Did you know there is a bighorn sheep herd in Nebraska? It’s not the first place that comes to mind—but it should be. Before their extirpation in the early 1990s, about 1,000 bighorns, particularly Audubon sheep, thrived in the Pine Ridge and Wildcat Hills of the Nebraska Panhandle. Unregulated harvest, habitat loss, and disease led to their disappearance.

Today, thanks to Nebraska Game & Parks and partners including the Wild Sheep Foundation, Iowa FNAWS, Nebraska Big Game Society, and Midwest WSF, bighorns are back. Through multiple translocations from Montana and Alberta, herds are growing once again. Program Lead Todd Nordeen and his team are working tirelessly to keep them there.

In this episode, Sheep Fever co-host Gray Thornton and Todd discuss Nebraska’s bighorn history, the comeback, ongoing challenges, and the path forward to return to 1,000 animals—while also diving into source stock, captive breeding at Ft. Robinson State Park, and future disease management efforts.

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