Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep

This bighorn sheep looks back from on high in the Ruby Mountains as the storm clears. Closely related to Nevada's state animal, the desert bighorn, the Rocky Mountain bighorn is thicker bodied and well adapted to living at higher elevations and weathering severe winters. Besides larger bodies and thicker coats, Rocky Mountain bighorns can be differentiated from California and desert bighorns by their larger horns and darker coats. Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep are found in Northeastern Nevada primarily in the Ruby and East Humboldt Mountains near Elko.