild sheep, I was blown away by the quality of the event, the funds WSF raised for conservation and the generosity of the people involved.
The author checking out a cool Dall sheep mount at the Sheep Show in Reno, NV last year.
I’m signed up and ready for next week and recommend anyone interested in getting involved with wild sheep conservation do the same. The funds will benefit WSF’s goal of “Putting and Keeping Wild Sheep On the Mountain” and that alone makes it a worthy investment.
Wild sheep conservation awareness is a cornerstone of what we do here at Higher Calling Wildlife and we are excited to see what “Sheep Week” brings to the table.
Wild sheep are special creatures that need more help and attention than any other game animals in America, chiefly due to disastrous interactions with domestic sheep that carry a pathogen absolutely fatal to their wild cousins.
Photo by Chester Moore
If you’d like to get involved helping the cause, give “Sheep Week” a try and consider joining The Wild Sheep Foundation.
I have no delusions that I will ever be able to afford to hunt a bighorn or thinhorn, unless I win an auction or drawing. But I have a profound love of these animals for their God-given beauty and majesty unparalleled in North American wildlife.
Sheep conservation is not just for the well-to-do. It’s for anyone who wants to step up to the plate and help. “Sheep Week” is a great starting point.
Chester Moore
You can subscribe to this blog by entering your email address at the subscribe prompt at the top right of this page. You can contact Chester Moore by emailing chester@chestermoore.com. Subscribe to the podcast by visiting thehighercalling.podbean.com.
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…”
That quote from Charles Dickens “A Tale of Two Cities” reflects how I feel about 2020 on a personal level as well as simply being a human on Planet Earth at this very moment.
COVID-19’s impact on our world has been nothing short of historic and there is more to come. I wish I could give a prediction of a quick deliverance from this pestilence along with its human and economic cost but I would be lying.
Early into the pandemic, I explained how it would impact wildlife with everything from poaching running rampant in Africa where science-based, legal hunting and ecotourism were shut down to important wildlife surveys in America being cancelled.
Public Domain Photo
All of that has happened and we will continue our coverage on that topic in 2021.
The business that I work in, the hunting/fishing/wildlife media industry has been ravaged by COVID-19’s economic impact. I’m putting my trust in God for finances going into a new year because things are not looking bright otherwise.
And I knew this would happen the moment I read the word “pandemic” in a World Health Organization Report.
That inspired action.
I don’t do what I do professionally for the great money, because I could make more elsewhere. I don’t do it for the accolades, nor for the fringe benefits of wildlife recreation access although that at times has been abundant.
I do it because I believe in it. Wildlife has been a passion of mine since childhood. A couple of years back my mother found a report from my fourth grade where I said I wanted to be someone who helps endangered wildlife when I grew up.
This is in me.
And it is why me and my wife Lisa founded Higher Calling Wildlife this year. I needed something that could function under a business model of low cost and high effectiveness.
By using investigative journalism and cutting-edge educational strategies, the mission of Higher Calling Wildlife is to raise awareness to mountain and forest wildlife conservation and stream fisheries. It’s free to join (and you can do that by clicking here) and it involves young people.
Me and my wife Lisa have a ministry called Kingdom Zoo Wildlife Center and its offshoot the Wild Wishes program. Wild Wishes grants wildlife encounters to children with a critical illness or loss of a parent or sibling. To date we’ve granted 112 wishes ranging from encounters with wolves to giraffes and special days at our small zoological facility.
Teens from the Wild Wishes program who have an interest in conservation are mentored in media and have an opportunity to contribute to the conservation cause through our Higher Calling magazine, e-newsletter and other media platforms.
In our first year, we have put out two of these e-magazines, Issue 1 and our Wildlife of Israel special edition and started our Sheep Scrapbook Project that raises awareness to wild sheep dying of parasite/disease risks from domestic sheep. We are giving out collector’s coins for those who submit photos they have taken of wild sheep in North America.
We posted on four Facebook pages related to hunting and parks and had such a great response we ran out of coins! The second bunch should arrive this week.
There were also some other positives from this year.
My “New Life For New Mexico’s Bighorns” article that was posted here won 1st place in the Texas Outdoor Writer’s Association Excellence In Craft awards for the blog category. We also took 1st in the independent blog category for the Press Club of Southeast Texas along with receiving a total of 13 awards for writing, radio and photography in both media competitions.
Our Turkey Revolution project entered its second year with unprecedented media coverage in publications ranging from Texas Fish & Game to Hunter’s Horn. This year’s goal of photographing an elusive eastern turkey in East Texas happened in April and was documented here.
Eastern gobblers photographed in Newton County, TX.
Here at the end of of 2020, put my faith in Christ, my focus on prayer and hard work and moving forward with the best of my abilities.
There is healing of soul in the mountains, forests and waterways of our world. There is no bad news where eagles soar, trout swim and turkeys gobble.
I have been doing this locally, spending time fishing in a stream near my home and some private ponds at a friend’s property. It has allowed me to clear my head when the news of the day has been frustrating.
I have gotten back into flyfishing this year and have challenged myself to catch a five-pound bass on fly gear. I haven’t hit that mark yet but did get my best flyfishing bass ever-a four pounder.
The author with his best-ever bass caught on fly gear caught Dec. 2020.
Talk about fun!
And that’s something we will continue to cover here. Yes, we will have true news as it relates to wildlife but it will be balanced with fun challenges and interesting stories that hopefully inspire as well as educate.
Henry David Thoreau wrote that, “In wildness is the preservation of the world.”
I don’t know about the world, but it certain helps preserve my enthusiasm for life.
Stay safe. Stay healthy and venture beyond the pavement into the wild. Great things can still happen there.
Chester Moore
You can subscribe to this blog by entering your email address at the subscribe prompt at the top right of this page. You can contact Chester Moore by emailing chester@chestermoore.com. Subscribe to the podcast by visiting thehighercalling.podbean.com.
For Immediate Release—Wild Wishes® grants wildlife encounters to children and teens with a critical illness or loss of a parent or sibling.
Part of the outreach of Chester and Lisa Moore’s nonprofit Kingdom Zoo Wildlife Center® outreach, the 100th child received a life-changing wildlife encounter in Sept. 2019.
Chester and Lisa Moore in Colorado scouting for location for Higher Calling Wild Wishes Expeditions.
Higher Calling Wild Wishes Expeditions goes to a new level by taking teens from the program on expeditions to teach wildlife conservation through mentorship in wildlife photography, social media awareness raising and fundraising skills.
“We noticed that many of the young people we work with who face these great challenges are looking for a way to help and give back. We are creating these opportunities to give young people an avenue to not only understand conservation but a way to get involved,” said Chester Moore.
Reannah fits a radio collar on a desert bighorn sheep at Elephant Mountain Wildlife Management Area courtesy of the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department.
Two pilot projects initiated the program in 2019.
Wild Wishes girl Reannah changed her degree and school (now a Texas Tech student) to work with conservation after her wish encounter as a high school senior in 2018.
“It give me even more inspiration to pursue a career in working in wildlife conservation.”
Wild Wishes boys Amos and Jaxon got to take part in a special catch-and-release conservation mission for Guadalupe bass in west-central Texas. The trip was featured in Texas Fish & Game magazine and the boys learned how using the photos they took on the trip could raise awareness to problems facing stream fisheries.
Jaxon was excited to catch his first-ever Guadalupe bass
Special challenges usually disqualify young people for experiences like this. We are creating special opportunities for them only.
In 2020 we are doing our first expeditions into Yellowstone, Rocky Mountain National Park as well as our second annual Guadalupe bass trip.
Can you help sponsor one of these trips? Any size donation is appreciated.
You can subscribe to this blog by entering your email address at the subscribe prompt at the top right of this page. You can contact Chester Moore by emailing chester@chestermoore.com. Subscribe to the podcast by visiting thehighercalling.podbean.com.
