Some early records of the bighorn were mentioned by C.W. Quaintance
(1935): In a letter of January 20, 1935, John Wetherill said that a
"Mountain Sheep Canyon" (now Rock Canyon) was named for a bunch of sheep
that wintered near their camp; and Sam Ahkeah, a Navajo, says the
Indians occasionally find remnants of sheep on the Mesa, which they take
back to their hogans. Cahalane (1948:257) reported that hunting
presumably had eliminated bighorns from the Mesa by 1896; however Jean
Pinkley reports that a large ram was killed on Point Lookout in 1906.
On January 30, 1946, 14 sheep (3 rams, 7 ewes, and 4 lambs) from the
herd at Tarryall, Colorado, were obtained through the Colorado
Department of Game and Fish and were released at 8:30 a.m. at the edge
of the canyon south of Spruce Tree Lodge. The sheep, instead of entering
the canyon as expected, turned north, passed behind the museum, and
eventually disappeared northward on Chapin Mesa. The sheep evidently
divided into at least two bands. On April 24, 1946, three sheep were
seen 2-1/2 mi. N of Rock Springs, and on June 19, 1947, tracks were seen
in Mancos Canyon. In 1947, 1948, and 1949 farmers in Weber Canyon
reported seeing sheep many times on Weber Mountain, and watering at the
Mancos River. In May, 1949, an estimate of 27 sheep on Weber Mountain
was made after several days study by men from the state game department.
The herds continued to increase. In 1956 I saw two bighorns. On August
18, at 6:20 a.m., my wife and I briefly observed a bighorn on the rocks
below Square Tower Ruins. On August 24, I was digging with a small
shovel in rocky soil behind the cabin at Rock Springs, when hoof beats
were heard approaching in the rocky head of the canyon to the east. An
adult ewe came up to the fence around the cabin area and looked at me,
seemingly curious about the noise my shovel had been producing. I
remained motionless and called to my wife, Justine, to come from the
cabin and see the sheep. The ewe seemed not to be disturbed by my voice,
but took flight, returning in the direction from which she had come, the
moment Justine appeared from behind the cabin. Sheep can now be seen on
occasion in any of the deep canyons across the southern half of the
Park. The sheep have caused slight damage in some of the ruins by
bedding down there, and by climbing on walls. As the sheep increase in
numbers this activity may be regarded as a problem. In 1959 an estimated
75 to 100 sheep were in the Park and adjacent areas.