Source:Wikipedia:Bighorn sheep:Native to North America

Wikipedia: Bighorn sheep "crossed to North America over the Bering land bridge"

Parent page: Book of Mormon/Animals/Sheep

Wikipedia: Bighorn sheep "crossed to North America over the Bering land bridge"

Bighorn sheep were native to North America at the time the the Jaredites arrived. The following is from Wikipedia:

The bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis)[1] is a species of sheep in North America [2] named for its large horns. These horns can weigh up to 30 lb (14 kg), while the sheep themselves weigh up to 300 lb (140 kg). [3] Recent genetic testing indicates three distinct subspecies of Ovis canadensis, one of which is endangered: O. c. sierrae. Sheep originally crossed to North America over the Bering land bridge from Siberia: the population in North America peaked in the millions, and the bighorn sheep entered into the mythology of Native Americans. [4]

Notes

  1. "Ovis canadensis". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 18 March 2006.
  2. Grubb, P. (16 November 2005). Wilson, D. E.; Reeder, D. M, eds. Mammal Species of the World (3rd ed.). Johns Hopkins University Press. off-site
  3. "Bighorn Sheep". Ultimate Ungulate page. off-site
  4. "Bighorn sheep," Wikipedia (accessed 18 August 2014)