NMpistolero,
I know I have stirred up a hornet nest of disenting opinion, but the lion pop in the guad is a simple predator/prey relationship. Nuke the aoudad's out of existance in that area and that will cycle down the lion pop or they will have to move elsewhere. Puma concolor is not an endangered species, in fact, it ranges from far North America (canada) down to Terra de Feugo. Seriously mnt. lions are a dime a dozen in the northern and southern hemisphere, shoot them too...they are not as rare as the genetics of desert big horns. Very common. The trick of the whole thing is to provide spaces for longevity and genetic diversity...in terms of this 'southern' big horn sheep. Who give a rat's patoot about cougers, domestic sheep, barbery's, Ibex or oryx if we can't just have an essential piece of the puzzle. The big cats thrive off what nonnatives we provide. Is that not the truth?
