Alberta holds auction, bidder ponies up US$400,000 to hunt a bighorn sheep

The right to hunt bighorn sheep, Alberta's official mammal, has netted the province US$400,000 at auction. A bighorn sheep stands on a ridge in La Quinta, Calif., on Sunday, Jan. 25, 2015. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP/Chris Carlson

EDMONTON — The right to hunt a single bighorn sheep, Alberta's official mammal, has netted the province US$400,000 at auction.

The Alberta government says it's a record-setting price and hopefully a sign of what's to come when seven more provincially issued special licences are auctioned next month at a hunting expo in Salt Lake City.

“Based on the recent record setting sale in Reno, Nev., for the 2025 Minister's Special Licence for bighorn sheep, our government is confident the province will see an increase in funding raised this year,” said Alexandru Cioban, the press secretary for Forestry and Parks Minister Todd Loewen.

The special licences grant hunters with the highest bid the opportunity to hunt year-round for a specific animal.

Each licence is valid for one year.

The hunt must take place in designated wildlife management areas that permit hunting for the animal, but seasonal rules in the areas don’t apply.

The licences are not limited to Albertans or even Canadians. The province awards similar licences each year for Alberta residents only through raffles, Cioban said.

The remaining 2025 licences up for auction in February are for hunting a cougar, pronghorn antelope, moose, elk, wild turkey and two species of deer.

Cioban said licences last year for mule deer, moose, pronghorn antelope, bighorn sheep and more sold for a combined C$1.2 million at auction and through raffles. The bighorn sheep licence was the most coveted, selling for US$320,000, while a licence for hunting a wild turkey fetched the least at US$4,750.

The 2024 mule deer licence was the second most expensive, selling for US$160,000, followed by US$55,000 for elk and US$45,000 for moose.

Cioban said the money raised through auction is given to the Alberta Professional Outfitters Society, which is responsible for licensing hunting guides and outfitters on behalf of the government.

The society’s website says it gives wildlife presentations in schools, provides grants for animal conservation projects such as population surveys, and offers post-secondary scholarships to fish and wildlife management students.

Jeana Schuurman, the society's managing director, said in an email that the society administers the funds on behalf of a committee with representatives from conservation organizations and post-secondary schools, as well as an Indigenous representative and a member of the public.

She said committee members decide where to award the money in the form of grants for conservation projects.

The committee is to meet in March to discuss this year's funding distribution and funding recipients will be announced in April, she said.

Funds raised through raffle, which over the past two years have been significantly less than auction sales, are given to the Alberta Conservation Association, Cioban said.

He said habitat enhancement, disease management in wild sheep and wildlife movement ecology studies are examples of conservation projects the licences have helped fund in the past.

"While the funds raised vary from year to year, the Minister's Special Licence program provides a steady flow of funding to conservation projects," he said.

Loewen flew to Germany on Tuesday to attend the Jagd and Hund Show, considered Europe's largest hunting exhibition, to promote the upcoming auction.

"I’m excited to promote our province as a ‘must-see’ destination for nature-based recreation,” Loewen said in a press release Monday.

The auction is set to take place Feb. 14 to 17.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 29, 2025.

Jack Farrell, The Canadian Press