NEWS RELEASE
Oct. 29, 2025
MORENCI, Ariz. — One of the world’s most productive copper mines is also one of Arizona’s most reliable sources of Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep. In a win-win for Arizona’s sheep populations and the community of Morenci, Arizona Game and Fish Department (AZGFD) wildlife managers routinely move sheep from dangerous locations amid mining operations and local traffic to areas where they can have a positive impact.
“These translocations are great because AZGFD is able to boost the numbers of wild Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep and also lessen the hazard of vehicle collisions in the mine and nearby town,” said Justin Winter, AZGFD terrestrial senior wildlife specialist.
The bighorns are not shy about entering Freeport-McMoRan’s open-pit copper mining operation, but predators are — meaning there’s no natural check on sheep population growth. Extra sheep create increased collision risk for mine workers and other drivers along U.S. Highway 191, but they also represent a healthy source population.
“You could almost consider the sheep living in the mine a nursery herd – it keeps growing sheep and we’re able to utilize that population to increase numbers in the wild,” Winter said. “The mine appreciates our translocation efforts too because each sheep we move is one less animal to pose a risk to workers and drivers.”
Two herds — the East Clear Creek just outside of Winslow and the South Fork by Greer — were both started with sheep translocated from the Morenci mine.
During the most recent capture at the end of August, eight sheep were taken to the Upper Blue River Area where AZGFD biologists hope they will join the local bighorns.
“The Blue River herd has been slow-growing and survey numbers have been low over the past five years,” Winter said. “If these eight sheep from the mine stay in the area, they’ll be a great addition.”
Some of the sheep were fitted with tracking collars, which will give wildlife managers valuable location and behavior insights.
“These sheep will provide really good movement data,” said Winter. “We’ll be able to see which areas of the Upper Blue River they occupy and that’ll help us refine our surveys and get a better understanding of what the population looks like.”
Four of the collars were funded by donations from members of the public who support AZGFD’s science-based wildlife conservation efforts. The collars will last about three years and utilize satellite-based GPS technology, giving biologists highly accurate and real-time data.
Along with deploying the tracking collars, AZGFD’s assistant state wildlife veterinarian joined the capture to provide health checks.
“They are a pretty healthy population,” said Dr. Ann Fan, DVM. “The one disease we worry the most about is bighorn sheep pneumonia (Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae). This population has been closely monitored and we’ve never detected it – and thankfully, all eight of these sheep tested negative as well.”
Of the eight sheep captured, seven were rams and just one was a ewe. Ideally, at least two more females would have been translocated, but AZGFD biologists do not capture ewes that are nursing or are still raising lambs. Fortunately, having the help of Freeport-McMoRan’s security team and environmental division makes planning a return trip easy.
“It’s nice having people who already know where the sheep are and can help us navigate the mine and its operations,” Winter said. “We can just drive down and start our capture without spending hours looking for sheep.”
The newest members of the Blue River herd are settling in well and the partnership between AZGFD and Freeport-McMoRan is a great example of how Arizona’s industry and wildlife conservation efforts can work together. That’s something Winter hopes will continue for years to come.
“It’s such a great mutual benefit,” Winter said. “Not only does AZGFD get to help wild bighorn sheep boost their numbers and establish new populations, we’re also helping solve safety issues for the mine and the town of Morenci. It’s truly a win-win.”