Big Brown Eyes

As usual I come across a herd of Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep...this one was very curious about the camera I was holding. This image was captured in... more

by Janice Pariza

Title

Big Brown Eyes

Artist

Janice Pariza

Medium

Photograph - Photography

Description

As usual I come across a herd of Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep...this one was very curious about the camera I was holding. This image was captured in March 2016 in Ouray, Colorado. Image processing help by Priscila Burgers.
Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep are the largest wild sheep in North America. Muscular males can weigh over 300 pounds and stand over three feet tall at the shoulder. Females are roughly half this size. Bighorn sheep are gray/brown to dark brown in color with white patches on their rump, muzzle and back of legs. Winter coats are thick, double-layered and may be lighter in color. Bighorn sheep shed these heavy coats in the summer.

They have wide-set eyes that provide a large angle of vision. This along with sharp hearing and a highly-developed sense of smell can detect dangers at great distances. Specialized hooves and rough soles provide a natural grip as bighorn sheep make precarious jumps and breath-taking climbs up and down sharp cliff faces.

As their name suggests, bighorn sheep have true horns that they retain throughout their life. Males, called rams, have large horns that curl around their faces by eight years of age. These horns can weigh up to 30 pounds. Females, called ewes, have smaller horns that curve slightly to a sharp point within the first four years of life.

Bighorn sheep live in social groups but rams and ewes usually only meet to mate. Rams live in bachelor groups and ewes live in herds with younger lambs. Lambs are born in the spring and walk soon after birth. They nurse up to six months. Males leave their mother's group around two to four years of age, while the females stay with their herd for life.

Bighorn sheep feed on grasses in the summer and browse shrubs in the fall and winter. They seek minerals at natural salt licks like Sheep Lakes to add nutrients to their diet. Their digestive system acts as a survival mechanism. A complex, four-part stomach allows sheep to gain important nutrients from hard, dry forage. They eat large amounts of vegetation quickly and then retreat to cliffs or ledges. Here they can thoroughly rechew and digest their food away from possible predators. The lifespan of bighorn sheep is approximately 10 years.
Mating occurs in the fall when rams use their horns as weapons of battle to fight for dominance or female mating rights. In this display called "rut," rams face each other, rear up on hind legs and pitch forward at speeds up to 40 mph. The loud crash of horns signals contact and can be heard up to one mile away. This ritual is repeated until one animal concedes and walks away. Bighorn sheep skulls are thick and bony to absorb this repeated impact with little physical injury to the ram.


PURCHASE OPTIONS:
Prints of this art are available on canvas, metal, acrylic and gallery prints, framed or unframed, greeting cards and iPhone or Galaxy phone covers and so many other quality items. FAA has a large selection of frames, mats and surfaces available for you to create museum quality masterpieces of your original print selections. Should you have any questions, feel free to contact me and I can give you any suggestions! Thank you!

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Uploaded

November 21st, 2018