Desert bighorn sheep

Desert bighorn are smaller, longer-legged and shorter-coated than their cousin, the Rocky Mountain bighorn. In spring they can go many days without drinking, getting enough moisture from the plants they eat; in dry seasons they rely on potholes and springs. They choose steep, rocky terrain where they can escape predators such as mountain lions.

Hunting, habitat loss and disease from domestic livestock cut bighorn numbers sharply, and by the mid-1900s they were gone from Zion. The National Park Service and Utah's Division of Wildlife Resources returned 14 sheep to the park by 1978. The park says contact with domestic sheep and goats can still spread diseases that are fatal to wild bighorn. The rut runs from July through October, and lambs are born from mid-January through April.

In Zion, the park says bighorn are most often seen on the east side, between the Zion-Mount Carmel Tunnel and the East Entrance. Drive carefully, use pullouts to watch and keep a safe distance.