Would you believe me when sheep fly? What if I told you they already did? Sheep soared through the sky as helicopters carried them through the sky in early December as part of a years-long conservation project. In this episode, we tell you the story of the historic reintroduction of bighorn sheep to El Paso's Franklin Mountains State Park.

Hosts:

• Morgan O’Hanlon is a senior staff writer at Texas Parks & Wildlife Magazine.
• David Yoskowitz is the Executive Director of Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.

Episode Guests (in order of appearance):

• Cody McEntire, wildlife biologist at Elephant Mountain Wildlife Management Area
• Dr. Sara Wyckoff, wildlife veterinarian at Texas Parks and Wildlife
• Froylán Hernández, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department Desert Bighorn Sheep Program Leader
• Austin Bohannon, Brewster County Wildlife Biologist
• Josh Cross, wildlife biologist at Sierra Diablo Wildlife Management Area
• Julie Myers, Pecos County Wildlife Biologist

Show Highlights:

• For years, Elephant Mountain Wildlife Management Area has been home to Texas’ only disease-free herd of bighorn sheep.
• Relocation of some of Elephant Mountain’s sheep was planned to establish a second “clean” herd at Franklin Mountains State Park in El Paso.
• Currently, the greatest threat against bighorn sheep is the disease M.Ovi, which is carried by domesticated sheep and an invasive species called aoudad. It causes deadly pneumonia in bighorns.
• The 26,000-acre Franklin Mountains State Park ranks among the largest urban parks in the country. Because it is bordered by highways and houses on three sides, it provides a virtual quarantine zone for the bighorn sheep.
• Seventy-seven desert bighorn sheep were released into Franklin Mountains State Park on December 4, 2024.
• The historic reintroduction of bighorn sheep to Franklin Mountains State Park was made possible by numerous partners, including: The Texas Bighorn Society, The Wild Sheep Foundation, Borderlands Research Institute at Sul Ross State University, and Texas Tech University.

Read the original story that appeared in the March edition of Texas Parks & Wildlife Magazine. You can read more stories about the Texas outdoors at tpwmagazine.com. If you want to get copies of our beautiful, glossy magazine delivered straight to your mailbox, you can subscribe for only $2.00 a month. And if you want to keep up on live events and behind-the-scenes takes, follow the magazine on Instagram at @tpwmagazine.

Keep up with other agency news on Facebook or Instagram at @texasparkswildlife.

Did you know Texas Parks and Wildlife has a TV show? Watch the episode on restoring bighorn sheep to Franklin Mountains State Park.

Our theme music is by Walker Lukens and Grant Eppley. And, if you like our song, you might also like the album Walker produced for the Texas Parks & Wildlife Foundation. Sales from the album benefit TPWD's conservation work. Listen to Texas Wild at texaswildalbum.org.

Better Outside’s artwork is by Aaron Zachary. Follow him on Instagram at @filmnfish.