Bighorn Sheep
“Big Trouble for Bighorns” (March 6) should be a notice to all about the probable extinction of the types of bighorn sheep found in the Sierra Nevada, unless it is prevented as soon as we can find a way. The situation with the big cats ought to be reversed immediately, but that might not be an easy fix politically.
As a short-term solution, perhaps one of the Channel Islands could be cleared of sheep and a few dozen of the bighorns could be put there to breed; when their numbers come up the bighorns could be released back into the Sierra Nevada, much like the California condor.
Hopefully the bighorn can be conserved for the beauty and balance of nature.
STEPHEN V. HYMOWITZ, Los Angeles
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The Sierra Nevada ecosystem is now far from its prehistoric status. In the 1800s unimaginable numbers of domestic sheep permanently altered soil and vegetation for the worse as well as introducing disease to bighorns. Throughout the Western states, management policies increased deer herds and provided a burgeoning food base for mountain lions. Some biologists believe this allowed lions to overshoot their prehistoric population levels. A study published several years ago concluded that the Southern California lion population has increased tenfold since ending the bounty system.
The Sierra bighorn population has plummeted from a hard-won 310 animals to only 150 from lion predation. It’s obvious that the Sierra herds face extinction unless some lions are killed. Yes, mountain lions are magnificent animals, but they are not threatened with extinction. We should allow professional wildlife managers of the Fish and Game Department to do their jobs and prevent the extinction of the Sierra bighorn herds.
DAVID R. STOCKTON, Whittier
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