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"The hunt is actually selecting in a direction that is opposite to what natural selection would be," said biologist Marco Festa-Bianchet from the University of Sherbrooke in Quebec. "Normally, a large-horned ram would do very well, but in a hunted population he is more likely to get shot."
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In 1980, a herd would be about 25 per cent rams between four and five years old. After 30 years of hunters picking off males as soon as their horns curled enough, that proportion is down to about 10 per cent.
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The size changes don't threaten the species' health. Bighorn sheep are abundant in Alberta and coexist quite well with humans. But the changes could threaten the province's reputation as the place to go for a trophy bighorn.
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"There's no way out of the problem than reducing the size of the harvest." The province could change its policy of issuing ram tags to every hunter who asks for one. Or it could trim a couple of weeks off the hunting season to give young males a chance to breed without getting shot.

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