358 EXTINCT AND VANISHING MAMMALS 



each having its range, migrating in autumn to wintering 

 areas and in spring to the extensive summer ranges. A proper 

 winter range thus becomes essential to their well-being, but 

 it appears that at the time when the report was made (1937), 

 the winter range had "been so depleted by the large bands of 

 wapiti that the bighorn were feeding on very short grass all 

 winter . . . cropping grass so closely that plants were up- 

 rooted and the roots and adhering soil were swallowed." In 

 addition to this competition for food, "two diseases, scabies 

 and lung worm infection, have caused reduction of the bighorn 

 population in this region. " There is also a certain amount of 

 infection from nematodes, which may be more or less normal. 

 Mills believes that the conditions may be alleviated by re- 

 storing the winter range to a better condition (involving some 

 reduction in the wapiti herd as well as a possible acquisition of 

 additional park territory) and maintaining a proper proportion 

 of large predators that will eliminate unhealthy individuals. 

 The study points the way to a better understanding of the 

 requirements of the bighorn and of methods for maintaining a 

 normal population. 



BADLANDS BIGHORN"; AUDUBON'S BIGHORN 

 Ovis CANADENSIS AUDUBONi Merriam 



Ovis canadensis auduboni Merriam, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, vol. 14, p. 31, Apr. 5, 



1901 ("Upper Missouri," believed to be the Badlands of South Dakota). 

 FIG.: Audubon and Bachman, 1846-54, vol. 2, pi. 73 (col). 



This is the most eastern race of the bighorn, but it is now un- 

 happily extinct. It seems to have been but very slightly 

 different from the typical Rocky Mountain bighorn, but the 

 upper tooth row averaged longer, and the tooth rows were less 

 nearly parallel. Audubon and Bachman (1846-54) described 

 the color as "light grayish brown," the rump and under parts 

 grayish white; weight of an adult male 344 pounds, and of a 

 female 240 pounds. 



A century ago this sheep was abundant in the broken country 

 or Badlands of the upper Missouri and Little Missouri in 

 western Dakota. Bailey (1926) has summed up its history in 

 North Dakota; its former range in that State "included all of 

 the very rough Badlands country along and west of the Mis- 

 souri River. " It was found in western South Dakota, western 



