Introduction and Pre-Capture Planning
The capture of wildlife has its roots in providing nutrients for human consumption, whether through the domestication of wild animals or for more immediate use as a source of protein (Drew 2020). Over the millennia, methods of capturing wildlife have evolved in terms of their utility and efficacy. Recent history has seen massive improvements in capture and handling techniques, especially for wildlife conservation or wildlife research. Such has been the case with North American wild sheep (Ovis canadensis, Ovis dalli).
Capture and handling of wild sheep for any purpose requires extensive planning, is labor-intensive, and extremely costly (Bleich 1990). Some wildlife agencies have developed "in house" guidelines or recommendations for the capture, handling, sampling, treatment, or translocation of wildlife in general (e.g., Jessup and Clark 1980, 1982; Jessup et al. 1986), and some agencies eventually developed guidelines for wild sheep (e.g., George et al. 2008, WGFD 2022). With minor exceptions (e.g., Wilson et al. 1975, Remington and Fuller 1989), however, few recommendations specific to the capture of North American wild sheep were available. With this realization and at the urging of wild sheep biologists from throughout North America, Foster (2005) developed and published a set of guidelines to address that shortcoming. Those recommendations have been in use for more than 20 years. The concept and initial draft of these revised guidelines were initiated in 2019 by the then current Chair of the WAFWA Wild Sheep Working Group (now the Wild Sheep Initiative), who assigned two wildlife veterinarians to create the framework and sections necessary to build on and update Foster's (2005) document. READ MORE
Suggested Citation:
Bleich, V. C., and D. W. Lutz. 2024. Wild sheep capture and handling guidelines. Second edition. Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, Boise, Idaho, USA.
Attached Files
| File | Action |
|---|---|
| Wild Sheep Capture & Handling Guidelines, 2nd Edition (16 MB) | Download |
| Chapter 1: Introduction and Pre-Capture Planning (2 MB) | Download |
| Chapter 2: Basecamp Operations (947 KB) | Download |
| Chapter 3: Health and Veterinary Care of Wild Sheep (2 MB) | Download |
| Chapter 4: Collaring and Marking Wild Sheep (3 MB) | Download |
| Chapter 5: Capturing Wild Sheep with a Net-Gun (2 MB) | Download |
| Chapter 6: Capturing Wild Sheep with a Drop-Net (3 MB) | Download |
| Chapter 7: Capturing Wild Sheep Using Chemical Immobilization (2 MB) | Download |
| Chapter 8: Capture and Handling of Neonates (3 MB) | Download |
| Chapter 9: Translocation, Release, and Monitoring of Wild Sheep (8 MB) | Download |
- Version
- File Type pdf
- File Size 0.00 KB
- Publication Date July 2, 2024
- Download Count (since 10/2020) [2]
