Bighorn Sheep Airlifted Off Utah Island

More than 50 bighorn sheep have been moved by helicopter from an island in Utah’s Great Salt Lake to nearby mountain areas.

The project began Wednesday morning, The Salt Lake Tribune reported. The sheep were lifted off Antelope Island three at a time in nets hung from helicopters.

California bighorn sheep were transplanted to Antelope Island in 1997. At the time, biologists hoped the sheep would flourish there and provide surplus animals that could be used to restore the bighorn to parts of Utah, where it was once the dominant mammal.

Before the sheep-lift began, there were about 200 of the animals on the island.

Helicopters transported the sheep to a staging area on the mainland where they were weighed, measured, fitted with radio collars and ear tags and given shots of antibiotics. They were then taken by truck to their new homes.

Steve Bates, the wildlife biologist at Antelope Island State Park, said the sheep were not sedated for the helicopter ride. He said they suffer less harm if they are handled calmly and quickly.